MICROSOFT COMPILED
HTML HELP FILE
Mariz P. Camacho
MICROSOFT COMPILED HTML HELP FILE
Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................3
Development...............................................................................................................................................3
LZX compression......................................................................................................................................3
Requirements..............................................................................................................................................3
Help Authoring Tool................................................................................................................................3
System Requirements..............................................................................................................................4
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MICROSOFT COMPILED HTML HELP FILE
Introduction
Microsoft Compiled HTML File is used for providing documentary help for software applications
in a proprietary format. With “.CHM” as its extension, the file contains its own web pages written in a
subset of HTML with a hyperlinked table of contents. In most cases a CHM browser has the ability to
display a table of contents outside the body text of the file.
Development
This was first developed and released by Microsoft in 1997 as a follow up to its MS “WinHelp”
format and was first introduced with the release of the operating system Windows 98.
As files are heavily indexed, CHM format is optimized for reading. Files are compressed
together with LZX Compression.
The file starts with bytes "ITSF" (in ASCII), for "Info-Tech Storage Format". The format has been
reverse-engineered by Matthew Russotto with assistance from Peter Ferrie and Paul Wise.
LZX compression
LZX is the name of a compression algorithm and also a name of a file achiver. Microsoft chose to
compress all of the HTML data with the LZX algorithm when Microsoft Compiled HTML Help was
introduced as a replacement to their previous Help file format.
LZX is also the name of a programming language used in the OpenLaszlo platform.
Requirements
Help files are made with Help Authoring Tools. Microsoft ships the Help Workshop with
supported versions of Microsoft Windows and makes the tool available as a free download.
Help Authoring Tool
Help Authoring Tool (HAT) is a software program used by technical writers to create online help
systems.
File Input – HAT allows the user to create the text within the tool by using an editor or obtain
the source text from the file produced by another program. File format that can be imported
includes such formats as:
o ASCII
o HTML
o OpenOffice Writer
o Microsoft Word
o MS WinHelp
o MS Compressed HTML Help
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MICROSOFT COMPILED HTML HELP FILE
Help Output – HAT output can be either be a compiled Help file with format such as:
o (*.HLP) MS WinHelp or
o (*.CHM) MS Compiled HTML Help
or non-compiled file formats such as:
o PDF
o XML
o HTML or
o JAVAHelp
Some common Help Authoring Tools include:
Adobe RoboHelp
Author-it
Doc-To-Help
HelpConsole 2010
Help & Manual
Help Generator
HelpNDoc
HyperText Studio
MadCap Flare
Sandcastle
HTML Help Workshop
System Requirements
You must set up Microsoft Internet Explorer (3.0 or later) on your computer before using HTML
Help. Internet Explorer 4.0 or later is recommended.
HTML Help requires about 8 MB of free disk space.
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