On October 2, Shannon and I attended the STC Austin presentation on Embedded Help by Paul Mueller, President of UserAid ("Delivering information when and where users need it").

Embedded Help systems seek this ideal: to answer users' questions without requiring them to ever ask for help, by making information available exactly when and where they need it. Users get the support they need without leaving the task they are working on. This presentation reviewed UI and technological strategies for embedding user assistance in both web and non-web user interfaces.

Key design considerations:

• Keep in mind that most users resist clicking a [Help] button, but they do want hints.
• Match the delivery method to the need (e.g., if every user needs the info, use static text).
• Evaluate the delivery method on all points: screen real estate, purpose, technology, and UX.
• Keep content independent of product, so that changes don't impact code; use mapping files, resource files, etc. (which is also localization-friendly)
• Avoid adding requirements just for Help, such as separate databases or plug-ins.

Resources:

• www.w3schools.com, to learn any kind of scripting
• www.dynamicdrive.com, for free sample code
• www.hypertrain.com (Dave Gash), downloads of code samples, HTML tools, free scripts