Chapter 4 Managing a Report

Managing HTML format

From the HTML Format tab of the report property sheet, you can customize HTML reports and define their presentation style (color, font, background, header and footer) using:

• Template
• Style sheet (CSS files)
• Headers and footers (HTML files)
• Home page (HTML files)
• Depth levels in table of contents
• Format for Graphic items associated with diagrams
• Format for List items
• Page breaks for top-level lists and cards

PowerDesigner ships with a set of predefined HTML presentation templates, style sheets and header and footer files that you can use to generate your HTML reports. Predefined HTML presentation templates can be used as a basis to create your own HTML presentation templates in a text editor. All these files are stored in the Resource Files\HTML Report Style Sheets folder.

HTML presentation template

An HTML presentation template file has an .HTMLTPL extension and allows you to define the following properties:

• Style sheet
• Header (and header height)
• Footer (and footer height)
• Home page

When you apply an HTML presentation template to a report all the corresponding properties defined in the presentation template are displayed in their respective field in the Report property sheet. Beside, all the options you have defined before (ex: font) are no longer taken into account. The styles defined in the presentation template file will be applied.

The HTML presentation template can include the following variables:

Style sheet structure

The following table describes the use of classes name in the creation of report style sheets:

In a style sheet, you can define font, color, background, size, margin, and alignment for each class name.

HTML report properties

The HTML Format page includes the following properties. Each property is optional. If you do not want any HTML presentation template when generating, select <None> in the Template list:

Style sheets and headers and footers associated files

When you generate an HTML report and want to keep the links associated with your style sheets (CSS) or headers and footers files (HTML), we recommend you to gather the linked files in a special folder named as the file to which they are associated and located at the same level in your explorer.

For example, the header Header_Blue.html uses files that should be gathered in folder Header_Blue_files :

This is to make sure that when generating the report, the content of the associated folders is also copied and links associated to your style sheets and headers and footers work properly.

Location type dependent

Depending on their type of location (local or UNC paths, or URL), style sheet files, header and footer files and home page files are used the following way:

Valid codepage

By default, PowerDesigner generates in the HTML page a character set (charset) built from the active codepage (Windows-ACP) of the current system.

If the charset is correct the HTML report can be displayed on all systems.

If the charset is not correct you must create the ReportHtmlCharset key in [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Sybase\PowerDesigner 12\General], and give it the value of the codepage that should be generated in HTML report.

You can find examples of HTML charset at the following Web address: http://www.w3.org/International/O-charset-lang.html.

SVG graphic format

Scalable Vector Graphics is an XML-based language for Web graphics from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). If you choose the SVG graphic format for the generation of images in your HTML report, you should use a browser with an integrated SVG viewer.

You can install an SVG viewer if your browser does not have it already, see http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/SVG-Implementations.htm8 for more information about SVG viewers for Internet Explorer and Netscape.

You can also use a browser with an embedded SVG viewer like Opera or Firefox, in this case make sure the browser is running the correct SVG viewer version.

An SVG viewer provides the following features:

• Zoom in and out while preserving symbol resolution and URL.
• Scroll within the diagram.
• Find text in the diagram.
• Standard contextual menus for editing, saving, and so on.

Default & Save as Default buttons

The Default button allows you to return to the previously saved format in the registry.

The Save As Default button allows you to save the current format in the registry. This format becomes the new default HTML format.

To manage HTML format:

1. Select Report→Report Properties from the Report Editor window, and click the HTML Format tab.
2. Select an HTML presentation template in the Model list.
   
   or
   
   Select an HTML presentation template from the Template list in the Presentation Options page of the Report Creation Wizard.
   
   The options that follow are not available from the Report Creation Wizard.
3. <optional> Browse for a .CSS file or type a URL in the Style Sheet box.
4. <optional> Browse for a local or shared HTML file, or type a URL in the Header box.
5. <optional> Browse for a local or shared HTML file, or type a URL in the Footer box.
6. <optional> Browse for a local or shared HTML file, or type a URL in the Home page box.
7. <optional> Type a number in the Level box and a percentage in the Width box of the Table of contents groupbox.
8. <optional> Select image format and type a number for list format.
9. Select the check box to Add page breaks for top level lists and cards.
   
10. Click OK.
    
    When you generate the HTML report, it reflects the properties you have defined for the report.

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