Function panel - connection to .chm help file?

[Ian.W]

After making an ActiveX Controller (for a 3rd party COM component) with the CVI wizard, I used to get sent to the COM component's helpfile (.chm) for function help. That was great. But, I have upgraded the COM component to a new version, re-built the ActiveX Controller, and now there are no help links to the .chm file. All I get is the regular function panel help within CVI, which provides less background information.

How do I revive that "magic" connection so function help (Shift-F1) links to the right spot in the vendor's .chm help file?

Thanks,

Ian

[JonathanN]

Howdy Ian,

The Help file (.chm) linkage is solely done by the third-party company that made the ActiveX component. During the  process of using the ActiveX Controller Wizard, there will be an Advanced Options panel. Inside this panel is where you will see if help has been integrated.  Context-sensitive help buttons are labeled with a question mark (?) and display help for the server, object, method, or property. If the ActiveX server does not provide help for an item, the corresponding context-sensitive help button is dimmed.  Thus, you when you launch help for the function, you will not be taken to a .chm file but rather CVIs help.

You can observe the linkage by using Microsoft's tool called OLE/COM Object Viewer to view the type library for that ActiveX server.  These type libraries contain a HELPDIR variable that tells the ActiveX client (CVI in this case) what directory to look in for the help file. Also in this type library is other text that tells what the name of the file is as shown below:

helpstring("Name of server") and helpfile("xxx.chm")

It sounds like the newer version of the COM component, doesn't have any help linkage integrated. 

Hope this clarifies things! See the attached screenshots for example of Excels type library.

Best Regards,

[Ian.W]

Thanks, Jonathan. Excellent answer.

You are right: I was able to confirm from them that they did not put the context sensitive help in this version.

Thanks,

Ian