TDB2Web expects an HTML-based pattern file for its work. If no other pattern file is specified the program will use its own. Depending on the selected output type it is called Table.htm, OL.htm, UL.htm or DL.htm.
Your pattern file may contain your particular heading, footing, links, applets, images or whatever you want. It even may contain elements of the specified type (tables or lists). As long as they are valid HTML-elements (tables for instance must contain at least one row, marked with a <TR> tag), they will be skipped.
Please consider the subsequent conventions when creating a pattern file:
Create a fully runnable HTML-page (to be sure, test it with your browser)
Insert valid, but empty TABLE tags at any position you like, f.e.
<TABLE></TABLE>Please note that any TABLE attributes will be removed and/or replaced by programm settings. This is especially important to know if you have created a link to this table within the page (or site).
You can set an anchor name for this table in the setup dialogue.
- For documentation purposes you may insert some comments. TDB2Web recognizes the following statements:
<!-- File name: --> <!-- the name of the created file --> <!-- Creator: --> <!-- the title of the application --> <!-- Creation date: --> <!-- date and time of creation -->A minimum pattern file should look like this:
<HTML><BODY> <TABLE></TABLE> </BODY></HTML>For lists, replace TABLE by the appropriate list-tags (OL for Ordered List, UL for Unordered List, DL for Definition List).
In general a text element in an HTML-document is accessed by a link that points to a corresponding target. To access the table and/or list from the pattern file (or from an external file) there are two steps to follow:
To set the link (in the pattern file f.e.), insert at any position you want a sequence like this:
<a href="#_table_">...</a>To set the target (anchor), choose the page Table attributes and/or List options in the Setup dialogue, and click on the button right to the caption.
The anchor-name's pick-list should now contain the name of the above defined link, f.e. _table_.