Content Display & Viewing
These components focus on rendering individual or structured help content, such as topics, reading lists, images, or videos. They support in-place viewing, editing (for authors), and features like callouts or full templates.
Displays a Help Topic and includes in-place editing facilities for Help Authors. The Topic Viewer component is one of two main ways to show individual Help Topics (i.e., nuggets of useful content), the other being via embedded Help callouts presented via the Autoform.
Best Used For/Key Features:
- Knowledge display
- Wiki-style linking
- Flow-screen help
Admin Insights & Deployment Tips: Use stand-alone or inside Utility 1 / Tabset; embed in Flows for step-specific help.
Example Use Cases: Show dynamic help for each Flow screen
Expected Business Outcomes:
- Less frustration
- Higher task completion
This is not a component design parameter but is available to code (so can, for example, be supplied when creating composite components or building via the Lightning Out Host page)
This parameter can be used to specify the delimiters that are to be used when specifying the component’s layout definition (LayoutInfo parameter). If supplied, this should be a 4 character string, each character being one of the delimiters, as follows:
- Character 1: Row delimiter
- Character 2: Column delimiter
- Character 3: Field delimiter
- Character 4: Field attribute delimiter
This value defaults to |¬,^, a value that is suited to most needs.
Instructions for customising the layout of Help Topic data when presented via this component. The instructions are supplied as a delimited string, as follows:
- The custom layout is construed as a series of ‘rows’, each of which is 100 percent page width with a height that will grow as required to accommodate the specified content. Each row contains:
- Between 1 and 12 columns. Columns are of equal width. Each column contains:
- “Fields” (pieces of layout information of various kinds, which may or may not be actual object fields). Fields are supplied as a delimited definition, in the form: Content [delimiter] Type [delimiter] Class
The delimited field definition is as follows:
- Content: defines the piece of information to be displayed. Interpretation of the value supplied is dependent on…
- Type: One of the following values:
- Field: Content is assumed to be the API name (including the iahelp__ namespace prefix) of a field of the Help Topic object. The unescaped value of the specified field will be placed in the column.
- Literal: Content is assumed to be plain text, to be placed in the column ‘as is’, regardless of the Help Topic in play.
- Component: Content is assumed to be a further delimited string of instructions for creating an Aura component. The component is placed in the column. Contact Support for further information.
- Image: Content is assumed to be the API name (including the iahelp__ namespace prefix) of a field of the Help Topic object that contains the URL of an image. A DIV tag will be added to the column, sized at Help Topic’s specified image video width and height,wwith its background set to the URL.
- Video: Content is assumed to be the API name (including the iahelp__ namespace prefix) of a field of the Help Topic object that contains the URL of a video. An IFRAME will be added to the column, sized at Help Topic’s specified width and height, with its source set to the URL.
- Class: The name of a CSS class to apply to the content. Content is added to the column inside a DIV that is styled with this class.
Delimiters are single characters, as specified by the LayoutInfoDelimiters attribute.
An example of the overall format of the Component Definition string.
By way of example, the following settings could be used:
- Topic Layout: Component Definition (LayoutInfo):
- iahelp__Summary__c^Field^slds-text-heading_large|iahelp__ImageURL__c^Image^¬iahelp__Description__c^Field^|
- LayoutInfoDelimiters:
- Leave at the default setting, which is: |¬,^
The setting amounts to the following (white space added for clarity):
- [A field name] [Field attribute Delimiter] [Type = Field] [Field attribute delimiter] [The CSS class to apply to the field] [Row delimiter]
- [A field name] [Field attribute Delimiter] [Type = Image] [Field attribute delimiter] [no class specified - item will be un-styled] [Column delimiter] [A field name] [Field attribute Delimiter] [Type = Field] [Field attribute delimiter] [no class specified - item will be un-styled] [Row delimiter]
We thus produce a two-row layout:
- The first row contains a single field (summary) with specified styling
- The second row contains two columns, each with a single field:
- One is to be displayed as an image
- The second is to be treated as a field so the Help Topic’s description is placed in the right hand column.
Where custom layouts are used, defines which layout definition (Topic's, as specified by its Full Template, or Component's, as specified via this parameter on a given page layout) takes precedence.
Allows the component to retrieve and display a pre-cached version of a Help record (e.g., a Help Topic) from another component or source, rather than fetching it directly from Salesforce every time. Leave blank to seek Topic data from Salesforce server-side as users select topics.
Setting a cache source —for example to a Tree or List that the Topic Viewer is listening to— will result in faster navigation between topics.
Some topic features are not supported in this mode.
Comma-separated list of the component(s) that this component should 'listen' to (respond to events from). To listen to the Quick Access Menu, entertheQAM.
Id of the Help Topic to display on loading.
- Leave blank to show the Org's default Help Topic as defined in Global Settings).
- Enter [None] to start with no Topic, regardless of the Org's default.
This component displays a Reading List and, optionally, related navigation controls.
Best Used For/Key Features:
- Onboarding journeys
- Process documentation
- Mobile ready
Admin Insights & Deployment Tips: Add to sub-tabs in Training or Help apps; supports different display modes.
Example Use Cases: ‘First 5 Steps in Opportunity Management’
Expected Business Outcomes:
- Consistent learning experience
- Repeatable training
(Adopter component style only) Controls how Reading List Entries will be displayed.
- Simple Text presentation shows the summary only of each Reading List Entry in a plain text format.
- Topic Viewer presentation displays the entire Reading List Entry via a Help Topic viewer component.
Controls the overall visual treatment of the Reading List
- Standard style is our original Lightning Reading List treatment, featuring optional navigation lozenges and a linear presentation of entries.
- Adopter style is a more modern, branded treatment with entries that can be expanded and collapsed. This style also supports multi-page guides.
Ratio of width to height to use when displaying video media. Select from:
- HD (16:9)
- Monitor (4:3)
- Widescreen (5:3)
The aspect ratio will be applied to all video media, regardless of source sizing.
Percentage width at which to display Reading List Entry image and/or video. Select: 50, 75 or 100 percent.
Any images featured in the Reading List’s Entries will be displayed at the selected percentage of the width of the viewer, with height varying as required to retain the aspect ratio of the original picture.
Switches the display of Reading List Entry description text on or off.
Shows or hides the Reading List Entries navigation bar.
Reading List Entry Viewed Help Interactions are only logged when clicking entry lozenges on the Navigation Bar: merely scrolling the viewer logs no interactions.
Id of the Reading List to display on loading (leave blank to await instructions from the component this one 'listens to').
This component displays media (image or video) in various formats, be they sourced from Help Topics or elsewhere.
Best Used For/Key Features:
- Visual training
- Process illustrations
Admin Insights & Deployment Tips: Embed in Training or Help tabs; ideal for short tutorials.
Expected Business Outcomes:
Improved learning retention
In addition to being available for standalone use, the Media Viewer can be invoked as a modal dialogue by clicking on the popout media tool adjacent to any image or video displayed via the Topic Viewer.
Comma-separated list of the component(s) that this component should 'listen' to (respond to events from). To listen to the Quick Access Menu, enter theQAM.
This is the title to display with the default image. If the component receives Help Topic information as described above, the component’s title reverts to Help Topic Name plus Image Title, where available.
The type of (Image or Video) media displayed by the specified Default Media URL.
The https address of the item (image or video) to display. This component is driven by the URL of an image or video, as opposed to the ID of a Help Topic or record of any kind.
In common with other components, the Image Viewer is able to listen to its peers and, if supplied thereby with a Help Topic ID (via the Topic Selected event) it will retrieve the URL of the associated media and display it.
The Default Media URL is the HTTPS address of the item (image or video) to show when the viewer is first displayed, prior to any Topic Selected event advising the component of the “current” item to load.
This component shows lists of contextual and / or related Help Topics, Reading Lists, personal Notes or Resources.
Best Used For/Key Features:
- Knowledge navigation
- Content Apps
- Utility Bar access
- Searchable lists
Admin Insights & Deployment Tips: Use within tabs or Utility Bar; filter by tags or context.
Example Use Cases: 'Related Guides' list on Opportunity page
Expected Business Outcomes:
- Quicker content discovery
- Higher self-service
An action code to raise when items on the listing are clicked. The listing component communicates with others which are listening (See Component ID and Listens To parameters) by generating messages (action codes) when its row items are clicked.
A default action code is associated with each Listing Style that we package with Improved Help. This parameter can be used to override this default, with a view to triggering custom actions defined in your org's own code.
Contact support for more information regarding this option.
The maximum number of Listing Tools to show against list rows before collapsing them into an Ellipsis. 0 = always collapse, -1 = never collapse.
This does not affect items in the Tools menu. These apply to the component as a whole, rather than specific records and are always collapsed until the Tools icon is clicked.
Defines the component(s) that this component should 'listen' to.
(For Utility 1,PDListensTo)
- For the List component, the ID ofa SINGLE component that this component should 'listen' to (respond to events from).
- For other components, a comma separated list of component IDs may be entered.
- To listen to the Quick Access Menu, enter 'theQAM'.
If no value is provided, the list will effectively be static throughout the life of the page. Whilst this can be useful in some circumstances, for the "Related Help" and "Resources" Listing Types, a blank value is not suitable as the listing will have no means of knowing the Topic for which related items are to be shown.
The row format to use in this component.
Select from:
- Expanded: shows the ‘title’ text associated with each row of data. When listing Help Topics, for example, this will be the Topic Summary text.
- Hidden: shows only the name of each record.
Depending on LUX interaction tracking status, context and the Configuration Tools available in a given Org, the user may be allowed to expand / contract list details themselves, with the component setting representing only an initial default.
The (related) list type to display in this component. Select from:
- All Help: the listing will show the topics associated with every element defined for the current Helped Page Layout. On a record page, this will be determined, as in classic, by examining the current record ID. If in a custom “App” page, use “Fixed Help” (see below).
- Bookmarks: shows the current user’s list of bookmarked Topics.
- Child Help: shows any Help Topics that are children of the one selected on the component to which the listing is listening (i.e., are related via a help relationship whose semantic tag is ‘Parent’).This listing will always be a subset of that returned when using the ‘Related Help’ option(which shows relatives of all semantic types).
- Fixed Help: the listing will show the topics associated with every element applicable to the Helped Page Layout implied by the “Fixed Help Context” parameter.
- Tagged Items: shows items that have been “tagged” with a particular meta Topic (see Tagging control).
- Help Notes: Lists the user’s “sticky” notes for the current context (record ID or “fixed” ibid). Notes are a particular kind of Help Interaction, so LUX interactions must be enabled to use this option. Note that:
- When on a record layout, notes are contextual to the individual row of data being viewed (i.e., the particular Account / Opportunity etc.)
- On arrival at any given context, a new Note will be created automatically if one does not exist in the user’s name.
- Notes effectively retain a version history: any edits are recorded in a new interaction, with all previous copies of the interaction retained.
- Reading Lists: shows any Reading List that contains entries whose topics feature in the current context, plus any featured Reading Lists.
- Related Help: shows any Help Topics related to the one selected on the component to which the listing is listening.
- Resources: shows any Help Resources related to the one selected on the component to which the listing is listening.
- Unfeatured Reading Lists: as Reading Lists, but excludes any featured items. In this way, one is able to obtain reading lists that are directly related to the current context.
For Help Topic listings, the fields to display for each row. Select from:
- Element Name - Topic Name
- Topic Name (Element Type)
- Topic Name
This setting is ignored for listings other than Help Topics.
The size of tile to display for each listing item. For Tile listing style only.
The listing format to use in this component.
Select from:
- Narrow: suited to minimal screen real-estate (and hard-wired for the listing featured in the QAM).
- Tile: displays each listing item as a ‘tile’ rather than row in a table.
- Wide: a more open and expansive listing style.
This attribute is not exposed to the Lightning Page Designer but may need to be set when adding list components via mark-up. Many Improved Help components are informed automatically by Salesforce of the ID of the record being visited by the user, where relevant: the Record Id parameter traps this information.
This attribute is not exposed to the Lightning Page Designer as a parameter, but may need to be set in some specific circumstances when adding list components via mark-up.
Id of the Help Topic to which to contextualise, where relevant. For related listing and Tagged Items types, the Id of the Help Topic to which to contextualise on load.
The object type (API Name) to which to contextualise, where relevant
- For a standalone or fixed help listing, the object type (API Name) to which to contextualise.
- For the Tagged Items option, the ID of the Topic with which listing items must be tagged in order to appear.
Where relevant to the List being viewed, controls how to respond to listing item clicks.
Select from:
- Topic Selected Event Only: when a listing is clicked, the listing will issue a Record Selected message that other components may choose to listen for and respond to.
- Topic Selected Event plus Topic view: when clicked, the listing issues the event but also opens a callout on the relevant item.
- When listing Help Topics, this will be the Topic’s chosen callout.
- When listing Reading Lists, this will be a modal dialogue showing the Reading List Viewer.
- For other list types, this selection is no different from “Selected Event Only”.
- Topic Selected Event plus Topic pop out: as Topic view, but opens the callout in a separate browser window.