What's new in Help+Manual 6? Well, pretty much everything, we'd say. But let's focus on the most important points.
Updated User Interface
We have slightly redesigned the user interface. Most notably, the File menu is back. We have implemented the so-called Backstage view as seen in Microsoft Office 2010, which replaces several dialogs. And we used the additional screen real estate to improve import, publishing and configuration dialogs. Big dropdown menus make it easier to visually select a skin for publishing. Help+Manual 6 is a lot more "visual" throughout.
All new Webhelp 2.0
Help+Manual's Webhelp output has undergone the biggest changes. Help+Manual now creates HTML5 strict and while older templates and skins are still supported, the new standard is integrated Webhelp. The layout has become even more flexible and customizable. It is now really easy to integrate documentation into your website.
The new Webhelp output fully supports jQuery and uses animations for non-static content such as table of contents, toggle text, etc. Toggle images and videos can optionally play in lightboxes.
Increased search engine visibility: sub-headings in topics are now exported as <h1> to <h6> headings, which increases the relevance of headings for search engines. Additionally, Help+Manual 6 creates an optional sitemap for your Webhelp output.
New publishing formats and publishing tasks
Help+Manual not only imports VisualStudio source code, it can publish the VisualStudio 2010 help format as well.
Another feature high on the wish list was an integrated editor for batch publishing. Help+Manual let's you create batch jobs that combine several different outputs and/or different output formats. The publishing batch jobs are saved with the project. An additional function saves the publishing task to a command file for automated batch compilation.
Improved editor, new spell checker and a long list of new features
Help+Manual 6 has tabbed editing, so you can open multiple topics at once and easily switch between them. Help+Manual remembers which topics were open and re-opens them the next time you open the project. Images, toggle images and videos allow text flow around them (this works in PDF as well). And a lot, a real lot more:
New File Menu replaces the Application Button (Backstage View)
Publishing Tasks for automation
Floating images, toggles and videos with lightbox option for Webhelp/HTML Help and improved spacing options (see picture below)
Automatically return to last topic and open last topics in tabs
When switching between editor and XML source tab, the cursor position is retained
Fully-configurable line spacing, new paragraph spacing buttons
Generate and insert QR codes
Baggage files can be edited directly in Help+Manual
New spell checker with support for Open Office dictionaries, including dictionaries for automatic hyphenation (see picture below)
Light box mode for image toggles and movies
Icons for toggle texts have a 3rd state: hide or replace the icon in PDF, RTF, eBooks and printed manuals
Improvements formatting for tables: individual cell borders, new functiosn to split and sort tables
Popup Formatter for selected text: hovering the mouse over selected text displays the Popup Formatter, with which you can apply formatting and styles quickly
Style Preview in topic editor: styles are temporily applied for preview, while you select them
Improved List handling
All paragraph styles have an additional "Next" style that is automatically applied to the following paragraph
A triple-click in the editor selects the entire paragraph
The Insert Snippet dialog was equipped with a visual preview of the snippet content
Inline snippets: snippets can optionally place inside text
Hyperlinks can automatically pick up the title of the link target
PDF improvements (gutter between columns, variables in all PDF bookmarks)
Publishing: you can publish selected TOC items and apply build options
And a lot more...
Repositories for snippets and styles
A repository is a special uncompressed Help+Manual project that you use to share styles and snippets between multiple projects. They are quite specialized and you should really only use them if you have multiple projects that must all have exactly the same styles. This is an excellent way to ensure that your styles are standardized for everyone when you are working on a project in a team, for example.
Oh .... there's one more thing!
Did we mention that Help+Manual can publish directly to the Apple iPad? Not the iPad only, we've got to add. The iPhone as well. And to the Nook Reader. And Sony e-book readers and dozens of other e-reading devices on the market.
This is not a quirky "webhelp mobile" for smartphones, it's a genuine standards-compliant e-book for offline reading on your iPad.
