As you’re developing a help system and updating content, it sometimes becomes necessary to delete a topic file because the information is out of date or should be combined with other information. When you’re using both RoboHelp and Subversion, it’s easy to mess things up doing this. It’s important to delete the file in RH first to maintain its version of reality and lessen the hassle. But things have to be done correctly in Subversion too.

These steps go through the steps in general plus specific steps in parentheses for the TortoiseSVN client for Windows Explorer (currently version 1.6.10), which I use. The TortoiseSVN steps explain what to do in Windows Explorer.

1. Commit all current changes to the repository (right-click in folder > SVN Commit).
2. In RH, make sure no links or other references point to the file you want to delete. (To check this, go to Tools > Reports > Topic References to run a link report. Then remove the links that are listed.)
3. Click the topic in Project Manager.
4. Press Delete. (Note that if there are still references to a topic, when you press Delete, the confirmation pop-up asks about removing those references. I recommend you go back to step 1 so you don’t have to find and fix a bunch of broken links.)
5. Click Yes. This deletes the file from your hard drive and from RH’s awareness.
6. Update your folder to pull the file back in from the repository (right-click in the folder that contained the file, and then click SVN Update).
7. Delete the file (right-click file > TortoiseSVN > Delete).
8. Commit the change (right-click in folder > SVN Commit).

Worry about these steps only if you check your output in to Subversion as well:

9. Generate and then publish help to your hard drive (check out my post on making WebHelp and FlashHelp output work correctly with Subversion).
10. Delete the old file (right-click file > TortoiseSVN > Delete).
11. Commit the changes (right-click > SVN Commit).

As you’re developing a help system and updating content, it sometimes becomes necessary to rename a topic file. When you’re using both RoboHelp and Subversion, it’s easy to mess things up doing this. It’s important to rename the file in RH first so that all links, including in the TOC and index, stay up to date. But things have to be done correctly in Subversion too.

These steps go through the steps in general plus specific steps in parentheses for the TortoiseSVN client for Windows Explorer (currently version 1.6.10), which I use. The TortoiseSVN steps explain what to do in Windows Explorer.

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When I started my Tales series, I wanted it to have a distinct category and RSS feed so that those posts wouldn’t get mixed in with the tech comm–related posts. I also wanted to have a header image for any posts in the Tales category that was different than the standard one.

Here’s the code that I put together to make the header image conditional based on the category, with some substitutes put in so you can change things based on your needs). Add this code to header.php:

<div id="header">
<?php if (in_category('1')) { ?>
<img src="http://www.mysite.com/images/header1.jpg">
<?php } elseif (is_category('Category Name')) { ?>
<img src="http://www.mysite.com/images/header1.jpg">
<?php } else { ?>
<img src="http://www.mysite.com/images/header2.jpg">
<?php } ?>
</div>

Notice two things:

• This code is set up for two conditions to show header1.jpg. You can swap out the category number or name for yours. (To see a category’s number, in your WordPress console’s Categories screen, mouse over the name and look for the tag ID in the URL that appears in your status bar.) You could also add as many different conditions as you like.
• This works with an image placed directly in the div. I don’t know enough PHP to know if I can have it change a background image in the CSS.

The following is a guest post by Norman Mann, a writer for Web Host Gear, a Web hosting guide site. He writes on the topics of blogging tips and online marketing.

WordPress is a powerful blogging tool with many customizable options. From the moment you log into the dashboard, you have many choices of how to configure your blog. How you configure these settings will affect how you experience WordPress and how readers experience your blog.

Themes

One of the first things you should consider doing is visiting the Appearances menu to choose a theme. Theme variations on WordPress include sidebars on the right or left, fixed or flexible width layouts, customizable menus, customizable headers, and multiple columns. The first impression visitors get of your blog is the layout, so it’s important to pick something appropriate to your content and the audience you expect to draw.

Settings

Once you have a theme in place that is to your liking, click through the Settings menu. Here you can set your blog title, time zone, the time and date format for posts, and comment moderation preferences. These are all basic settings that should be configured before you begin using your blog.

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I’ve spent a lot of time this week trying to install Adobe Creative Suite 4 on my work machine. I was the last of four of us on a group license to install it. And I was the lucky one who ran into problems with the installation.

Specifically, when I got past entering the serial number and telling the installer where to install the programs, I got to a page saying “Preparing to Install…” The Install button was disabled for about ten seconds, and then it was enabled. If I clicked it, the same thing happened. It was one of those “how to keep an idiot busy” situations.

I installed Windows XP Service Pack 3 and got some help disabling the anti-virus software on the computer (which I didn’t have rights to do). So if you encounter this problem, try these first (if you’re running Vista, try Service Pack 1).

After trying a lot of different things with one of my department’s technical support reps, we managed to install Fireworks only. After that, I could install Dreamweaver and Acrobat 9. But nothing else would go. I even tried searching on Adobe’s site for some information and found a forum thread that wasn’t completely resolved.

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I finally updated to WordPress 2.8 today. It looks a lot like the previous version, and I haven’t taken time to explore the new aspects yet.

However, I realized why it can be good to wait a little while to upgrade something like WordPress. After I installed the new version, I got an error similar to the one displayed at menoob.com in a post about the issue.

I followed the suggestion there, though I used FileZilla to change the plugin file name. (Fortunately, of all the plugins that could have failed, this one isn’t critical.) Bam! I could sign in to my admin site. My thanks to the menoob guy.

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Yes, I know CS3 isn’t the latest version, but due to trying to eliminate unnecessary expenses, our team isn’t getting CS4 at this point. I’m posting this more for myself because every time I need to do a TOC in InDesign, I’ve forgotten the details. (However, a colleague did ask about this today, so I’m posting it for our future reference.)

This procedure involves getting the styles for the TOC entries matched up correctly with various heading levels.

1. In the .indd file where the TOC will appear, create styles for the TOC entries; for example, TOC Level 1, TOC Level 2. Include any justification and tab leaders. I’ve found that to get the entry to run across the page, you have to choose Right Justify on the Indents and Spacing page of the Paragraph Style Options dialog. On the Tabs page, I also click the Right-Justified Tab button and put a space and a period in the Leader field. (The space keeps the periods from looking jammed together when I generate the TOC later.)
2. If the TOC is in a separate document from the rest of the content, import the paragraph styles (for example, heading 1 and heading 2) that you want to match to the TOC entries.
3. Go to Layout > Table of Contents Styles.
4. Click New.
5. Enter a name. The Title is the text that will show up at the top of the TOC, so enter something like “Contents.” In the Style box, pick the paragraph style that you want to use for the title—probably the same as whatever your level 1 heading is.
6. The Styles in Table of Contents section is for telling the TOC what text you want to show up. You choose the paragraph styles, and the TOC pulls in all text in those styles. Click a style in the Other Styles list and click Add. You have to select the styles in the order or hierarchy that you want them to show up in the TOC.
7. With a paragraph style selected in the Include Paragraph Styles box, set up how the entry should appear using the Style section. Choose one of the TOC styles you created in step one. For Between Entry and Number, I choose the Tab Character so it shows the space and period.
8. Under Options, I select Create PDF Bookmarks and Include Book Document (if I’m doing a book, of course).
9. Click OK. Then when you generate the TOC, go to Layout > Table of Contents, pick the TOC setup you just created, and then generate it.