WebHelp search results display issue in Chrome

[scorho]

In Chrome, when I click a Search result, the linked topic opens without the left nav. The only way to get the nav back is to click Back until you're back where you were. Obviously this is a problem is you're trying to go through multiple search results to find your info.

It works fine in FF and IE8. Clicking a search result opens the linked topic in the content frame as expected.

Reply

[Su-Laine Yeo]

Hello,

I can reproduce this issue in Chrome with the default output from WebHelp. I believe the issue is related to configuration files, as this WebHelp  site http://na.justsystems.com/webhelp/en/xmetalauthor/enterprise/6.0/XMEE.html appears properly in Chrome.

If you download and install the configuration files here: http://forums.xmetal.com/index.php/topic,626.0.html , they should resolve the issue.

Cheers,
Su-Laine

Reply

[scorho]

Thanks for the response. I don't want to lose the customizations we've already made to the default configuration files. Is there a way to get the proper display in Chrome without completely overwriting the files we've already customized?

Reply

[Su-Laine Yeo]

I've done more testing, and there's something strange going on. Installing the customizations pack that I posted above does not fix the problem.

The problem is not seen when I access http://na.justsystems.com/webhelp/en/xmetalauthor/enterprise/6.0/XMEE.html#Welcome%20to%20XMetaL%20Author in Chrome, however it is seen if I take exactly the same Webhelp output folder that is used for the above website, and open it from the local machine using instead of from the Internet.

From the little I know of Chrome, it does not treat JavaScript in local files the same way that it treats JavaScript on the Internet. Are you planning to distribute your Webhelp project on a web server so that it is accessed over http://, or will it be distributed by being installed on local machines?

If you plan to distribute your Webhelp project on a web server, try your project there and it might work.

Reply

[Su-Laine Yeo]

Update: OK, a Google search for “WebHelp Chrome” got me somewhere. According to this article, the problem with web-based help on the local file system is a known issue with recent versions of Chrome, and it affects a variety of web-based help systems: http://techcommdood.com/?p=434 .

In Chrome 8, when you click a WebHelp search result on the local file system, you get the following script error:

“Unsafe JavaScript attempt to access frame with URL file://…  from frame with URL file://…. Domains, protocols and ports must match.”

It seems to be a manifestation of this known issue in Chrome: http://code.google.com/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=47416

Reply

[scorho]

Thanks! That's good to know. We've noticed a couple other minor Chrome display issues when testing locally (such as extra space after the numbers in numbered lists). Maybe they'll be fixed too. We're almost ready to test on our server. I'll try that and see if it fixes the problems.

Reply

[scorho]

Just noticed your update. Sounds like the same kind of issue we were seeing with webhelp generated from a different system. I'll test tomorrow and see what I see.

Reply

[scorho]

I've tested this and you're right. The nav doesn't go away when you click a search result in Chrome when the help is on the server, only when you try to test the files locally. That's very good news.

There's still one Chrome issue on our list, but it's relatively minor. Chrome throws in an extra space after a number in a numbered list, so margins aren't as neat as we'd like. Compared to the search results issue, though, this isn't that important.

Reply

[Author]

Posts