Re: [platform-help-dev] Questions: Help Editor? Running Help from CD-ROM

[Mark Diggory <mdiggory@xxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks Lee Anne,

I've included my comments inline...

Lee Anne Kowalski wrote:

> Hi Mark! Thanks for posting on this topic.
>
> > 1.) Is anyone working on an "Editor" for building and navigating the
> > Help Toc file hierarchy?...Is this something in the works already, 
> or are there individuals
> > interest in working on such a feature?
>
> The Eclipse programmers would have to comment on whether there is 
> something "in the works already" within the Eclipse Foundation itself. 
> I have not seen anything in the formal Eclipse plans for 3.1 posted at 
> eclipse.org that indicates that there is something like this.
>
> Based on feedback I've heard was expressed at EclipseCon2005, there 
> are individuals using Eclipse that would be interested in such a feature.

I'm sure it would help simplify the the creation of help content. I 
would suggest that it be based off of the WTP project, utilizing the 
Extensible Navigator Framework and HTML Editor.

> >2.) Also, Can I run the entire Standalone Help system off a CD-ROM? I'm
> >interested in seeing if this is possible. Conceivable limitations would
> >be eclipse and tomcat attempting to write log files...
>
> Yes, this is possible. Eclipse on the CD would have to have access to 
> a JVM ( the machine's operating system or on the CD and the startup 
> command point to the one on the CD).
>
> Write-access does have to be allowed tosome temporary directory, 
> because Tomcat and the search indexing functions do require being able 
> to write files. You can set a specific location using the -data 
> parameter on the startup command and something like:
> -data %temp%\standalone
>
> The -data parameter is described here: 
> http://dev.eclipse.org/viewcvs/index.cgi/~checkout~/org.eclipse.platform.doc.user/tasks/running_eclipse.htm 

Thank you Lee Anne, this was very helpful, within a very short time I 
had a the required plugins in place and was able to launch Help from an 
autorun.ini of the cdrom, great!

I guess my next questions are:

How to make sure it shuts down after the user ejects the cdrom or closes 
the Help Perspective?

As a solution I thought, Why not have a Help "Product" or "Application" 
extension in the plugin that would allow for the launch of Standalone 
help from the eclipse.exe, then it would shutdown when the Application 
was exited? Developers wanting to "test" their help content could just 
setup just another platform run configuration that launched only the 
Standalone Help "Application".

-Mark Diggory