What is CHM and Why Isn’t It Dead Yet
by Bradley Nice, Content Manager at ClickHelp.com — online documentation tool
Well, the format itself is not called CHM — it’s only a file extension. HTMLHelp is what it’s really called — and it’s pretty self-explanatory, isn’t it? Yes, .chm files are ‘help’ files, consisting of HTML pages. They also include an index and a table of contents with hyperlinks to all pages.
CHM (I’ll call it that instead of HTMLHelp, okay?) has been around for a couple of decades, though officially it died five years after the first version was introduced. Yeah, Microsoft presented it back in 1997, and in 2003 they announced that they discontinued the support for it (though they released an updated 1.4 version in 2006), and officially dropped the Help 2.0 development, instead focusing on an entirely new thing — MAML. But where’s MAML and where’s CHM, right? 😏
But why did I put quotes around the ‘help’ word? Well, because it’s mostly used for software documentation — and that’s the area where it really shines. It’s not as convenient as an online help authoring tool, but it still has its uses. For example, there are people who work at very remote locations where there is no internet connection. So how do they get the user manual they need for something they do (be it a heavy machinery or just some software for calculating something)? Yes, CHM to the rescue!
But how do you keep this file updated? It’s not like it can automatically download data from your online HAT (help authoring tool). No, it can’t. After all, it’s a document designed to be an offline representation of your documentation. In the case of an online tool, it’s simple — you just update it through admin panel as you change something or add something to your product. But what about a .chm file? Well, it’s pretty similar, but instead of logging into a website, you’ll have to download some software like WinCHM Pro, open the file, edit it, then rebuild it. But if you gotta keep online documentation and offline documentation current at the same time — would you need to do the double amount of work?
Well, most HATs provide the option to export your database to a .chm file (along with many other file formats). For example, ClickHelp has an Export wizard, that will guide you through and help you export the info you need the way you need. Take a look at this screenshot:
Yes, it’s that easy. All you have to do is keep your online database up to date, and at any time you can export all of it into any format of your liking — .chm as well. Just pick the right options and click “export” — and you’re done! After this, you can send the compiled .chm file anywhere you like, even to a remote location on a USB stick, so the people who need documentation will have it, even without internet access.
By the way, if you kept your documentation in .chm the whole time, and for some reason (well, for obvious reasons of convenience and ease of use/editing) decided to switch to an online documentation tool, you won’t need to copy everything over manually — ClickHelp (I hope you don’t mind a little product placement😉; after all — I’m only speaking about something I know really well) has an import wizard as well, so you’ll have your data online in no time, looking exactly the way you made it offline.
So, to sum it up, .chm has quite a few advantages over other formats: it’s small, it has great search functionality (unlike PDF or DOC), and it doesn’t require any software to be opened — any version of windows (starting from 98, I believe) can open it with built-in app. It will be a perfect format for your documentation — despite being somewhat outdated, .chm remains the best choice for offline help/documentation stuff, and will remain so until a worthy adversary shows up.
On a final note, I hope you enjoyed our brief journey and, hopefully, learned something useful.
Have a nice day!
Bradley Nice,
Content Manager at ClickHelp.com — best online documentation tool for SaaS vendors
