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HelpSmith 5: New Ribbon Interface, a Single TOC Tree, PDF and Word Output Formats, and Better Performance on Large Help Projects

We are pleased to announce the release of HelpSmith 5.0. The new version includes a modern Ribbon Style User Interface, a Single Table of Contents Tree, support for the Adobe PDF and Microsoft Word output formats, enhancements for the HTML Help, Web Help and Printed Manual formats, Better Performance on large help projects, and other improvements.

What’s New in HelpSmith 5.0?

A New Ribbon Style User Interface

We have completely redesigned the HelpSmith user interface which now follows modern standards and makes working with the program as comfortable as possible.

HelpSmith Ribbon User Interface

A Single Table of Contents Tree

Now the user interface incorporates a single tree that displays the Table of Contents and Topic Templates of the current help project. Unlike previous versions, in HelpSmith 5.0 there is no need to create the Table of Contents separately – now you can simply add topics and sub-topics to a single TOC tree and compile your help project.

The Adobe PDF Output Format

HelpSmith 5.0 adds native support for the Adobe PDF output format. You can create full-featured PDF documents with clickable Hyperlinks, enable PDF outlines (Bookmarks tab in Adobe Reader), use encryption and other PDF-specific options.

The MS Word Output Format

HelpSmith 5.0 allows you to export your help project as an MS Word document. Now you can easily create an MS Word document with clickable Hyperlinks, Table of Contents, Index, with document’s Header and Footer area, and with Page Numbers that can be updated even if you modify the document directly in MS Word.

Enhancements to the HTML Help, Web Help, and Printed Manual Formats

The new version of HelpSmith includes a number of improvements to the existing help formats. Some of these enhancements: optimizations that allow HelpSmith avoid HTML Help compiler’s internal errors faced by some users, minor fixes for the Web Help system, automatic fitting of big images to the paper size, clickable hyperlinks in the Printed Manual preview window, etc.

Improved Media Repository

The improved Media Repository now includes drag-n-drop support, sorting, automatic deletion of files from the project’s media folder (when it is saved), and the possibility to view an image in its actual size.

Working with Large Help Projects

The ability to handle large help projects is crucial for a help authoring tool. In HelpSmith 5, we’ve done a huge work to optimize HelpSmith for better performance and minimal usage of memory while working with a large help project that may contain a big number of graphic images and video files.

New Sample Help Projects

We have prepared new sample help projects to help you learn how to use HelpSmith. While the first sample project demonstrates some basic tasks for beginner users, the other one includes examples and step-by-step instructions on using the Conditional Compilation functionality.

Other Improvements in HelpSmith 5.0

You can find the full list of enhancements and fixes made in HelpSmith 5.0 by clicking this link.

Download HelpSmith

You can download the latest HelpSmith version by visiting this link.

How to Upgrade?

If you are a registered HelpSmith user for less than a year, you can get a free upgrade. In other cases, if you have a license for a previous HelpSmith version, you can upgrade to the latest version with a 50% discount! You can place your upgrade order by visiting this link.