Help file

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A help file is included documentation of a software that is accessible during program use.

The help file provides the user with an interactive table of contents. Hyperlinks are also used in the texts themselves , which refer to other areas in the help. With many programs it can be called up via the help menu of a software or the hotkey most often used for it F1.

Some programs also offer context-sensitive help , which displays a help button in almost every dialog box . If you press it, the program opens the help on the appropriate page or a tooltip is already displayed when you move the mouse pointer over the corresponding element.

Nowadays help files are mostly structured topic-oriented . Each help page deals with a topic that is as self-contained as possible, for example the description of a window.

Some software help is also offered in the form of HTML files that can be viewed in a web browser . Here, too, it is often possible to jump to the relevant help page directly from the program using a hotkey or another function. This procedure is particularly common for programs that are platform-independent and designed for different operating systems with different help systems of their own.

Help formats

Help files are available in the following formats, among others: