TEXTUTILS plugin .chm file

dcantor · 2024-12-23

Charles Dye,

TextUtils.chm from version 0.85.2 does not work correctly. It shows no text for the details of commands and functions.
I overwrote this file with the .chm file from textutils v 0.85.1 and, though somewhat out of date, it works.

Try, e.g.,

Code:

HELP OINK

Do you need more detail?

Charles Dye · 2024-12-23

It works for me. My copy has these checksums:

Code:

C:\Test>fileinfo *.chm
C:\Test\TextUtils.chm

    117,504 bytes     114.75 kilobytes

    Created:   Thu 2019-09-12  14:17:04
    Modified:  Tue 2024-11-05  15:37:40
    Accessed:  Mon 2024-12-23  19:28:52

    Attributes:  Archive

    CRC-32 :  7C9EE86A
    MD5    :  DC213038A7DAA7D25980BD7EB9BA5033

1 matching file found.

C:\Test>

Is yours different?

dcantor · 2024-12-24

In the .zip file I have, it shows the same size, modification date/time, and CRC32. I tried reloading it from the .zip file, and it still fails.

I will try downloading a new copy and see what happens.

dcantor · 2024-12-24

I downloaded a new copy, and it still fails in the same way.

There's no urgency here.

Bob · 2024-12-26

TextUtils.chm from version 0.85.2 does not work correctly. It shows no text for the details of commands and functions.

Did you check its Properties General tab to see if it is blocked? If it is so then Unblocking it might be a fix. If that isn't the problem then you need help from someone that realy knows!

dcantor · 2024-12-26

Nope. Not blocked. Given that the .chm from the previous edition works, I'll use that for now. Eventually, there'll be another release of the plugin and hopefully the .chm in that edition will work.

Charles Dye · 2024-12-26

I have been unable to reproduce this one on any of three computers here. Is anyone else having trouble with TextUtils.chm?

I'm attaching another copy of the help file, recompiled but with no changes except for a couple of added spaces. Which is effectively no change at all — repeated spaces in HTML are automatically condensed into one — but will alter the checksums. Maybe enough of a difference to fool, say, an overenthusiastic antivirus?

dcantor · 2025-01-01

Charles Dye said:
I have been unable to reproduce this one on any of three computers here. Is anyone else having trouble with TextUtils.chm?

I'm attaching another copy of the help file, recompiled but with no changes except for a couple of added spaces. Which is effectively no change at all — repeated spaces in HTML are automatically condensed into one — but will alter the checksums. Maybe enough of a difference to fool, say, an overenthusiastic antivirus?

Thanks for the try, Charles. I still get a blank pane for any (I didn't try every) topic.
The help file from the previous version of Textutils continues to work.

vefatica · 2025-01-01

@dcantor, what about your HH.EXE file? Mine (Windows 10) looks like this. I doubt Microsoft is updating it.

HH.EXE in a funny file. It's only 18,432 bytes. DUMPBIN says it imports functions from only KERNER32.DLL, ADVAPI32.DLL, and MSVCRT.DLL. And the strings in it mention no other DLLs. @Charles Dye, do you know how it works?

Code:

v:\> d c:\windows\hh.exe
2019-12-07  04:09          18,432  hh.exe

v:\> echo %@crc32[c:\windows\hh.exe]
FEB15AFB

Charles Dye · 2025-01-01

vefatica said:
HH.EXE in a funny file. It's only 18,432 bytes. DUMPBIN says it imports functions from only KERNER32.DLL, ADVAPI32.DLL, and MSVCRT.DLL. And the strings in it mention no other DLLs. @Charles Dye, do you know how it works?

Not in detail, but I expect most of the real work is done by Internet Explorer.

Charles Dye · 2025-01-01

dcantor said:
Thanks for the try, Charles. I still get a blank pane for any (I didn't try every) topic.
The help file from the previous version of Textutils continues to work.

Is anybody else seeing this?

vefatica · 2025-01-01

Charles Dye said:
Not in detail, but I expect most of the real work is done by Internet Explorer.

That's what I figured. When HH.EXE is running, among its ~80 DLLs are these, the only two obviously connected to IE.

C:\Windows\System32\ieframe.dll
C:\Windows\System32\iertutil.dll

They're (possibly) updated by one of the two EdgeUpdate tasks (if those tasks are not disabled). Those tasks are enabled here. I don't have @dcantor's problem.

vefatica · 2025-01-01

Here, those two DLLs were updated 2024-12-11 08:07 (update Tuesday, which I get on Wednesday).

Alpengreis · 2025-01-03

JFI: I just tried newest TextUtils.chm - no problems.

PS: Typically problems with help files are: it's on a network drive resp. mapped, it's blocked (but @dcantor said it's not blocked) ... disable resp. deinstallation of IE 11 could also help ...

Charles Dye · 2025-01-04

I've uploaded a new build. Only very minor changes to both the code and the help file.

Alpengreis · 2025-01-04

Ah yes, I tested already this new version v0.85.2 help file ...

dcantor · Tuesday at 18:27

Still have the same problem, BUT it is not just the Textutils plugin. I found the same problem with Editkeys, Fileutils, Mksc, Safechars, ISO8601, UIstuff, and Tasks. There is no such problem with Printerstuff nor Regtools.
Maybe it was change introduced between Oct 15, 2023 (when Printerstuff was last released) and Sep 4, 2024 (when Tasks was released).
To work around this I have Firefox bookmarks for the various plugin documentation files on Charles Dye's website.

Alpengreis · Tuesday at 18:56

That's HIGHLY probably a problem on your system.

dcantor · Tuesday at 22:18

Perhaps, but I have no clue how to diagnose it, and I have my workaround.

Charles Dye · Wednesday at 10:28

dcantor said:
Maybe it was change introduced between Oct 15, 2023 (when Printerstuff was last released) and Sep 4, 2024 (when Tasks was released).
To work around this I have Firefox bookmarks for the various plugin documentation files on Charles Dye's website.

Ah, but there have been changes to PrinterStuff since then. Mainly tweaks to the help system; you probably don't want to download the latest....

Are you able to open the new .HTML files in Internet Explorer? And if so, do the "quick links" at the top right and the code examples have rounded corners or square corners?

Are you using some pretty old version of Windows?

dcantor · Wednesday at 12:01

Thanks, Charles. I must have missed the PrinterStuff announcement, but I'll download that soon.
Meanwhile, I FOUND THE SOLUTION
Ref.: chm viewer unable to show contents

I right-clicked on the .CHM files (individually), chose Properties, and clicked on Unblock.
That did the trick.

Thanks for all the pointers, even for the guesses that there was something wrong with my system.:-)

Dave C.

Charles Dye · Wednesday at 12:08

>>> installing Windows XP on a virtual machine to test paleolithic HtmlHelp <<<

dcantor · Wednesday at 12:23

Hah! Fwiw, I'm running TCC 33 on Windows 11.

I downloaded a new copy of PrinterStuff, and, sure enough, the .CHM file exhibited the same problem.
I unblocked it, and it's working correctly.

Maybe there's something about the way I unpack the .ZIP file that's causing the file block. I'll try looking into
that, but, meanwhile, I'm able to use help on this end. I now know what to do if I run into this problem in future releases.

Charles Dye · Wednesday at 12:31

dcantor said:
Maybe there's something about the way I unpack the .ZIP file that's causing the file block. I'll try looking into
that, but, meanwhile, I'm able to use help on this end. I now know what to do if I run into this problem in future releases.

If I remember correctly, that block is just a stream that Windows adds to the .CHM file. You can probably see it with dir /:, and remove it with del.

dcantor · Wednesday at 12:34

I don't use Internet Explorer unless I have to. I use FireFox as first choice and Chrome as second choice. I've no trouble opening imported .HTML files.

dcantor · Wednesday at 12:35

I also found a suggestion that HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\HTMLHelp\1.x\HHRestrictions\MaxAllowedZone be changed from 1 to 4. I'm trying that.

Charles Dye · Wednesday at 12:39

dcantor said:
I don't use Internet Explorer unless I have to. I use FireFox as first choice and Chrome as second choice.

Me too. I asked because HtmlHelp uses Internet Explorer to render HTML. If my CSS makes Internet Explorer barf, then HtmlHelp should also.

dcantor · Wednesday at 18:57

Charles Dye said:
Are you able to open the new .HTML files in Internet Explorer? And if so, do the "quick links" at the top right and the code examples have rounded corners or square corners?

Well, I thought I'd try. I don't even know how to open Internet Explorer anymore. At the command prompt, I enter

Code:

IEXPLORE.EXE

and it starts MS EDGE instead!

Dave C.

Joe Caverly · Wednesday at 19:36

This VBScript;

Code:

Dim ie11
Set ie11 = CreateObject("InternetExplorer.application.1")
ie11.Visible = True
WScript.Quit(0)

...when executed on my Windows 10 system...

Code:

cscript.exe ie11.vbs

...launches Internet Explorer.

For those that prefer JScript;

Code:

var ie11 = new ActiveXObject("InternetExplorer.Application.1");
ie11.Visible = true;
WScript.Quit(0);

Code:

cscript ie11.js

...or PowerShell...

Code:

$ie11 = New-Object -ComObject InternetExplorer.Application.1
$ie11.Visible = $true

Code:

pshell ie11.ps1

Joe

Alpengreis · Thursday at 10:58

@dcantor

Thanks for sharing all that with us. It's always useful to know such things!

Welcome!

TEXTUTILS plugin .chm file

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