There are a number of sources for Simergy Help in addition to the Compiled HTML file (CHM) that can be accessed by selecting Simergy Help from the drop down list next to the question mark within the green circle icon in the upper right hand corner of the interface.
Simergy Help icon
Tip: You are typically only 1 to 2 clicks away from the topic you want to find. By using the contents, index and search tabs you can easily get to every topic within Simergy Help.
When you first select Simergy Help you will see a CHM pop-up dialog similar to the one shown below. A default topic will be displayed. The intent of the CHM format is to allow you to access Simergy Help while you are working within Simergy, so that you can have both files open at the same time.
Note: In future versions of Simergy there will be 'contextual help' incorporated, so that when you are working in a part of the Simergy interface and you have a question about a property or category, you will be able to right click and access that topic within Simergy Help directly.
The Breadcrumbs in the upper right tells you where you are within the structure of the Simergy Help. If you were to select on the contents tab you would see that there is an "Introduction" folder, and then if you selected on that you would see the "10 Things" topic. The Breadcrumbs are hyperlinks that allow you to jump out to related levels of the Simergy Help.
Simergy Help Default Screen
Within Simergy Help there are a number of types of Hyperlinks:
- Other topics within Simergy Help -
- To pop-up dialog boxes that provide more detail
- Image Map hyperlinks to other topics
- Image Map hyperlinks to pop-up dialogs
- Links to the EnergyPlus Input Output Reference, which is embedded within Simergy Help
When you select the Contents tab a set of chapters will be displayed as shown in the image on the left in Figure 3. As you start to select on different chapters the tree will expand to display the topics, sub-chapters and sub-chapter topics (image on the right of Figure 3). Selecting on any topic on the tree will display that topic in the viewing field on the right.
Different views of the Simergy Help Content Tree
The structure of Simergy Help Chapters mimics the set up of the interface. When you open Simergy you will see 10 main selections on the top row of the ribbon. Those 10 items starting with File and going to Templates are displayed in order, so that you have easy and intuitive access to explanations of different features within those areas.
Selecting the index tab exposes the extensive index that has been set up, which provides the ability to access topics within Simergy Help, which includes the EnergyPlus Input Output Reference Guide. If you select on an index word or phrase in the list and a topic is automatically displayed on the right, then it means that there is only one topic associated with it. However if you select BEM (Building Energy Models) you will see a pop-up dialog appear with a number of topics listed. Then you can select the desired topic from the list, select Display and then it will be in the viewing area.
Simergy Help Index Tab
Another feature is using the text you enter in the keyword field as a way to get closer to the topic you are looking for. Once you start typing in the keyword field the search has begun. If you enter "ca" the portion of the index list displayed shows the index entries with "ca" at the very top. This makes it easy to navigate the list and significantly reduces the amount of scrolling. This same approach is also included in other parts of the interface within Simergy, such as in Results Visualization.
By typing "BEM" in the keyword text field and hitting enter or selecting List Topics the topics that include BEM are displayed and can easily be selected and viewed (Figure 5). This provides another way to get at topics if they do not easily present themselves in the content and index tabs. For a majority of users, the Search tab will be the first stop when looking for topics.
Search Tab displaying the example of conducting a search on "BEM" and the resulting topics displayed.
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