HelpSmith
 | |
| Developer(s) | Divcom Software |
|---|---|
| Stable release | 8.2[1]
/ August 12, 2019 |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows |
| Available in | English |
| Type | IDE |
| License | Trialware |
| Website | www |
HelpSmith is a Windows-based help authoring tool published by Divcom Software.[2]
HelpSmith allows a technical writer to create documentation in multiple formats, such as HTML Help (CHM), Web Help (HTML-based help system), PDF, and ePub, which can be produced from a single source project. Also, HelpSmith provides built-in screen capture and image annotation tools.
History
Version 1.0 of HelpSmith was released in 2007 as a help authoring tool that had support for a single HTML Help (CHM) format. In February 7, 2008, HelpSmith was presented on the Giveaway of the Day website where the product received initial feedback and feature requests from its users.[3]
Over the past few years, HelpSmith has obtained support for the major documentation formats, various features, support for High DPI displays, improvements to the user interface, and other enhancements.[4]
Key features
Similarly to common help authoring tools, HelpSmith provides a built-in word processor to edit the content of help topics, customizable templates, user-defined variables, the ability to import content from existing documents, single media repository, the ability to generate help files and documents in various output formats[5], and conditional compilation capabilities.[6]
Image editing capabilities
The Image Tool available in HelpSmith Professional Edition allows a technical writer to capture screenshots of an application or website, add various annotations for any elements shown on a screenshot, and use control annotations which can be exported directly to the help topic.[7]
Awards
- On the G2 Crowd website, HelpSmith has been marked as a high performer (Fall 2019)[8] in the category of "help authoring tool" (HAT) software, and is placed in the list of top help authoring tools.[9] The G2 Crowd score is based on the ratings from real users, which takes into account various factors, such as the ease of use, ease of setup, quality of support, compliance with requirements, and other factors.
- On October 30, 2019, Visual Studio Magazine announced the winners of its 26th annual Reader's Choice Awards where HelpSmith was chosen as the Silver winner in the "help authoring" category.[10]
Licensing terms
HelpSmith is available as a free trial version that can be downloaded for evaluation purposes from the official website. A single-user (per seat) license allows the customer to install HelpSmith Standard or HelpSmith Professional Edition on the main computer, and on a second computer, such as laptop. A multiple-user (floating) license allows a customer to install HelpSmith Terminal Server Edition on a terminal server in the client/server environment for concurrent usage by multiple users.[11]
See also
- Help authoring tool
- List of help authoring tools
- Technical writer
- Technical communication
- Software documentation
References
- ^ "HelpSmith Download Page". HelpSmith. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
- ^ "ComponentSource". ComponentSource. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
- ^ "HelpSmith on GiveAwayOfTheDay". GiveAwayOfTheDay. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ "HelpSmith - Change log". Softpedia. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
- ^ Opris, Elena. "Softpedia". Softpedia. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ Achtelig, Marc. "Indoition". Indoition. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ "HelpSmith". HelpSmith. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
- ^ "G2 Crowd - HelpSmith Reviews". G2 Crowd. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
- ^ "G2 Crowd - Help authoring tools". G2 Crowd. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
- ^ "Visual Studio Magazine Reader's Choice Award". GlobeNewsWire. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
- ^ "HelpSmith EULA". HelpSmith Manual. Retrieved 18 October 2019.