HTML : well known to you and your correspondents

Of course you have already been surfing on the Internet. Therefore you use a browser and there is about 95% chance you use Microsoft Internet Explorer. All browsers can read pages written in HTML. HTML is an open standard and basically it is just plain text that has been enriched with human readable “tags” that explain how to format the text. With time and because of the success of the Internet, HTML has become more powerful and widespread. For example, instead of dull plain text, you can sometimes read pretty messages that look like advertisements, that’s just because your e-mail also understands and talks HTML.

HTML is now a worldwide standard and HTML pages are the most common way of communicating through the Internet with the visitors of your site. You can be sure that they can read it, because browsers are now installed on every computer. If this is still not the case, there will be no additional cost to them in order to do so. The only thing they need to browse and print those documents is a browser that can be distributed free (on the Internet or CD).

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HTML output is the same as the output to printer.

Because Internet and HTML are recent, many tools you use nowadays cannot produce HTML output like on print. This stems mainly from historic reasons where the quality of output on Internet was less important and limited by available bandwidth.

• HTML pages are an exact copy from print: Leaflet sticks close to the evolution of standard HTML in order to provide the most accurate and faithful output of a page in HTML format.
• No need to convert your pictures: Leaflet converts on the fly your pictures to the picture format, resolution and color palette that are used on the Internet.
  For example : Leaflet automatically converts on the fly a 300 dpi CMYK Tiff picture to a 72 dpi RGB JPEG. When needed, the output picture will take clipping path, alpha channel or border shapes and other transformations on the picture like rotation, cropping, transparency, feathering etc... into account.

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HTML is integrated into Leaflet

With all those benefits, HTML output is a natural choice for Leaflet users who want to be present on the Internet. HTML output is just a click away and since it's the same user interface as the PDF or printer output, you already know how it works.
Information about parameters specific to HTML is available through the online documentation or in the manual.

Any combination of pages can be specified and by selecting a saved HTML profile, output is straightforward and also fast.

Through the use of Leaflet (Power) Server and the appropriate API functions the generation and production of HTML pages can be automated.

Because Leaflet is 100% cross-media and handles with the same ease output to the Internet as output for high quality printing, HTML is the tool of choice when speed and interactivity are key to easy browsing.

WYSIWYG with HTML output

To boost your productivity, Internet Explorer, the most popular and sophisticated browser, has been integrated as preview window in the HTML output mode. Preference output profiles can be defined.

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HTML: when interactivity counts

Specific drawing objects allow you turn your documents to interactive pages:

• Input fields: Data can be input by the user. Fields can be displayed with default values coming from the database or calculated.
• Inbound parameters: A Leaflet page can receive parameters from the calling process. Because Leaflet templates are dynamic, the layout of the page can be influenced by the value of those parameters (examples: prices depending on GUID, text in specific language etc..).
• Outbound parameters: When submitting a form through the action of a button, parameters are passed to the called process. Those parameters can consist of visible fields input by the user and/or hidden fields containing data coming from the database or calculated on the fly by Leaflet.
• Combo box: A list box with multiple choices coming from the database.
• Buttons: Any picture or text can be a button. Those buttons can link to other pages of the same document or to any URL (hard coded, coming from the database or calculated). Those buttons are also used for submitting forms.
• Hotspots: any picture or text can be a hotspot, but specific link objects allow defining any area as one.
• Forms: When submitted, a form passes several parameters (hidden, read-only or user editable) to the requested process that usually displays a requested page.

Next to the drawing objects, other features allow to integrate the Leaflet pages into a web site:

• Java scripts: can be added to the code of the page and tested in the integrated browser
• Passthrough code: Language specific instructions can be added to the design of the page in passthrough mode.

Leaflet won't treat those instructions as text, but will rather include them AS IS in the code of the HTML page. Very helpful when the Leaflet pages are included in ASP or Coldfusion pages for example.
• Output size: Window size can be specified at output time. Typical choice are standard screen sizes or a given window width. This last choice is most appropriate when embedding Leaflet pages into fixed size frames or windows.
• Partial page build: By default Leaflet will build a valid HTML standalone page. When the Leaflet generated code is to be included into other code, parts of the Leaflet code can be omitted (like header declaration and form tags) because the including page already cares for it.
• Relative ressource path: Objects (like pictures...) called by Leaflet pages can be prefixed with a path relative to the root of the Internet application, hence the calling pages don't have to be located next to the Leaflet pages.

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