Can you break a single HTML file into multiple pages like PEGHELP for Pocket PC does?

Hi,

I just finished writing something to make a help file for a Pocket PC
device. The Pocket PC device allows not really showing the .HTM file as a
long single file, but instead uses a tag to suppress the file to only
display one topic at a time. It then uses bookmarks to jump around the
file. I realize that this could be done with multiple HTML files, but I was
hoping there was some way to do it in a single file somehow. Does anyone
have any ideas or an example? Maybe I need to look into the MS CHM file
format. Any ideas?

Thanks,

SA Dev

re: Can you break a single HTML file into multiple pages like PEGHELP for Pocket PC does?

SA Dev wrote:
[color=blue]
>
> I just finished writing something to make a help file for a Pocket PC
> device. The Pocket PC device allows not really showing the .HTM file
> as a long single file, but instead uses a tag to suppress the file to
> only display one topic at a time. It then uses bookmarks to jump
> around the file. I realize that this could be done with multiple
> HTML files, but I was hoping there was some way to do it in a single
> file somehow. Does anyone have any ideas or an example? Maybe I
> need to look into the MS CHM file format. Any ideas?
>[/color]

I suppose you could store the file in your-XML, or XHTML, and use XPath
conversion or XSLT to write different HTML files to disk. You could use
PHP5, or ASP, or something like that. I wonder why the Pocket PC device
is not smart enough to split the files up itself. After all no one says
a single HTML file must be displayed in a single chunk, I believe the
browser may take the freedom to format according to the medium
restrictions -- not necessarily something the author of the web-page
should do.


--
Google Blogoscoped
http://blog.outer-court.com

re: Can you break a single HTML file into multiple pages like PEGHELP for Pocket PC does?

Philipp Lenssen wrote:[color=blue]
> SA Dev wrote:
>
>[color=green]
>>I just finished writing something to make a help file for a Pocket PC
>>device. The Pocket PC device allows not really showing the .HTM file
>>as a long single file, but instead uses a tag to suppress the file to
>>only display one topic at a time. It then uses bookmarks to jump
>>around the file. I realize that this could be done with multiple
>>HTML files, but I was hoping there was some way to do it in a single
>>file somehow. Does anyone have any ideas or an example? Maybe I
>>need to look into the MS CHM file format. Any ideas?
>>[/color]
>
>
> I suppose you could store the file in your-XML, or XHTML, and use XPath
> conversion or XSLT to write different HTML files to disk. You could use
> PHP5, or ASP, or something like that. I wonder why the Pocket PC device
> is not smart enough to split the files up itself. After all no one says
> a single HTML file must be displayed in a single chunk, I believe the
> browser may take the freedom to format according to the medium
> restrictions -- not necessarily something the author of the web-page
> should do.
>
>[/color]
Well, you could build a single file and use embedded links for
navigation. Put a table of contents at the top of the file and
make each topic (including the closing "Return to Top")
completely fill its last screen -- pad with <br> if necessary.

re: Can you break a single HTML file into multiple pages like PEGHELP for Pocket PC does?

Hi Jerry,
[color=blue]
> Well, you could build a single file and use embedded links for
> navigation. Put a table of contents at the top of the file and
> make each topic (including the closing "Return to Top")
> completely fill its last screen -- pad with <br> if necessary.[/color]

But how can I make the current topic the only thing listed in the window, so
that if you are on a specific topic, you can't scroll up or down past the
topic you are on?

Thanks,

SA Dev

re: Can you break a single HTML file into multiple pages like PEGHELP for Pocket PC does?

SA Dev wrote:[color=blue]
> Hi Jerry,
>
>[color=green]
>>Well, you could build a single file and use embedded links for
>>navigation. Put a table of contents at the top of the file and
>>make each topic (including the closing "Return to Top")
>>completely fill its last screen -- pad with <br> if necessary.[/color]
>
>
> But how can I make the current topic the only thing listed in the window, so
> that if you are on a specific topic, you can't scroll up or down past the
> topic you are on?
>
> Thanks,
>
> SA Dev
>
>[/color]
Ooops,
Sorry I missed that requirement in your original post -- You can't.

I think you are going to have to make a choice between one HTML
file per topic and the large number of files that will result in
not being able to stop the user from scrolling to a next or
prior page.

re: Can you break a single HTML file into multiple pages like PEGHELP for Pocket PC does?

Hi Jerry,
[color=blue]
> Sorry I missed that requirement in your original post -- You can't.
> I think you are going to have to make a choice between one HTML
> file per topic and the large number of files that will result in
> not being able to stop the user from scrolling to a next or
> prior page.[/color]

Thanks - that is what I needed to know! I supposed I'll have to figure out
how CHM files work.

Have a great day,

SA Dev