Embedded help: The embedded help is available for dialogs and wizard pages. This means you don't have to switch to a separate window to receive information about input possibilities.
For example, you want to create a new model. To do so, open the "Create model" dialog. Simply click on the "Help" button to display the embedded help.The information opens and explains what happens when you click on a view. Now for example, you can learn about the views of the ARIS house. To do so, click the link. The information opens and explains what happens when you click on a view. You can close this text when you are finished and learn about the other areas of the dialog. You can decide to always have the embedded help displayed when you open a dialog. To do so, simply close the dialog with the help opened. Now, every time you open a dialog the help is displayed......until you click the "Help off" button. Of course, wizards also have an embedded help. However, wizard pages - as well as properties and option dialogs - are structured differently than simple dialogs: they have the tabs "Steps" and "Help". The tabs can be activated directly......or activated by clicking the buttons "Help" and "Steps". Thus, the embedded help is available for properties and option pages, wizards and simple dialogs.
You just learned more about the ARIS embedded help.
Functional help: in the previous tutorial you learned more about the embedded help. Some dialogs are however so large that a help cannot be displayed additionally. An example for this is the print preview. If you click on its "Help" button, a separate functional help window is opened. Functional means that above all, program control and the use of commands are described. As seen with the embedded help, you can click on a link to open the help text. This help window can also be called up via the menu. In this case, the help start page is displayed and you can navigate from there to a particular help page. To find out how to create a new model follow the table of contents. If you wish to create a model, then you need to work with models and objects. You want to know exactly how to do this.
If you watched the video tutorial "Embedded help" then you can see how things come full circle here: this help page describes how to create a new model. The second step in the procedure description opens the "Create model" dialog that was used as an example for the embedded help tutorial. Thus, on the one hand, you receive help from the step-by-step descriptions and on the other hand, detailed information about dialog areas from the embedded help.
The structure of the functional help is always the same. If you look at the subordinate topics in the table of contents then you will always see a similar structure: "Procedure", "Valuable information" and additional information such as "Toolbars". The help pages in the "Procedure" section provide step-by-step instructions. Only the additional information that relates directly to the described procedure is contained on this page.
If you're looking for basic information then select a page in the section "Valuable information". There, relationships are explained and the effects of different settings are illustrated. If a term expresses the content you are searching for exactly, you can use the Index tab. In our example we want to create a model. Enter "Create new model" and press the Enter key. The index entry is selected and the help page opened. You see, the term is also found when it is subordinate to others. If a term doesn't express the content you are searching for exactly or all occurences of the term should be listed, you can use the "Find" tab. To find an exact combination of words, place your entry in quotation marks. All help pages containing the word combination at least once are listed. The first entry is selected and the help page opened. A relevance symbol is displayed in front of the pages found. The relevance depends on two factors. Whether the words entered are found in the correct order and how often the words occur. The symbol fill indicates the approximate relevance, whereby the pages are sorted from the highest to the lowest estimation. The "Create model" help page is displayed in the average relevancy section. As you can see, the place where the word was found is highlighted in color, whereby parts of words are also included.
You just learned how to access information using the functional help.
Method help: this supplements the functional help. Instead for example, of providing descriptions of procedures, it offers information on models and model elements - the content that can be created, analyzed and simulated with the program. You can open the Method help in the menu. Now you can select help pages using the table of contents.
On a help page for models you can, for example, find the API name and the model type number for the model. API stands for Application Programming Interface. This information is used to program scripts which can be used to evaluate models. A description of the model can be found below this. This is supplemented by a list of all of the symbols that can be used in the model with symbol type name and object type name. The object type names are available as links. You can click on them to reach the corresponding object type description. Many model descriptions contain the button "Graphic". Click on this button to display a sample model. The Method help is however also context-sensitive. This means, it can be opened directly for individual elements. Put your cursor in the model and then simply hold down the Ctrl-key while pressing F1. Do this once without having selected a model element. The help page "EPC" is opened for the sample model. You can also open a method help page for model elements with "Ctrl" and "F1". This opens for example, the help for the object type "Function". Of course, this also works for attributes. When you select the input cell of an attribute and then press Ctrl and F1, the attribute description is opened. This also works in wizards. If for example, you are defining a filter and are not sure about an object or attribute, select it and press Ctrl and F1.
You just learned how to access information using the method help.
Script help: this provides information about object models and methods from ARIS as a basis for script development. The script help references script programming. You can open the script help with the menu item "ARIS Script". Below it you will find the menu item "ARIS Business Publisher object model". This opens the help for the creation of scripts on ARIS Business Publisher Server. The above also applies to this help. Now you can select help pages using the table of contents. If for example, you wish to write a report script, you can inform yourself about the object model. Now you can click on the objects in the object model to receive further information. The page shows the syntax for the method "GetLine", explains what the method is used for and states possible return values, etc. Of course, the script help is context-sensitive. This means you can open the pages of methods directly by pressing "F1". This will now be demonstrated. Before you open a report its description can be displayed as a tooltip.
And now, back to the context-sensitive help. If you wish to read the help for the method "createOutputObject", set the cursor and press F1. If a method is used in different classes, all of the possible help pages are displayed and you can select which page should be opened. If you add new classes or methods to a script, you can open the help page during input by pressing the F1 key. In addition, you can use the so-called object browser to easily insert available objects into your script. Of course, you want to know what an object does before inserting it. To open the script help simply right-click on the object and then on "Display script help".
You just learned about the structure of the script help and how to access information using it. If you need further information and use cases for creating scripts, you can find them here.
