Computer Network Router User Manual

CHAPTER 8
Newton Services
Help 8-29
Users can also access the built-in help by choosing Help from the Info picker
in any built-in application. When accessed through an Info picker, the help
overview appears with the appropriate outline topic already expanded.
Likewise, your application gives users access to its online help through its
Info picker (see “Info Picker” on page 4-24).
Another method of accessing online help is through the Extras Drawer. The
built-in help is a digital help book that is customarily filed in the Help folder
of the Extras Drawer. A user can open the built-in online help by tapping the
Help icon there. You can give users the same access to your application’s
online help by making it a digital help book in the Extras Drawer. For more
information on digital help books, see Newton Book Maker User’s Guide.
The purpose of online help is to provide quick access to single screens of
step-by-step instructions for performing actions in a Newton application. If
you add online help to your application, keep the following points in mind:
■ Organize your online help so users can’t get lost in it.
■ Make help information short, since the help view doesn’t scroll and
probably never will. The system truncates help information that exceeds
the length of the help view.
■ Keep each help page simple, specific, and task-oriented.
■ Phrase each overview topic and subtopic so it grammatically completes
a question that begins “How do I?” For example, the topic “Use the
Shopping List Application” asks the question “How Do I Use the Shopping
List Application?” Under this topic could be subtopics such as “Add Items
to the Shopping List” and “Check Off Purchased Items.” Do not begin a
topic or subtopic with a gerund, such as “Using,” or the topic will not mesh
grammatically with the “How do I?” question.
Online help is not intended to provide a full user manual. If you want to
create an online user manual in a large view with multiple-font text and
on-screen controls for content navigation, make it a regular Newton digital
book (not a digital help book). For information on making digital books, see
Newton Book Maker User’s Guide.