Cannot access "Photoshop Help" in Help Menu

SC
Posted By
Steven_Coppin
Nov 11, 2006
Views
442
Replies
14
Status
Closed
I get an error message "The operation cannot be completed" every-time I click on "Photoshop Help" in the Help Menu. I get the same error in Illustrator when I try to access "Illustrator Help" and also when I try to open the Adobe Help Center application in my Applications folder. Do I have to re-install these applications to fix the problem? What is the solution? Thanks…
Related Tags
access help menu

How to Master Sharpening in Photoshop

Give your photos a professional finish with sharpening in Photoshop. Learn to enhance details, create contrast, and prepare your images for print, web, and social media.

B
Buko
Nov 12, 2006
you have given much info other than it doesn’t work.

read this. LenHewitt, "How To Get Help Quickly" #, 4 Mar 2004 8:27 am </cgi-bin/webx?50>
SC
Steven_Coppin
Nov 12, 2006
I’m sorry, in my haste, I forgot to list the details. I deserve to be taken out into the alley and roughed up a little.

My Photoshop and Illustrator applications are both the CS2 versions. My Mac is a dual GHz G4 with OS 10.4.8 and 1.5 GB ram.

I spent half an hour reading the FAQ and searching the forum with no luck.
B
Buko
Nov 12, 2006
Are you using as the main admin account? or are you just a user with no admin privilages?
SC
Steven_Coppin
Nov 12, 2006
Main admin account. I’m the only user of this Mac. I don’t know exactly when the problem started, I just noticed one day that I couldn’t open Photoshop Help.
B
Buko
Nov 12, 2006
Does it work in a new account?
PG
Pat_Gilmour
Nov 12, 2006
Steve, I had a weird one like this once that was fixed by throwing away my Opera preferences from my User Pref’s folder. I’m not sure – maybe Adobe Help uses Opera for the browser. You could give it a go by moving it at least – Users>myUser>Library>Preferences>Opera Preferences.

Pat
P
Phosphor
Nov 12, 2006
"…maybe Adobe Help uses Opera for the browser."

That could be the case for you, since you apparently have Opera installed. But it wouldn’t be the case for everyone, sooo…

Perhaps ditching the .plist file for the browser you prefer, Steven, will work for you. Perhaps there’s some sort of disconnect between Photoshop and the way it tells the browser to open the help files.

First, though, navigate to the folder within the Main Photoshop folder that contains the HTML help files.

Highlight one of the files (e.g. "help.html") in a Finder window. Press Command + I to Get Info. In the window that appears, scan down to the "Open With…" pane and select the browser you prefer from the drop down menu. If you select something different from what appears there when you first summon the "Get Info" window, you’ll also be able to choose "Select All" to change the default application for all HTML documents to the browser of your choice.

If this doesn’t fix it, have a go at repairing permissions and re-prebinding files & applications using the free Onyx maintenance utility <http://www.titanium.free.fr/pgs/english.html>, Cocktail, or what have you. (Re-prebinding isn’t supposed to be necessary under newer versions of OS X, but it can’t hurt.) Another thing that may help is to run the Launch Services rebuild routine built into many of the up-to-date maintenance utilities.

I’ve created a Bookmark in my browser of choice (Firefox, natch :)) and access the HTML help files from there. I’ve never had a problem, for what it’s worth. I just checked, and Firefox loads the main frameset of the Help files if I click on the Help menu item in Photoshop.
PG
Pat_Gilmour
Nov 12, 2006
Hi Phos,

Strange thing is I don’t have Opera installed as a stand-alone app on my system (never did) and searching on it as an app turns up nothing – maybe the Adobe installer installs it as a default reader for Help files but under a different name.

What I do see is that if I delete the aforementioned pref’s folder, and then restart Adobe Help… it recreates the Pref’s folder, so maybe Steven is in the same boat and has a corrupt pref’s file.

Cheers,

Pat
IL
Ian_Lyons
Nov 13, 2006
Opera is a hidden component of Adobe Bridge (it resides within the application package). Normally you shouldn’t see it, but it can occasionally escape its cage when you open Bridge Center or possibly Stock (was your mouth out) Photos.
PG
Pat_Gilmour
Nov 13, 2006
Hi Ian,
Thanks for the response – I knew Opera was in there somewhere. Curious thing is, all I did was launch Adobe Help from the Help menu in Photoshop and the Preferences folder and files were recreated in my user folder. Bridge wasn’t even running. So I wonder if the HTML navigation of Help also uses Opera. Just curious – any idea?
Thanks, Pat
IL
Ian_Lyons
Nov 13, 2006
Pat, I’ve not looked at Help in a fair while, but it’s possible that it uses Opera. One thing though, it will not be in a format that will recognise.

BTW: have you downloaded the updated Help application? It should be available via the Updater in your Help menu
PG
Pat_Gilmour
Nov 13, 2006
Thanks Ian,
Was just out of curiosity as I’m not actually having an issue – it’s Stephen Coppin (see above) who was having issues so I thought maybe it was a corrupt pref in Opera or something causing his problem. So I looked into the Package for the Adobe Help Centre and you’re spot on – it’s Opera in there Adobe are using as their default Help browser. So I guess if you have Help installed, you have Opera installed, in a cloacked version at least.
Cheers,
Pat
KS
kayne_siler
Nov 13, 2006
Have you looked at this:

<http://www.adobe.com/support/techdocs/319210.html>

It might help with your problem also.
SC
Steven_Coppin
Nov 13, 2006
Sorry I’m late in responding, but I was busy this morning and unable to post. I was able to fix the problem early today. I tried most of the suggestions here with no luck. The error message in all three applications (Photoshop, Illustrator and Bridge) all had the question mark icon from the Adobe Help Center application. When Ian suggested I download the Help Center update, I tried that with success. The update version 2.1 removed the old Help Center and then installed a new version. I now have access to Help in Photoshop, Illustrator and Bridge. Thanks everyone for your interest and help with solving my problem.

How to Improve Photoshop Performance

Learn how to optimize Photoshop for maximum speed, troubleshoot common issues, and keep your projects organized so that you can work faster than ever before!

Related Discussion Topics

Nice and short text about related topics in discussion sections