In RoboHelp 7 it was possible to define the list style through the paragraph. This is no longer possible in RoboHelp 8 and after the conversion from RoboHelp 7 and RoboHelp 8 lists created in this way will no longer function.

In this paragraph, I describe how those lists worked in RoboHelp 7, why they stopped working, and how to fix them.

Why it stopped working

RoboHelp 8 now uses XHTML 1.0 Transitional for the topics. This version of HTML triggers a much stricter rendering mode in the browser than RoboHelp 7's HTML 4.01 Frameset . In this stricter rendering mode it is no longer possible to set the list style from the paragraph. This article shows you how to fix your lists after you upgrade from RoboHelp 7.

Note: Peter Grainge also provides a comprehensive manual for fixing your lists after upgrading. See http://www.grainge.org/pages/authoring/lists/lists.htm

If your lists are no longer correct, look at the HTML code of your list. Say you have a list with the paragraph Bullet. The HTML may look like this:

<ul type="disc">
  <li class="p-Bullet"><p class="Bullet">Item one</li>
  <li class="p-Bullet"><p class="Bullet"></li>
</ul>

The list item class (p-Bullet) is automatically generated by RoboHelp. To correct your list, simply cut the list styling from your paragraph and put it into the list item style. For the above example, the code might be:

P.Bullet {
  font-family: Verdana;
  font-size: 10pt;
}
LI.p-Bullet {
  list-style-image: ('mybullet.png');
  list-style-type: none;
}

If your HTML code looks like this:

<ul type="bullet">
  <li><p class="Bullet">Item one</li>
  <li><p class="Bullet"></li>
</ul>

You will have to apply a list item style to the list items. First, create a list item class in your style sheet, such as Bullet. Then, replace all instances of <li><p class=“Bullet”> with <li class=“Bullet”><p class=“Bullet”> using a find and replace tool. Repeat the same process for all lists that give you problems.