Why was Windows 3.0's WinHelp called an online help system when it ran offline?
16 hours ago
- #computing-history
- #windows
- #terminology
- The term 'online' originally meant 'immediately available on a computer', not necessarily connected to the internet.
- Windows 3.0's WinHelp provided 'online help' meaning help files were readily accessible on the computer without needing a manual.
- Historically, 'online' and 'offline' referred to accessibility on a computer versus archived or remote data.
- The paradox of 'online help available offline' arises because 'online' refers to help files being accessible, while 'offline' refers to the computer's network status.
- Modern systems have moved help files to the web, making 'online help' unavailable when offline (no internet).
- Windows 3.0 predated the widespread internet but not TCP/IP (adopted in 1983).
- VC++ 6.0 was fast compared to modern VS 2022, but debugging on newer OS versions like Windows 11 is problematic.
- Placeholder files and HSM (Hierarchical Storage Management) use 'offline' to indicate archived or not immediately accessible data.