Introduction:

So you want to be a hypertext author, do you? Good! The help authoring pages linked with this introduction are designed to give the "want a be" hypertext author a head start. Follow the WinHelp link, and by the time you get to the last page, you will be able to compile a basic Windows® help file. 

  A hint before you go. I have four hard texts sitting on the shelf next to the computer. A good dictionary; Rogets's Thesaurus, an idioms dictionary, and a slang dictionary. I know, these are all available in electronic versions that wonderfully interact with your authoring tools. Balderdash . . . Most CD-ROM versions are light weight shadows of their hard text parents.

Windows® Help File Authoring.

• Literacy: The coming of the computer did not wave away the need for grammar, punctuation, spelling and most importantly, the ability to communicate with the written word!
  
• Computer Literacy: If you are reading this WEB page, chances are you have this skill already. The main issues involved here are an understanding of screen resolution and computer platforms.
  
• Programming Proficiency: There are authoring tools that can hide the programming aspects of most hypertext environments from the writer. Still, a knowledge of programming techniques is helpful to the would-be writer.
  
• Graphical Image Handling: The writer does not need to be an artist, but hypertext is a visual media. Image handling is an essential skill.

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