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Why can't I view help files (.CHM) in Win98SE?


E-66

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It's normally not that big of a deal but occasionally I need to look thru a help file and I can't.

My Win98 install has been customized with 98Lite and I use the Win95 shell. I don't use IE but it is installed.

Whenever I try to open any .CHM file I get the following:

badhelp.png

Any input would be appreciated. Thanks.

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Well, even though you do not use Internet Explorer, HTML Help (CHM) files do.

According to Microsoft, if the HTML Help update does not fix the problem, then your Internet Explorer is corrupt.

You should reinstall Internet Explorer 6 SP1 and then the current updates.

IE6 SP1 from here: http://download.microsoft.com/download/ie6...US/ie6setup.exe

Latest IE6 SP1 updates from here: http://www.mdgx.com/files/IE944533.EXE

IE6 SP1 installer will download required files from Microsoft - hope you've got broadband or it could take a couple of hours!

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Well, even though you do not use Internet Explorer, HTML Help (CHM) files do.

Yes, I know. That's why I made sure I mentioned that I had it installed even though I don't use it.

According to Microsoft, if the HTML Help update does not fix the problem, then your Internet Explorer is corrupt.

You should reinstall Internet Explorer 6 SP1 and then the current updates.

I've had all the IE .cab files on my HDD for some time, but I downloaded them again, reinstalled IE, and applied MGDX's IE updates.

No change - same screenshot as in my second post.

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E-66,

How long have you been using 98Lite and Windows 95 Shell?

Did this problem exist before then, or has it always been a problem, or not applicable because 98Lite and Win95 Shell were there from the start?

I don't think HTML Help uses MSXML 4.0, however, just to cover all options, try installing it too:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details...;displaylang=en

This is the latest version with no known problems with 9x.

The catch is that you will need to extract the msxml4.msi file to install.

You can use WinZip, WinRAR, PowerArchiver, and so on.

Or, you can use the command-line option from the installer on an XP PC...

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I've been using 98Lite with the Win95 shell pretty much since I first started using Win98. I had a Win95 system and somehow found out about 98Lite and decided to use it when I built my first pc with Win98. I had read about how the Win95 shell was much faster, etc., and I found that to be true so I stuck with it. 98Lite allows you to switch back & forth between the 95 & 98 shells, and even with the 98 shell I still have this issue with the .chm files.

I just tried your latest suggestion with the XML update, still no change.

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Cannot say if it works on Win9x systems...
I'm guessing it doesn't. Double-clicking the .exe doesn't do anything, and I saw this on the FAQ:

Q: Why doesn't xCHM work well with my file?

A: Please take a look at the 'Limitations' section on the technical notes page. xCHM is but a humble front-end for chmlib, and it's not meant for reading Windows help. Use hh.exe to read Windows help.

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Hi

This happened to me with .hlp files

If you are sure you have the correct ver of app to read the .chm file

have you checked in FileTypes to see if the file association is still registered?

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If you are sure you have the correct ver of app to read the .chm file

have you checked in FileTypes to see if the file association is still registered?

HH.exe is shown as the file association for .CHM files. It's version 5.2.3790.309 (srv03_gdr.050413-1540)
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Lots of info re hh.exe at this site:

www.helpware.net/htmlhelp/hh_info.htm

I am running 98SE with 5.2.3644 dated 10 Jun 2002. Works OK.

Original was 4.72.7266 dated 17 Nov 1997

related files: itss.dll, itircl.dll, hhctrl.ocx, hhctrlui.dll

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