Teach yourself or follow along in class how to create an index in a help authoring tool, such as RoboHelp, HTML Help, AuthorIT, or Doc-To-Help. Learn these procedures well enough not to need notes to perform them again, and write quick-reference-style notes in case you forget how in the future.

In this lesson, you create a browse sequence. Here's what browse sequences look like in the helps for RoboHelp:

Learning the Procedures

Create two browse sequences:

1. Start a project, giving it a formal display name, and a file and folder name.
2. Create topics with the following titles in the same project:
   • Creating layers
   • Adding layers
   • Switching layers
   • Flattening layers
   • Layers: introduction
   • Cropping images
   • Sizing images
   • Erasing image areas
   • Selecting image areas
   • Rectangular Marque tool
   • Move tool
   • Crop tool
   • Size tool
   • Channels: an introduction
   • Curves: an introduction
   • Filters: an introduction
3. Group these topics into books based on information type (reference, guide, or concept).
4. Create these browse sequences:
   • Layers: an introduction > Switching layers > Erasing image areas
   • Flattening layers > Selecting image areas > Cropping images
5. Compile this project as a .chm file, and view it (through the help-authoring tool). Make sure the browse sequences work.

Writing about the Procedures

Here are the guidelines for writing about the procedures for this lesson:

• Write quick-reference notes for these tasks in the help-authoring tool you are using.
• Write these quick-reference notes "for real": include warnings about potential problems that can you trip up.
• Otherwise, you are not obliged to add a lot of explanatory detail. In "guide" information, you see lots of explanation, definitions, screen shots, and alternative methods. That's not needed or expected here.
• Just use headings, simple lead-ins, numbered and bulleted lists. For notes, use paragraphs introduced by a bolded label such as "Caution:."
• Practice good clear economical writing style. Use imperatives (commands) and second-person ("you"); avoid passive-voice and telegraphic writing styles.
• Use subheadings for the subsections of these quick-reference notes.

Revising

Your instructor will review these quick-reference notes rapidly, requesting revisions if necessary and recording an "ok" in the gradebook when no revisions are needed.