APPLICATION NOTE #143 MODIFYING LONG.HLP OR SHORT.HLP Rev. 01 XyWrite III Plus's Help feature consists of hundreds of convenient, menu-driven screens that enable you to access a large amount of information quickly and easily. This application note describes how to modify the existing Help files to suit your needs or the needs of the users for whom you want to provide help. It tells you how to accomplish various functions using the Help feature, such as: * Displaying a Help screen menu * Displaying a general-purpose full Help screen * Displaying function call information * Displaying information based on key words or phrases * Entering commands on the command line * Displaying key assignments * Displaying a detailed explanation of the most recent error message * Accessing ASCII Characters Information on loading a Help file, accessing a specific Help screen with one keystroke, and creating your own "help" files is also provided. To illustrate the concepts described in this application note, three useful step-by-step examples are provided: * Modifying the TEMPLATE Help screen to include changes in the standard keyboard file * Adding another option to the Help menu that provides personalized information (a telephone list) * Accessing the TEMPLATE Help screen with a single keystroke You can modify either the long version of Help or the short version by adding, deleting, or rearranging information in its corresponding Help file (LONG.HLP and SHORT.HLP, respectively). Each Help file is one long text file that can be edited as you edit any other text file. However, the first line of the file must contain the following 4-character label to tell the LOAD command that it is a Help file: ;HL; You can edit the formating commands on the second line of the Help file (such as Left Margin, Right Margin, Tabs, or Indents) to control the way text is arranged when displayed on the screen. After the formatting commands, the Help files have several comment lines. You can add as many comment lines as you want to describe such things as the contents of the file or any changes you've made to the file. Preface all comment lines with a semicolon (;) and end all comment lines with a carriage return (do not let comment lines wordwrap). For example: ;This is a comment that contains more than one line, ;but that does not wordwrap. Following the comment lines, the Help files consist of sections or Help frames that XyWrite uses to construct and operate each Help screen. HELP FRAMES Each Help frame contains text XyWrite displays on the screen, and it may contain commands or programs the user can initiate from the screen. There are several different Help frame types you can use depending on the way you want the Help screen to function. Some Help frame types display only one line while others are capable of displaying a full-screen of information (up to twenty lines). The various types are described throughout this application note based on their functions (such as entering a command on the command line or displaying key assignments). Each Help frame starts with a label enclosed in a pair of double curly braces {{ }}. A Help frame begins at the label and ends at the next label (which signals the beginning of the next Help frame). Although Help frames are not listed in any particular order within the Help files, XyWrite has no trouble quickly finding the topic on which the user requested information. Help Frame Labels Help frame labels must have the following format: {{#keyword1,keyword2,. . .}} The # in the label indicates the Help frame type. You enter the number (0 through 9) or the letter (A through G) that corresponds to the frame type you want to use. Help frame types and their functions are described in the sections below. The keyword in the label is the name by which the Help frame can be accessed. Keywords One or more keywords in the label indicate the way(s) information can be accessed. There is no limit to the length of a keyword; however, shorter keywords are easier to use. For example, the following label with the keyword find designates the beginning of a Type 6 Help frame that discusses finding files: {{6find}} If you include several keywords (separated by commas) in a label, the Help frame can be accessed by different names. For example, the frame that discusses creating a new document can be accessed several ways because the following label precedes the text for the frame in the Help file: {{6ne,new*,create}} When LONG.HLP is loaded, one way the user can display the information is by entering "ne," "new," or "create" in the WORD Help screen. Since the keyword new includes a wild card (*), s/he could also display the information by entering "new file" or any other characters following the word new. Two other wildcards you can use are ? and #. The ? wildcard means that any single character can occupy that position. For example, the following label can be accessed by @a, @b, @$, etc. {{1@?}} The # wildcard means that any single digit can occupy that position. For example, the following label can be accessed by c0, c1, ...c9: {{2c#}} Keywords also link Help frames together which enables the user to move directly from one topic to another. You set this up by including the keyword of one Help frame in bold somewhere in the text of another Help frame. The user places the cursor on one of these words to highlight it and presses the carriage return. XyWrite displays the Help frame labeled with the highlighted word from the previous frame. If you include more than one bold keyword in a Help frame, you must separate them by at least two spaces. To save disk space (and time), you can enter the spaces while still using bold mode. The user can move through as many linked Help screens as needed. The screens are layered on top of each other, the most recent on top in a stack of up to 14 screens. If necessary, the user can move backwards through the stack of screens by pressing Esc. However, if the user accesses more than 14 screens, the first 14 screens are dropped from the stack and XyWrite starts to build another stack of screens. Therefore, when the user accesses the fifteenth linked Help screen and then presses Esc, XyWrite returns to the point at which the user entered Help. Be careful that you do not create two Help screens that use the same keyword, especially when using wildcards. For example, if the following two labels exist in the same Help file in the order shown, the Type 5 Help frame will never be displayed. XyWrite searches the Help file from top to bottom and will select the Type 1 Help frame as a match when the user enters "spelling" because of the wildcard (*). {{1spell*}} {{5spelling}} Special Keywords There are also six special keywords you can use to designate the conditions under which a specific Help frame can be displayed. Five of the special keywords ($N, $F, $D, $B, and $*) are used when displaying a Help screen menu and are described in the section below. The other special keyword is described in "Accessing a Specific Help Screen with One Keystroke." LOADING HELP FILES Use the Load command to load your Help files as you would any other customization files. Refer to the XyWrite Reference Manual for more information on loading customization files. Since Help files can become very large, XyWrite never keeps the whole file in memory. The first time you load a Help file, XyWrite creates an internal index of the file and stores the index at the bottom of the Help file. This index, and certain other types of Help frames, are all that actually load into memory, which allows a very large Help file to consume very little memory. When you access Help, XyWrite checks the index, much as you check the index of a book, to determine where to get the information you want displayed. It then refers back to the Help file stored on disk to get the information to display on the screen. For this reason, it is important to specify the full path and file name when you load the Help file. If you load the same unchanged Help file again, XyWrite does not rebuild the index, so the file loads very quickly. Whenever you edit a Help file and store it back to the disk, the index is removed. The next time you load the Help file, XyWrite rebuilds the index. Therefore, loading times vary depending on whether or not the Help file was edited. Although a Help file can be any size that fits on a disk, the index cannot exceed 64K. (You can monitor the size of the index with the Memory Usage Menu.) DISPLAYING A HELP SCREEN MENU (TYPE 0) You use a Type 0 Help frame to display a menu of the various options available. XyWrite constructs the menu from the information in the Type 0 Help frame and displays the menu on the third line of the screen (below the Prompt line). A Type 0 Help frame can consist of many lines. The first line contains the label (0, followed by one or more keywords) enclosed in a pair of double curly braces {{ }}. Five special keywords you can use with a Type 0 Help frame designate how the user can access the Help menu. The keywords, which must all be prefaced with a dollar sign ($), and the conditions they designate are listed below. Special Keyword User can call the Help frame when $N Nothing is open on the screen $F A file is open on the screen $D A directory is open on the screen $B A block is defined in the current file $* Any of the above situations Each subsequent line of a Type 0 Help frame contains the keyword you want displayed in the menu, a comma, a space, and the descriptive text you want displayed on the Prompt line whenever the user highlights that keyword. The number of lines in a Type 0 frame is determined by the length of the keywords on each line. All keywords must be able to display on a single line when the Type 0 frame is accessed. The keywords are links to other Help frame types. When the user selects a keyword from the menu, XyWrite displays the Help screen associated with that keyword. XyWrite enters keywords in the menu line in the same order they appear in the Type 0 Help frame. For an example, call LONG.HLP to your screen. The Type 0 Help frame that creates the main menu for the long version of Help appears near the top of the file. The label indicates a Type 0 Help frame that can be displayed whether there is something on the screen such as a directory ($D), a file ($F), or a defined block ($B) or whether there is nothing on the screen ($N). XyWrite uses the ten lines you see following the label line in the Help file to construct Help's main menu. When the user places the cursor on an item in the main menu, XyWrite displays on the screen the descriptive text you associated with that item's keyword in the Help file. For example, when you load LONG.HLP and place the cursor on KEY in the Help menu, XyWrite displays "Help information for a particular key" on the Prompt line. You can link an item on any Help menu to display another menu by including the keyword in another Type 0 frame. For example, LONG.HLP also contains another Type 0 Help frame that creates the ASCII Help screen menu. {{0ascii}} FOREIGN, Accented Letters GREEK/MATH, Greek Letters/Math Symbols LINES, Single and Double Lines PATTERNS, Patterns SPECIAL, Miscellaneous When the user selects "ASCII" from the main Help menu, XyWrite displays a sub-menu with FOREIGN, GREEK/MATH, LINES, PATTERNS, and SPECIAL as options. DISPLAYING AND LINKING GENERAL-PURPOSE FULL HELP SCREENS (TYPE 6) You use a Type 6 Help frame to display a general-purpose full Help screen that provides information on any topic, except function calls. (You use a Type 8 Help frame as described in the next section to display a full Help screen specifically for function calls.) A Type 6 frame can consist of any number of lines (up to 20 displayable lines). The first line contains the label (6 followed by one or more keywords) enclosed in a pair of double curly braces {{ }}. Each subsequent line contains text you want displayed on the screen. To link the Help frame to another Type 6 frame, include the other frame's keyword in bold somewhere in the text. DISPLAYING FUNCTION CALL INFORMATION (TYPE 8) You use a Type 8 Help frame to display a full Help screen specifically for function calls (as opposed to commands). The distinction between using a Type 6 Help frame for commands and a Type 8 for function calls is important, because many function calls have the same name as two-letter command abbreviations. For example, the abbreviation for the Extra Leading command is EL and the name of the Express Left function call is EL. Therefore, in LONG.HLP the information on the Extra Leading command is included in a Type 6 Help frame; while the information on the Express Left function call is in a Type 8 Help frame. You construct Type 8 Help frames the same as Type 6 Help frames: A Type 8 frame can consist of any number of lines (up to 20 displayable lines). The first line contains the label (8 followed by one or more keywords) enclosed in a pair of double curly braces {{ }}. Each subsequent line contains text you want displayed on the screen. To link the Help frame to another Type 8 or to a Type 6 frame, include the other frame's keyword in bold in the text. For more information on Type 8 Help frames, see Tip #4 at the end of this application note. For example, the following Type 8 Help frame in LONG.HLP produces the Help screen that discusses the function call RD (Rubout Defined Block): {{8rd,alt f6}} DELETE DEFINE ALT F6 - Define a block of text, which highlights the text. - Press Alt F6 and the block is removed from the text. Related topic Defining text The label in the example indicates a Type 8 Help frame that is accessed by "rd" or "alt f6." The bold Defining text keyword at the bottom of the Help frame corresponds to the keyword of another Help frame in LONG.HLP. The user can display the explanation of this related topic by placing the cursor on the bold phrase on the screen and pressing . (Since the words defining and text are separated by just one space, XyWrite considers them the single keyword Defining text. If they were separated by two spaces, XyWrite would consider them two separate keywords.) DISPLAYING INFORMATION BASED ON KEY WORDS OR PHRASES (TYPE 3) You use a Type 3 Help frame to display a line of text on the third line of the screen into which the user can enter a key word or phrase to access detailed information on a subject. When the user presses , XyWrite displays the Help screen that matches the key word or phrase. You establish the information you want displayed by linking any other type of Help frame with keywords in its label by which you think the user may try to access the information. A Type 3 Help frame consists of two lines. The first line contains the label (3 followed by one or more keywords) enclosed in a pair of double curly braces {{ }}. The second line contains the text you want displayed on the Ruler line including underlined areas where the user enters text. The WORD Help screen provides an example of a Type 3 Help frame. When either version of Help is loaded, placing the cursor on WORD in the Help screen menu and pressing displays the following on the ruler line: Enter phrase (e.g., PRINT for info on printers) XyWrite constructed the WORD Help screen from the following entry in the Help file: {{3word}} Enter phrase (e.g., PRINT for info on printers) The label in the example indicates a Type 3 Help frame that is accessed by "word." To use an earlier example, if the user entered "new file" in the underlined area, XyWrite would access the Type 6 Help frame that discusses creating a new document and display that information on the screen. As another example, if the user entered "rd" or "alt f6" in the underlined area, XyWrite would access the Type 8 Help frame that discusses the RD function call. ENTERING A COMMAND ON THE COMMAND LINE (TYPE 1) You use a Type 1 Help frame to enter a command on the command line. A Type 1 frame consists of three lines. The first line contains the label (1 followed by one or more keywords) enclosed in a pair of double curly braces {{ }}. The second line contains the message you want displayed on the Ruler line. If necessary, you can include underlined areas where the user enters text. If you do not want to display a message on the Ruler line, simply leave the second line blank; XyWrite will automatically execute the contents of the third line when the user enters the keyword. The third line contains the command you want to enter on the command line. You can have the text the user enters (from the underlined areas on line 2) automatically made a part of the string on the third line by using variables Ä %1 indicates the first underlined area, %2 indicates the second underlined area, and so on. Do not use the character % in the third line of a Type 1 Help frame except to indicate that the number that follows relates to a specific underlined area. For example, the following Type 1 Help frame from LONG.HLP enables the user to execute the DOS command CHKDSK: {{1CHKDSK}} Which drive do you want to check: do chkdsk %1: The label in the example indicates a Type 1 Help frame that is accessed by "chkdsk." When the user selects "CHKDSK" from the DOS Help screen, the system displays the message, "Which drive do you want to check:" followed by an underlined area. XyWrite automatically includes the user's response in the CHKDSK command string, by substituting the response for the %1 variable. When the user types a character in the underlined area and presses the carriage return, XyWrite inserts the entire third line (up to the ) in the command field and performs the function. By simply typing b the user can execute a DOS CHKDSK command to scan the directory of a disk drive for consistency as if s/he typed the command string F5do chkdsk b: (Refer to the XyWrite Reference Manual for more information on the DO command.) DISPLAYING KEY ASSIGNMENTS (TYPE 4) The Type 4 Help frame activates the XyWrite feature for displaying characters or functions assigned to various keys on the keyboard. You use the Type 4 Help frame in the Help file to indicate the message you want displayed on the ruler line. A Type 4 frame consists of two lines. The first line contains the label (4 followed by one or more keywords) enclosed in a pair of double curly braces {{ }}. The second line contains the message you want displayed on the Ruler line. For example, the following entry appears in both XyWrite Help files (LONG.HLP and SHORT.HLP) to establish the KEY Help screen: {{4key}} Strike a key for Help frame of that keyk. Strike ESC to Exit. The label in the example indicates a Type 4 Help frame that is accessed by "key." When the user presses a character key (A through Z or 0 through 9), XyWrite displays the character on the Prompt line. When the user presses a key that has a function call assigned to it, XyWrite displays the function call on the Prompt line. (For example, when ÿ1A is pressed, CR is displayed.) If there is a corresponding Type 8 Help frame for the function call, the information is also displayed. In this case, the user can press Esc to return to the KEY Help screen and press another key. If you want to call a full-screen frame from a Type 4 frame, use a Type 8 (rather than a Type 6) frame, because Type 8 Help frames display information about function calls. Since it is used only to display key definitions, only one Type 4 Help frame is necessary in any Help file. DISPLAYING A DETAILED EXPLANATION OF THE MOST RECENT ERROR MESSAGE (TYPE 9) The Type 9 Help frame activates the XyWrite feature for displaying a full screen of information about the last error message the user received. A Type 9 frame consists of only one line which contains the label (9 followed by one or more keywords) enclosed in a pair of curly braces {{ }}. For example, the following entry appears in both XyWrite Help files (LONG.HLP and SHORT.HLP) to establish the ERROR Help screen: {{9error,$e}} In the example, the 9 indicates that the Help frame is a Type 9. Error is the keyword associated with the frame. The special keyword, $e, indicates that this frame can be directly accessed by assigning the $e function to a key. Refer to the section, "Accessing a Specific Help Screen with One Keystroke," for more information. Use a Type 6 Help frame to enter the message you want displayed for one or more errors, and use one or more internal XyWrite error numbers as keywords. Add leading zeros to error numbers less than three digits (for example, 006 or 032). You can scroll through the LONG.HLP file for many of the current error numbers. (In recent versions, all the Help frames that describe errors are grouped under the Type 9 Help frame label.) For example, the following Type 6 Help frame can be called by the Type 9 Help frame and describes errors numbered 120 and 17: {{6120,017}} Letter or Number Please To save a defined block of text on a Save/Get key, first press F2 then either a letter from A-Z or a number from 0-9. When the user accesses a Type 9 frame, XyWrite displays the Type 6 frame that contains the keyword number associated with the last error message displayed. The Type 9 frame is another way to access Help frames by using XyWrite's error coding system. ACCESSING ASCII CHARACTERS (Type 2) You use a Type 2 Help frame to make ASCII characters available for users. The user can select a character with the cursor to * Display on the Prompt line the ASCII value for the character * Insert the character either into the text at the cursor position or in a command line by pressing either F9 or . A Type 2 Help frame consists of two lines. The first line contains the label (2 followed by one or more keywords) enclosed in a pair of curly braces {{ }}. The second line consists of a string of characters with no spaces between them. XyWrite interprets each character as a menu item on the Ruler line. The user simply places the cursor on the characters and presses the carriage return to enter the character in a file or on the command line. For an example, call either of the XyWrite Help files (LONG.HLP or SHORT.HLP) and search for {{2special}}. You will see the Type 2 help frame that establishes the SPECIAL menu of the ASCII Help screen. ACCESSING A HELP SCREEN WITH ONE KEYSTROKE You can access Help frames directly from the keyboard by inserting a Help function call ($0 through $9 or $A through $Z) as a special keyword in the Help frame label. You then assign the Help function call to a key by modifying your keyboard file. Using the example of Type 9 Help frames presented earlier, the special keyword in the label, $e, indicates that this frame can be directly accessed by assigning the $e function to a key: {{9error,$e}} If you want to use any of the special keywords ($n, $f, $d, or $b) described in a previous section, you should use them only to designate the conditions under which a Help menu can be displayed and not use them in the same Help file as the Help function calls $n, $f, $d, or $b. Refer to the XyWrite Reference Manual for more information on function calls and modifying keyboard files. The HL Function Call Also, you can assign the function call HL (Help) to any key by modifying your keyboard file. The user can get information on any topic by typing a word or command on the command line and pressing the key to which you've assigned the Help function call. The system displays the Help screen that corresponds to the word or command the user typed on the Command line. CREATING YOUR OWN "HELP" FILES You can create your own on-line Help by creating a new document, entering the four characters ;HL; as the first line, and on subsequent lines including any of the various Help frames. This application note describes modifying the two XyWrite Help files and discusses only the Help frames used in those two files. However, XyWrite's Help feature is a very powerful, multi-purpose tool that you can use to create * Menus that help the novice user perform complex tasks easily * Menus that help you access on-line information efficiently * Menus that help you perform repetitive tasks quickly and easily There are other types of Help frames you can use that perform a variety of tasks, such as * Entering multiple lines of text into a displayed file * Entering single lines of text into a displayed file * Executing a multiple-line program * Executing a single-line program * Executing commands from a numbered list on a menu * Executing commands with a directory on the screen * Displaying a message associated with a key number * Displaying information and entering lines of text in a file or executing a program * Calling a specific file Application Note #150, "Creating Menus" describes the Help frame types you use to accomplish those tasks and provides advanced information on the Help frames covered by this application note (such as using subroutines and moving information to a save/get key). EXAMPLES OF MODIFYING HELP FRAMES To illustrate the concepts described in this application note, three useful step-by-step examples are provided: * Modifying the TEMPLATE Help screen to include changes in the standard keyboard file * Adding another option to the Help menu that provides personalized information (a telephone list) * Accessing the TEMPLATE Help screen with a single keystroke Modifying the TEMPLATE Help Screen For this example assume you have remapped key combinations in the standard keyboard file (IBM.KBD) to perform such functions as storing a file, running a few XyWrite programs, and inserting text into files. The following procedure illustrates the steps to customize the TEMPLATE Help screen as a quick reference tool for the changes. 1. Call the Help file for the long version of Help: Type: F5ca long.hlp 2. Search for the Help frame that produces the TEMPLATE Help screen: Type: F5se /{{6template/ The search ends at the label for the TEMPLATE Help screen. 3. Edit the screen as you would a normal text file to include information on your own keyboard file. For example, you could delete all the text in the frame, except the label, and add information on the remapped keys. 4. Store the file. Type: F5st 5. Reload LONG.HLP. Type: F5load long.hlp 6. Display the Help menu Press: Alt F9 7. Display the TEMPLATE Help screen. Type: t XyWrite displays the edited TEMPLATE Help screen that now contains your customized keyboard settings. Since you have substantially changed the contents of the TEMPLATE Help screen, you will probably want to edit the text in the Type 0 Help frame that describes the option when TEMPLATE is selected. For example: TEMPLATE, Description of the remapped keys In the previous example, an alternative to deleting the function key information existing in LONG.HLP in Step 3 is appending additional Help frames that describe the customized keyboard. You do this as you link any Help frames: by including a keyword (such as CONTINUED) in bold within the Help frame (usually as the last line of the screen). Define the next screen of information by inserting a label that corresponds to the bold keyword. For example: {{6CONTINUED}} The user simply places the cursor on the bold keyword and presses the carriage return to display a related screen of information. Remember, you cannot create two Help screens that use the same keyword. However, you can use special characters to create unique keywords when linking more than two screens together. For example: {{6CONTINUED}} Adding Another Option to the Help Menu In this example, assume you want to create an on-line address and telephone list. The following procedure illustrates the steps to add a PHONE option to the Help menu and include the necessary information in LONG.HLP. 1. Call the Help file for the long version of Help: Type: F5ca long.hlp 2. In the Type 0 Help frame that immediately follows the comment section at the top of the file, include the keyword you want displayed in the menu, a comma, a space, and any descriptive text you want displayed whenever the user selects the keyword from the menu: PHONE, Personal addresses and telephone numbers You can organize items in the Type 0 Help frame (after the label) in any order you want. If the notation for the PHONE option is second, it will be the second item in the menu when it is displayed. The edited Help frame contains the following information: 3. Add a Help frame that contains the information you want to access with the keyword. You can add the new Help frame anywhere in the Help file after the Type 0 Help frame for the main menu. (It is good policy to add new Help frames near the top of the Help file to make it easy to keep track of changes.) Make sure you add the new frame before (or after) an entire existing Help frame. 4. Store the file. Type: F5st 5. Reload LONG.HLP. Type: F5load long.hlp 6. Display the Help menu. Press: Alt F9 7. Display the PHONE Help screen. Type: p XyWrite displays the new PHONE Help screen that contains names and addresses. Accessing the TEMPLATE Help Screen with One Keystroke In this example, assume you want the ability to access the TEMPLATE Help screen with a single keystroke. Because the user repeatedly refers to the TEMPLATE Help screen, this saves several keystrokes Ä accessing the Help menu, selecting TEMPLATE, and pressing the carriage return. The following procedure illustrates the steps to access the TEMPLATE Help screen by pressing Ctrl-K. 1. Call the Help file for the long version of Help: Type: F5ca long.hlp 2. Search for the Help frame that produces the TEMPLATE Help screen: Type: F5se /{{6template/ The search ends at the label for the TEMPLATE Help screen: {{6template,function}} 3. Edit the label to include a special keyword that corresponds to a Help function call ($0 through $9 or $A through $Z). In the example, the direct access keyword $1 is specified: {{6$1,template,function}} 4. Store the file. Type: F5st 5. Reload LONG.HLP. Type: F5load long.hlp 6. Call the keyboard file: Type: F5ca ibm.kbd 7. Use the Search command to find the the table for the Ctrl key. Type: F5se /table=ctrl/ 8. Find the code 37, which represents the key for the character k. Type: F5se /37/ 9. Edit the line to read 37=$1 10. Store the keyboard file. Type: F5st 11. Reload the altered keyboard file into memory. Type: F5load ibm.kbd 12. To view the TEMPLATE Help screen, Press: Ctrl-K Result: XyWrite displays the TEMPLATE Help screen. TIPS 1. You can include formatting commands (such as Flush Center, Tabs, etc) within the text of a Help frame to indicate how you want text to appear on the Help screen. The triangle that represents an embedded command appears in your Help file, but does not display on the screen. 2. Although you can use Mode commands to add emphasis to Help screen text, you should avoid using bold mode except when you want to link another Help screen. You should avoid using underline mode in Type 1 and Type 5 Help frames except when you want to leave space for user input. 3. You can use the Box Colors (BX) setting in your printer file to define the colors of Help frame borders and the color of the Prompt line. 4. You do not have to list Help frames in any particular order; but if you use the same keyword to label two different Help frames, XyWrite uses the one that appears first in the Help file. Be cautious about any Type 6 Help frames that have abbreviated commands as keywords that XyWrite could interpret as function calls. In this case, the Type 6 Help frame describing the command should appear before the Type 8 Help frame describing the function call. For example, in LONG.HLP the Type 6 Help frame describing the Extra Leading command (where EL is one of the keywords) appears before the Type 8 Help frame describing the Express Left function call (where EL is also one of the keywords). 5. When the user selects a keyword that does not have a corresponding Help frame, a wildcard frame is called (such as {{8*}}). For example, LONG.HLP contains the following Type 6 Help frame: {{6*}} This key word(s) is not in the Help vocabulary. Is there some other way to phrase what you need to know? The label indicates a Type 6 Help frame. Since there is a wildcard instead of a keyword, XyWrite displays the text when it cannot find any other match for the keyword the user selects. Note: Since this wildcard keyword matches anything, this Help frame must be the last frame in the Help file.