AIMHelp: generating help for GUI applications automatically

ABSTRACT

Help systems are a requirement in most modern applications. However, current mainstream help systems can be improved to provide information that is more relevant and accurate. This paper introduces a new approach for help systems -- AIMHelp -- that can generate help information from a running application. Instead of developers having to supply all help information a-priori, a lot of information can be retrieved by monitoring the state of the GUI and the interaction between the user and different system components. This has the advantage that generated help information is consistent with the actual application, unlike pre-defined help information that can easily get outdated as an application evolves.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.5 INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (I.7)
      H.5.2 User Interfaces (D.2.2, H.1.2, I.3.6)

Keywords:
automated help, context-sensitive help, dynamic help, explanation strategies, reflection