All About Madcap Flare

Madcap Flare is one of the most powerful online help authoring tools on the market today. In this podcast, Paul Pehrson, MVP in the Madcap Software forums, talks about Madcap Flare in depth.

Pehrson, Paul and Tom H. Johnson. Tech Writer Voices (2008). Articles>Documentation>Software>Madcap Flare

Best Practice Flare: High Definition PDF

Having introduced the concept of high definition PDF's output straight from Flare's source files with minimal post-production, we can now start to dig into the technologies that are used to produce it.

Tech Write Tips (2006). Articles>Documentation>Software>Madcap Flare

Embedding Linked Images in a Word Document

I wish Flare gave me an option before creating the printed documentation: embedded or linked images. I went through a lot of rigmarole before finally figuring out how to get the images embedded so I could share the document.

Lentz, Michelle. Write Technology (2007). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>Madcap Flare

Flare 5: Adding Advanced HTMLHelp Features

Flare current provides the majority of HTMLHelp settings, and does this in a much more flexible way that HTMLHelp workshop does. Particularly useful are the WYSIWYG help window size and potitioning. However, there are some advanced HTMLHelp settings (such as advanced help, or remembering the users last help settings) that are not currently available.

Tech Write Tips (2006). Articles>Documentation>Software>Madcap Flare

Review: MadCap Flare and the RoboHelp Saga

This article is a review of presentations that Mike Hamilton gave at the Berkeley and East Bay STC chapters in December 2006. Hamilton also gave a presentation about MadCap Flare at the San Francisco chapter in August 2006.

Lufkin, Patrick. STC San Francisco (2007). Articles>Reviews>Software>Madcap Flare

Mike Hamilton Gives Flare Demo to the STC Suncoast Chapter

Mike Hamilton from Madcap Software visited the Suncoast chapter in Tampa, Florida, and presented on Flare. In this presentation, he talks about the story behind RoboHelp and Macromedia/Adobe (this blew my mind). He also provides a lot of inside detail on Flare.

Hamilton, Mike and Tom H. Johnson. Tech Writer Voices (2007). Presentations>Documentation>Software>Madcap Flare

Taking Risks with a New Online Help Tool

Some might not think that converting FrameMaker content into online help and user documentation would involve taking risks. In this article, we tell our story of what risks were involved with one of my recent projects, how we overcame them, and what benefits we reaped by using state-of-the-art technology.

Grissino, Ann-Marie and Rebecca McMurry. Carolina Communique (2007). Articles>Software>Help>Madcap Flare

Madcap’s Flare-DITA Solution

In this podcast, Mike Hamilton of Madcap Software talks about their phased approach to handling DITA with Flare. In Phase I, you’ll have the ability to import DITA topics and export to webhelp and other targets. In this sense, Flare functions as a transform engine. In Phase 2, you can use Flare for native DITA authoring. Phase 1 is on the cusp of release, but Phase II won’t be available until quarter one of next year.

Johnson, Tom H. and Mike Hamilton. Tech Writer Voices (2009). Articles>Interviews>DITA>Madcap Flare

Single Sourcing with Flare: Best Practices

In this session, attendees will learn how to use MadCap Flare to develop multiple documents and/or online help systems from a single project and how to share content across multiple projects. Learn how to create multiple online help systems and/or print documents from the same content. Learn how to reuse content developed in multiple applications. Learn how to reuse content in multiple topics and across multiple projects.

Deloach, Scott. STC Proceedings (2009). Presentations>Content Management>Single Sourcing>Madcap Flare

Review: Pre-Release Review of Flare V5

Soon MadCap Software will be releasing the next major version in the Flare product line, Flare V5. I’ve been beta testing Flare 5 for a couple of months now, and there are some great new features in Flare 5 that you are going to love. In this review, I want to point out some of my favorite new features, as well as some of Flare 5’s other great enhancements.

Pehrson, Paul. Technically Speaking (2009). Articles>Reviews>Documentation>Madcap Flare

Flare Stylesheet Template

If you're moving to Flare from another help authoring tool, you'll find that Flare's stylesheet editor is very powerful but different than other stylesheet editors that you may have used. And if Flare is your first help authoring tool, you may find the stylesheet editor overpowering at first. To help you get over that initial hump, Hyper/Word Services offers a stylesheet for Flare that will help you learn to use the stylesheet editor, and that may apply to actual projects.

HyperWord (2009). Articles>Documentation>Help>Madcap Flare

What to Know When Switching from RoboHelp to Flare

I recently switched from RoboHelp 7 to Flare 5. I’m not the person to ask about the merits of one over the other because I don’t have enough experience with Flare yet. Because I’m coming to version 5 with my knowledge being only that which my colleagues have told or shown me, I hope to make life easier for anyone moving from RH to Flare or at least trying Flare out.

Minson, Benjamin. Communications from DMN (2009). Articles>Documentation>Adobe RoboHelp>Madcap Flare

Embedding Videos into Madcap Flare 

One of Flare’s shortcomings is the inability to easily embed video files. However, if you use the Camtasia Studio’s Express Show format as your video format (and you choose the SWF option), you can insert the video into Flare by inserting the video as if it were a picture. Here’s a two-minute screencast showing the processing for inserting a video into Flare. You can also put the video in a drop-down hotspot.

Johnson, Tom H. I'd Rather Be Writing (2009). Presentations>Documentation>Screencasts>Madcap Flare