.. include:: headings.inc



.. _ContextHelp:

==========================================================================================================================================
|phoenix_title|  **ContextHelp**
==========================================================================================================================================

This class changes the cursor to a query and puts the application into a 'context-sensitive help mode'.          

When the user left-clicks on a window within the specified window, a  ``wxEVT_HELP``   event is sent to that control, and the application may respond to it by popping up some help. 

For example: ::

        contextHelp = wx.ContextHelp(myWindow)



There are a couple of ways to invoke this behaviour implicitly: 



- Use the ``DIALOG_EX_CONTEXTHELP`` style for a dialog (Windows only). This will put a question mark in the titlebar, and Windows will put the application into context-sensitive help mode automatically, with further programming. 






- Create a :ref:`ContextHelpButton`, whose predefined behaviour is to create a context help object. Normally you will write your application so that this button is only added to a dialog for non-Windows platforms (use ``DIALOG_EX_CONTEXTHELP`` on Windows). 




Note that on Mac OS X, the cursor does not change when in context-sensitive help mode. 







         



.. seealso:: :ref:`HelpEvent`, `HelpController`, :ref:`ContextHelpButton`    







|

|class_hierarchy| Inheritance Diagram
=====================================

Inheritance diagram for class **ContextHelp**

.. raw:: html

   <p class="graphviz">
   <img src="_static/images/inheritance/ContextHelp_inheritance.png" alt="Inheritance diagram of ContextHelp" usemap="#dummy" class="inheritance"/>
   <map id="dummy" name="dummy"> <area shape="rect" id="node1" href="Object.html" title="This is the root class of many of the wxWidgets classes." alt="" coords="5,5,77,35"/> <area shape="rect" id="node2" href="ContextHelp.html" title="This class changes the cursor to a query and puts the application into a 'context-sensitive help mode'." alt="" coords="127,5,233,35"/> </map> 
   </p>

|


|method_summary| Methods Summary
================================

================================================================================ ================================================================================
:meth:`~ContextHelp.__init__`                                                    Constructs a context help object, calling :meth:`BeginContextHelp`   if `doNow`  is ``True`` (the default).
:meth:`~ContextHelp.BeginContextHelp`                                            Puts the application into context-sensitive help mode.
:meth:`~ContextHelp.EndContextHelp`                                              Ends context-sensitive help mode.
================================================================================ ================================================================================


|


|api| Class API
===============
   

.. class:: ContextHelp(Object)

   This class changes the cursor to a query and puts the application into a 'context-sensitive help mode'.
   
   **Possible constructors**::

       ContextHelp(window=None, doNow=True)
       



   .. method:: __init__(self, window=None, doNow=True)

      Constructs a context help object, calling :meth:`BeginContextHelp`   if `doNow`  is ``True`` (the default).                  

      If `window`  is ``None``, the top window is used.                  


      :param `window`: 
      :type `window`: Window
      :param `doNow`: 
      :type `doNow`: bool







   .. method:: BeginContextHelp(self, window)

      Puts the application into context-sensitive help mode.                  

      `window`  is the window which will be used to catch events; if ``None``, the top window will be used. 

      Returns ``True`` if the application was successfully put into context-sensitive help mode. This function only returns when the event loop has finished.                  


      :param `window`: 
      :type `window`: Window




      :rtype: `bool`








   .. method:: EndContextHelp(self)

      Ends context-sensitive help mode.                  

      Not normally called by the application.                  

      :rtype: `bool`