Re: Pagemaker to HTML conversion

O, gee, I'm so sorry for you, but it does not look like it is going to do 
what you want, and you may need to rebuild all 300 pages, though the good 
news is you do not need to re-write the text.

I am using PageMaker 6.5, and I am looking at the manual (pg 456), You may 
export in two modes by selecting or not the "Preserve Approximate Layout" 
option the the "Export HTML Options" dialog box.

If you choose not to preserve, page and layout setup are ignored and text 
and graphics are exported in a continuous stream, the size of the browser 
window determines how the lines of text wrap.

If you choose to preserve layout, PageMaker approximates the layout as 
closely as possible using HTML tables. It says that resizing the browser 
window does not affect layout, so I presume a horizontal scroll bar may 
appear. Multiple pages if exported to one file are stacked vertically and 
separated by horizontal rules.

Remember that HTML graphics support GIF and JPG formats, while PageMaker 
prefers more press friendly formats. Additionally, PageMaker will resize 
elements to make them fit, since PageMaker will allow the overlapping of 
objects, and HTML will not.

Apparently your best option may be to *IMPORT* your documents into 
PageMaker using HTML protocol, this ensures that you are using styles 
supported by HTML while working with your document, and then to *export* 
the document using the option to preserve your layout as best it can.

There is no way that the code can be elegant, simple, or minimal since 
PageMaker will try using tables to control the layout as best it can.
Page 459 in your PageMaker Manual will give you hints on how to structure 
your pages for optimal results when exported to HTML.

You may use the built-in "View HTML" feature in the export HTML dialog box 
to confirm that the exported page will meet your needs.

How were your "complex tables" built. I build complex tables and forms 
using PageMaker all the time, but I *KNOW* that these would never export as 
tables, because they were not built as tables, but constructed of lines and 
other design elements that have no equivalent whatsoever in HTML.

Short story is, if I design HTML, I use GoLive... If I design for the 
press, I use PageMaker. They are two separate projects, and the customer is 
billed FULL PRICE for each project separately.

Elias


At 05:56 PM 7/17/00 +0000, you wrote:
>We have a 300 pg. document that's done in Pagemaker and needs to be 
>converted to HTML for a college sports site. So far we have tried several 
>things, GoLive, Word, Indesign, etc. and found that the conversion is 
>filled with horrible code and that we lose a lot of things, especially our 
>more complex tables. Anybody have any suggestions?? I need the cleanest 
>code possible with complex tables intact. I am on digest, so please 
>message me off the list as well. Thanks!
>
>Heather
>________________________________________________________________________
>Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

Br. Elias Thienpont OSB
http://www.assumptionabbey.com

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