NMPlot User's Guide, Chapter 22: Accessing Help

Displaying the User's Guide Table of Contents

The entire NMPlot User's Guide (this document) can be browsed online. To display the table of contents, either:

• Press Ctrl + F1.

• Choose Contents from the Help menu.

The User's Guide Reader will be displayed, showing the table of contents.

The User's Guide Reader

Use the User's Guide Reader to browse the User's Guide online.

The left side of the Reader displays the table of contents. One topic is always highlighted. It is referred to as the selected topic. To select a topic, click on it. Click on a plus symbol in the table of contents to display subtopics.

The right side of the Reader displays the selected topic using a document display control. See Document Display Control for more information.

Changing the Reader Location and Size

The User's Guide Reader window can be moved and resized as necessary. Drag its title bar to move it. Drag one of its edges to resize it.

To change the relative sizes of the two panes in the Reader, use the mouse to drag the separator between the two panes either left or right.

Viewing Obscured Topics in the Table of Contents

If a topic in the table of contents is partially obscured, hold the mouse cursor over it. A tooltip window will appear, showing you the rest of the topic.

Switching The Keyboard Focus Between Panes

At any given time, either the left or the right pane of the User's Guide Reader has the keyboard focus. Depending on which pane has the focus, the arrow keys will either navigate the table of contents, or scroll the selected topic. To switch the keyboard focus between panes, press the Tab key.

Hiding the Table of Contents

To temporarily hide the table of contents, press the Hide button . To display it, press the Show button .

Press Ctrl + T to switch between showing and hiding the table of contents.

Hyperlinks

Much like a web browser, the User's Guide Reader supports hyperlinks. The are displayed using blue type. Click on a link to follow it.

Browse back to previously visited topics by:

• Pressing the back button

• Pressing Backspace

• Pressing Ctrl + B

After browsing back, browse forward by:

• Pressing the forward button

• Pressing Shift + Backspace

• Pressing Ctrl + Shift + B

If you follow a hyperlink to another section of the NMPlot User's Guide, the selected topic in the table of contents will be updated. This means that you can always find the location in the User's Guide of the topic you are reading.

Printing A Topic

To print a topic, select it, then either:

• Press the Print button on the User's Guide Reader toolbar

• Press Ctrl + P

Printing The Entire User's Guide

To print the entire NMPlot User's Guide, simply select the NMPlot User's Guide topic (i.e., the first topic in the table of contents), and then print it as described in Printing A Topic.

When you print the entire NMPlot User's Guide, all front matter, including the cover page and the table of contents, is printed. Blank pages are inserted as needed so that chapters always start on the right page of two-page spreads.

Print Previewing a Topic

To print preview a topic, select it, then either:

• Press the Print Preview button on the User's Guide Reader toolbar

• Press Ctrl + W

See Using Print Preview for more information.

Display the Page Setup Dialog Box

To display the Page Setup dialog box, either:

• Press the Page Setup button on the User's Guide Reader toolbar

• Press Ctrl + Shift + P

The Page Setup dialog box lets you select a printer, set the paper orientation (portrait or landscape), and set the page margins.

Exporting a Topic as HTML

To export a topic as HTML, select the topic, then press Ctrl + H. You will be prompted for the name of the HTML file that the topic will be written to.

Closing the User's Guide Reader

To close the User's Guide Reader, you can:

• Press the Close button

• Press the Esc key

Displaying Relevant Topics

Context-sensitive help, meaning help that is relevant to your current activity, can be displayed in NMPlot by:

• Pressing the F1 key

• Selecting Relevant Topics from the Help menu

NMPlot displays the User's Guide Reader, with a list of relevant topics listed in the left pane. The topics are ordered, with the most relevant at the top of the list.

To display the table of contents, click on the Contents tab, or press Alt + C.

To display the list of relevant topics, click on the Relevant Topics tab, or press Alt + R.

Using "What's This?" Help Mode

NMPlot's "What's This?" help mode lets you click on an object in NMPlot and have the relevant section of the User's Guide displayed. To enter "What's This?" help mode, you can:

• Press Shift + F1

• Choose What's This? from the Help menu

• Press the "What's This?" button on the title bar of a dialog box

NMPlot enters "What's This?" help mode, and the mouse cursor changes to a question mark . Click anywhere on the NMPlot application. The NMPlot User's Guide is displayed with a list of topics relevant to the location where you clicked.

If you accidentally enter "What's This?" help mode, cancel it by pressing the Esc key.

Displaying NMPlot's Version History

To display the version history of NMPlot, choose Show Version History from the Help menu. The version number and new feature summary of all NMPlot versions is displayed.

Displaying the About Box

To display the NMPlot about box, choose About from the Help menu. The about box shows important information about the NMPlot application, including:

• The version

• The build number

• The list of sponsors

• Developer contact information

If you need to know the version of NMPlot you are running, check the about box.