HelpNDoc’s build system is a robust and versatile component that empowers technical writers to generate documentation projects in a wide array of output formats. With support for formats such as CHM, HTML, Word, PDF, ePub, Kindle, Qt Help, and Markdown, HelpNDoc provides comprehensive options to suit diverse distribution channels and target platforms. Notably, the build system allows users to create multiple builds within each output format, enabling an unlimited number of customized variations.
In this article, we'll delve into how you can harness HelpNDoc's override features to empower your technical writing process. We'll explore project options overrides, variable overrides, style overrides, and template settings overrides, all of which contribute to the tool's ability to produce a myriad of documentation variations. By the end, you'll have a thorough understanding of how to leverage these features to create customized, purpose-built documentation every time.
ePub and Kindle eBook readers can use a cover image to display a representation of the eBook in its virtual library. It is easy to define that cover picture in HelpNDoc.
By default, HelpNDoc automatically expands the table of contents when publishing documentation in HTML, displaying all topics. It is simple to modify this setting to automatically collapse topics, displaying only parent-level topics in the table of contents. Readers can then click a parent topic, expanding it to view the children topics.
Your HelpNDoc documentation can be published in multiple formats. It can also be published multiple times with different content and settings in each of those formats. Let's see how easily this can be done.
When you're ready to generate documentation, HelpNDoc allows you to define the location of your output files and select the templates that are used to generate your documentation. In addition, you can further customize settings such as color, font size, numbering style, and create conditional tags to tailor your documentation to support specific requirements.
You can define the builds that are generated when you publish your documentation. These builds are displayed in your build list and can be enabled or disabled at will. When a build becomes obsolete, it is possible to remove it from your build list.
In order to generate Mobipocket and Kindle eBooks, you must first download and install Amazon's KindleGen software. This free compiler is available from Amazon's web-site and allows you to generate eBooks compatible with the Amazon Kindle eReader.
In order to generate documentation in CHM format, you must first download and install Microsoft's HTML Help Workshop compiler. This free compiler allows you to use HelpNDoc to generate CHM help files on Windows.
HelpNDoc gives you the flexibility and control to determine which of your builds are published when you generate documentation. When you enable a build, it is generated when you use your build list. You also have the option to temporarily disable a build to prevent it from being generated. This flexibility permits you to maintain builds in your build list without requiring you to publish them each time you generate documentation.
Producing a document which shouldn't be viewable by everyone or should contain restrictions is extremely easy with HelpNDoc. A few options let you define the level of encryption, passwords and user permissions for your generated PDF documents.
