Graphical User Interface

AH Formatter V5.0 Windows version has a Graphical User Interface (GUI). By using the GUI, you can easily initiate formatting and then view the formatted results on the browser prior to outputting to PDF or print. You also have control over a number of formatting options, can set the options for PDF output and can direct files to any connected printer.

For developers the GUI provides quick visual feedback of formatting results and has the added ability to save Area and FO Trees to aid in the development processes. In a large multi page document the pages can be browsed as they are formatted. If errors are detected Formatting can be stopped prior to completion, thus on very large runs saving considerable time.

The GUI also lets you save the resulting XSL-FO file from XSLT. This is very useful when you want to transmit a file for formatting, but not the XML or XSL files.

The application window of AH Formatter V5.0 consists of following elements.

1. Title Bar

   The title bar shows the name of the original file being formatted; the stylesheet (XSL file) if formatting an XML file; and if in the <title> of HTML, FO file <fo:title> or if <axf:document-info> extension property, the content will also be shown (HTML's <title> or <fo:title> takes priority).

   

2. Menu Bar

   The menu bar contains the following 6 pull-down menus:

   • File
   • Edit
   • Move
   • View
   • Format
   • Help

3. Tool Bar

   The most commonly used menu functions are available as buttons on the Tool Bar. You can easily execute these functions by one click of the mouse. ☞ [View]-[Tool Bar]

4. Status Bar

   The Status Bar displays the following information. ☞ [View]-[Status Bar]

   • Current status of Formatter or the tool bar button function as you pass over the button with the pointer.
   • Current page number/total number of pages (based on physical page count).
   • The physical page size of the displayed page.
   • Zoom ratio.

   

5. WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get)

   The WYSIWYG displays the formatted results. When the scroll bar is displayed, you can use the hand tool as the mouse pointer on the WYSIWYG window to move the page around so that you can view all the areas on it while pressing the left mouse button.

   You can format various files by dropping on this window. When you drop a file on this window, the type of file will be judged automatically. If you'd like to specify the file type, please open the file using the Document/Stylesheet Dialog. The dropped file will be added to the <Recent File> of a File menu and the file type will also be memorized. Therefore, when you choose the file dropped and saved in the Recent File, the file type will be judged again automatically. Formatting pattern by the file type is as follows: （See also Judgment of Formatting Pattern by File Type to learn about the autmatic judgement.）

   • FO file
     Starats formatting immediately.
   • Stylesheet (XSL/CSS)
     When you drop the associated stylesheet on the formatted result, formatting starts with the dropped stylesheet. If not, it starts formatting after dropping an XML/HTML document combined with the stylesheet together.
   • XML/HTML file (without XSL/CSS specification in XML/HTML)
     Formats the document using a default stylesheet.
   • XML/HTML file (with XSL/CSS specification in XML/HTML)
     Formats the document using the stylesheet specified in XML/HTML.
   • XML / HTML file (without XSL/CSS specification in XML/HTML) + Stylesheet (XSL/CSS)
     Formats the document using the stylesheet dropped together.
   • XML / HTML file (with XSL/CSS specification in XML/HTML) + Stylesheet (XSL/CSS)
     Formats the document using the stylesheet dropped together.
   • Graphics file
     The graphics file is drawn in the window when it is the Graphics supported by AH Formatter V5.0.

   If another stylesheet is dropped when formatting the file except for FO or a graphics file, the file can be again formatted using the stylesheet. Moreover, if the Internet shortcut (.url) file, a URL character string or a Shortcut link (.lnk) to a file is dropped, the URL and the target file can be opened.

   When a mouse is pointed on an area on the screen such as a character string or an image, the information about the area is displayed as a ToolTip. Font name, size, format and size of an image that are actually used can be checked.

   

   As for the font name, some font names are displayed in order to show the difference between the specified font and the font actually adopted. Also refer to [Display Glyph] in the menu.

   • font-family= The font-family specified by FO is displayed.
   • font-name= The font name actually selected is displayed. If it is the same as font-family, it is not displayed.
   • display-name= To display the character on the screen, the font name that Windows selected is displayed. If it is the same as font-name, it is not displayed.

6. Log Window

   The log window shows a running status as the document is formatted. Minor warnings are shown here. Serious warnings are shown in a popup dialog box. The log window can hold a significant amount of status information. Older information is discarded if the information becomes too much. The final line of information is the time it took to format the document. The log window has its own scroll bar for viewing the information.

   

   The content in the log window can now automatically be saved to a file by click the Others tab in the Other Settings Dialog and then checking the [Output Log File] check box.

When exiting AH Formatter V5.0, the position and the size of the GUI are stored. Formatter restarts at that same position and size.

1. File

   Menu	Shortcut	Description
   Open...	Ctrl+ O	Displays the Document/Stylesheet Dialog.
   Close	Ctrl+ W	Close the displaying formatted results. V5.0
   Save AreaTree...		Displays the Save AreaTree Dialog. no-LT
   Save FOTree...		Displays the Save FOTree Dialog.
   Save FO...		Displays the Save FO Dialog.
   Print...	Ctrl+ P	Displays the Print Dialog.
   PDF Output	Ctrl+ D	Displays the PDF Output Dialog.
   SVG Output...		Displays the SVG Output Dialog.
   PostScript Output...		Displays the PostScript Output Dialog.
   XPS Output...		Displays the XPS Output Dialog.
   INX Output...		Displays the INX Output Dialog.
   Text Output...		Displays the Text Output Dialog. no-LT V5.0
   Document Information...		Display the Document Information Dialog.
   <Recent File>		Displays the files that are recently formatted.
   Exit	Alt+ F4	Exits AH Formatter V5.0.

   
   
2. Edit

   Menu	Shortcut	Description
   Text Select		Enables you to select the text on the WYSIWYG window with the mouse. V5.0
   Copy	Ctrl+ C	Copies the selected text to the clipboard. V5.0
   Select All	Ctrl+ A	Makes all the texts on the WYSIWYG window into selection mode. V5.0
   Deselect		Cancels selection mode of the text. V5.0
   Edit Document		Edits the target XML document or stylesheet using the editor specified in the external editor page in the Other Settings Dialog.
   Edit StyleSheet
   Search String...	Ctrl+ F	Displays the Search String Dialog.
   Search Property...	Shift+Ctrl+ F	Display the Search Property Dialog.
   Search Previous	Shift+ F3	Searches previous from the position just before the search position.
   Search Next	F3	Searches next from the position just before the search position.

   
   
3. Move

   Menu	Shortcut	Description
   First Page	Ctrl+ Home	Goes to the first page.
   Previous Page	Ctrl+ PageUp	Goes to the previous page.
   Next Page	Ctrl+ PageDown	Goes to the next pate.
   Last Page	Ctrl+ End	Goes to the last page. When you stop formatting before finishing, the last formatted page will be displayed.
   Go To Page...	Ctrl+ G	Displays the Go To Page Dialog. This only functions in multi page documents. The current page position is shown in the Status Bar.
   Back	Alt+ ←	As you move through the pages of a document Formatter stores up to 10 moves. By using the Back and Forward you can step backwards or forwards through the pages viewed.
   Forward	Alt+ →

   
   
4. View

   Menu	Shortcut	Description
   Fit in Window	Ctrl+ 0	Zooms the displayed size of the formatted page to automatically fit the entire page in the WYSIWYG window.
   Actual Size	Ctrl+ 1	Set the zoom ratio as 100%. V5.0
   Fit Page Width	Ctrl+ 2	Automatically zooms the width of the formatted page to the width of the WYSIWYG window.
   Zoom In	Ctrl+ +	Changes the zoom ratio as follows: … 400% 300% 200% 150% 125% 100%  75%  66.7%  50%  33.3%  25%  12.5% Values from 5% to 2000% can be entered in the Zoom Dialog. The current zoom ratio is shown in the Status Bar.
   Zoom Out	Ctrl+ −
   Zoom...	Ctrl+ M	Displays the Zoom Dialog.
   Facing Page		Specifies whether to display the formatted pages with Facing Pages or Single Page on the WYSIWIG window.
   Continuous		Specifies whether to display the formatted pages on the WYSIWIG window continuously or not.
   Show Border	Ctrl+ B	Used to confirm how the formatted result is divided in areas. The border does not affect PDF Output or Print.
   Border Color...		Displays the Color Dialog. Possible to specify the border color.
   Show Ruler		Displays the ruler to confirm the position of the character, etc., in the document. The ruler can be moved to anywhere you like.
   Show Printer Mark		Effective when formatting the document that includes printer marks. Specifies whether to display printer marks or not. no-LT
   Display Glyph		Available to see if the character is displayed with the font actually specified. In Windows, a font sometimes may be replaced, and such a character is not outputted correctly in the PDF. When "Display Glyph" is turned on, XSL Formatter displays the character string by the glyph index of a font which is mapping to the character code. When the font you specify is not in the glyph index, then XSL Formatter doesn't display it with the alternative font and it will be displayed as blank. When "Display Glyph" is turned off, XSL Formatter displays the character string by the character code with the specified font. Even if the font you specify is not in the glyph index, XSL Formatter displays it with the alternative font of the same character code.
   Tool Bar		Specifies whether to show or hide the Tool Bar.
   Status Bar		Specifies whether to show or hide the Status Bar.
   Log Window		Specifies whether to show or hide the Log Window. The log window is automatically displayed when execute formatting.

   
   
5. Format

   Menu	Shortcut	Description
   Format	F5	Formats the current document (FO or XML+XSL etc.).
   Stop Format	ESC	Stops formatting. In a large multi page document the pages can be browsed as they are formatted. If errors are detected Formatting can be stopped prior to completion.
   Format Option Setting...	Shift+Ctrl+ O	Displays the Format Option Setting Dialog.
   PDF Option Setting...	Shift+Ctrl+ P	Displays the PDF Option Setting Dialog.
   Other Settings...		Displays the Other Settings Dialog.
   Import Option Setting...		Displays the Import Option Setting Dialog.
   Export Option Setting...		Displays the Export Option Setting Dialog.

   
   
6. Help

   Menu	Shortcut	Description
   Online Manual	F1	Displays this Online Manual.
   Q&A		Displays the Q&A on the Internet.
   Mail to Support		Sends mail to Antenna House Support. The necessary information such as serial number, etc., is embedded automatically. It's not available with the evaluation version and AH Formatter V5.0 Lite.
   Antenna House website		Displays the Antenna House website on the Internet.
   About AH Formatter V5.0...	Shift+ F1	Displays the About Dialog of AH Formatter V5.0.

   
   

• Format Type

  Specify the type of target document and stylesheet in the Formatter Type combo box. By specifying the type of format, you can avoid the misjudge of the type of format. For example, it's effective when you want to specify the type of format as XML, which might be judged as XHTML by the auto judgement. When the specified type of format differs from the actual type, it is considered as AUTO and the type of format is judged autmatically. The following five generic font families can be defined:

  • Auto
  • HTML
  • XHTML
  • XML+CSS
  • XSL-FO

  See also Judgment of Formatting Pattern by File Type

• Document

  Used to specify the target FO,XML or HTML. Recent used files are listed in the Document drop-down list. Only the XML documents are listed even though the stylesheets are also specified in pairs. However the target stylesheet can be inserted in the Stylesheet combo box automatically when the document is selected. Specified files can reside on the local file system, the network or over the internet. Files over the internet can be specified with a URL via HTTP. Local files can also be specified by a URL format starting with file://.

• Stylesheet

  Used to specify the XSL stylesheet, CSS stylesheet or the Project file. The Project file is a file used in Antenna House XSL Report Designer. FO files can only be specified in the document box.

Under the each edit box, the directory or the base URL is displayed, which indicate the base directory when the relative path is specified.

Click [OK] to start formatting.

AH Formatter V5.0 determines the file type based on its content. If from within an document a stylesheet is called, then it is not necessary to separately specify a stylesheet. The specified stylesheet is automatically adopted.

The AreaTree is an XML representation of the formatted document that includes all the page geometry and layout information. Since all formatting information and all information necessary for formatting is included in the area tree it is a very useful tool for stylesheet developers. Press the [Save] button to save the area tree. An area tree XML file can be opened using the current browser. It's possible to format an area tree by specifying it in the document combo box of the Document/Stylesheet Dialog. Caution: Area trees can be very large. Under normal circumstances they should not be modified as the reformatted results cannot be guaranteed.

It's not available to save and load the area tree with AH Formatter V5.0 Lite.

In processing an FO or XML and XSL file Formatter first complete the FO file by adding properties, adding the elements omitted in the loaded FO or the resulting FO of the XSLT transformation and removing unused elements. The area tree is generated by evaluating this completed FO. Press the [Save] button to save the FO that was made at this time. If you format a document from the area tree or when you format with CSS, this menu cannot be selected.

This menu item lets you save an FO file that is the result of the XSLT transformation of the XML and XSL files that is being formatted. This menu is only available for files formatted from XML and XSL files.

The print Dialog lets you output the formatted result to any printer installed or accessible from your Windows system. The user can select to print all pages, a range of pages, or selected pages. If formatting is not completed in the GUI Formatter reformats the document from the beginning for output to the printer. For this reason it may take more time to output to a printer than the GUI. The border used to confirm how the formatted result is divided in areas does not affect Print Output.

See also Restrictions regarding print.

The PDF Output Menu enables outputting the formatted results to PDF by using the PDF output engine developed by Antenna House. Through the menu a user can select to output the entire document or selected range of pages. If formatting is not completed in the GUI then Formatter reformats the document from the beginning for output to PDF. For this reason it may take more time to output to a PDF file than the GUI. The border used to confirm how the formatted result is divided in areas does not affect PDF Output.

• Multi Volume no-LT

  When FO includes the axf:output-volume-info extension property which enables to output the volume separately, it's effective to check. By checking here, the output volume can be separated.

  CAUTION:	The volume cannot be output separately with the CSS formatting.

• Output Range

  Specifies the number of volumes when outputting in multi separate volume, and specifies the number of pages for others. If the specified value in [End(E)] is O or larger than the actual number of volumes or pages, the output range continues to the end.

• Embed All Embeddable Fonts

  Embedding fonts in a PDF makes it possible to create a PDF that can be browsed anywhere and independent of the fonts available on the local machine. This is particularly important when generating multilingual PDF files. The negative is that is can substantially increase the size of the PDF file. When PDF/X is specified to create, all embeddable fonts are embedded. At that time, the check box is displayed in gray color.

• Embed Standard 14 Fonts

  Usually, Standard 14 Fonts are not embedded even if the [Embed All Embeddable Fonts] check box is checked, However, by checking the [Embed Standard 14 Fonts] check box, Standard 14 Fonts can be embedded. When PDF/X is specified to create, Standard 14 fonts are embedded. At that time, the check box is displayed in gray color.

• Text and Line-Art Compression

  Selecting this option makes the PDF file more compact by compressing the text and line-art.

• Fast Web View no-LT

  Generates Linearized PDF. In PDF's character, it cannot be optimized unless once usual PDF is generated. Therefore, although the generation of the Linearized PDF requires time rather than usual, the display of the generated PDF on the Web will be in high-speed.

• Apply Digital Signature no-LT

  Specifies whether to apply a digital signature to a PDF file or not. Even when there is no signature field, it's available to check it. But in this case a disital signature is not applied. In addition, when the PDF version is PDF/X or PDF/A, it's displayed in gray tones.

  CAUTION:	In order to apply the digital signature, PDF Digital Signature Module must be installed on your PC.

  CAUTION:	The digital signature cannot be applied with the CSS formatting.

• Open PDF

  Opens the created PDF using the application associated with extension .pdf (in many cases, it is Adobe Acrobat or Reader).

Changes made in PDF Output Dialog are temporary and do not affect the much more comprehensive PDF Option Settings File under the Format Menu. Please specify the detailed settings regarding PDF output in the PDF Option Setting Dialog.

Please refer to PDF output to learn more about the outputted PDF.

The SVG Output Menu enables outputting the formatted results to SVG by using the SVG output engine developed by Antenna House. Through the menu a user can select to output the entire document or selected range of pages. If formatting is not completed in the GUI then Formatter reformats the document from the beginning for output to SVG. For this reason it may take more time to output to a SVG file than the GUI. The border used to confirm how the formatted result is divided in areas does not affect SVG Output.

• SVG Version

  Selects the version of SVG to output from the followings:

  • SVG 1.1
  • SVG Basic
  • SVG Tiny

• Output Range

  Specifies the range to output. This feature is not available with the evaluation version.

• GZIP Compression

  Outputs GZIP compressed svgz. The extension is set to .svgz.

• Embed Fonts

  Embeds fonts in SVG. This feature is not available with the evaluation version.

• Output to Single File

  Specifies whether pages are outputted as one SVG file, or each page is outputted as an individual file when outputting two or more pages. When outputting two or more SVG, page numbers are placed before the extension of the output file name. For example, if the specified file name is document.svg, page numbers are put as document1.svg, document2.svg,... The number format can be set in Option Setting File, etc.

• Open SVG

  Opens the created SVG using the application associated with extension .svg.

Changes in SVG Output Dialog are temporary and are not reflected to the Option Setting File. See also SVG Option in the Other Settings Dialog.

Please refer to SVG output to learn more about the outputted SVG.

The PostScript Output Menu enables outputting the formatted results to PostScript by using the PostScript output engine developed by Antenna House. Through the menu a user can select to output the entire document or selected range of pages. If formatting is not completed in the GUI then Formatter reformats the document from the beginning for output to PostScript. For this reason it may take more time to output to a PostScript file than the GUI. The border used to confirm how the formatted result is divided in areas does not affect PostScript Output.

• Output Range

  Specifies the range to output. This feature is not available with the evaluation version.

• Open PostScript

  Opens the created PostScript using the application associated with extension .ps.

Please refer to PostScript Output to learn more about the outputted PostScript.

The XPS Output Menu enables outputting the formatted results to XPS (XML Paper Specification) file by using the XPS output engine developed by Antenna House. Through the menu a user can select to output the entire document or selected range of pages. If formatting is not completed in the GUI then Formatter reformats the document from the beginning for output to XPS. For this reason it may take more time to output to a XPS file than the GUI. The border used to confirm how the formatted result is divided in areas does not affect XPS Output.

• Output Range

  Specifies the range to output. This feature is not available with the evaluation version.

• Open XPS

  Opens the created XPS using the application associated with extension .xps.

Please refer to XPS Output to learn more about the outputted XPS.

The INX Output Menu enables outputting the formatted results to INX (InDesign Interchange File) by using the INX output engine developed by Antenna House. Through the menu a user can select to output the entire document or selected range of pages. If formatting is not completed in the GUI then Formatter reformats the document from the beginning for output to INX. For this reason it may take more time to output to a INX file than the GUI. The border used to confirm how the formatted result is divided in areas does not affect INX Output.

• Output Mode

  Selects the mode of text frame to output from the followings: Please refer to INX Output to learn more about Output Mode.

  • Text
  • Line
  • Block

• Output Range

  Specifies the range to output. This feature is not available with the evaluation version.

• Open INX

  Opens the created INX using the application associated with extension .inx.

Please refer to INX Output to learn more about the outputted INX.

The TEXT Output Menu enables outputting the formatted results to plain text format. V5.0 no-LT

• Encoding

  Specifies the encoding of the output text. The defaults value is UTF-8. Please choose one from the list or input a encoding you want to specify. Refer to encoding attribute on TEXT Output Settings about the value which can be specified.

• End of line Mark

  Selects the type of 'End of line Mark' from the followings:

  • CR/LF
  • CR
  • LF

• Output Range

  Specifies the range to output. This feature is not available with the evaluation version.

• Open Text

  Opens the created Text file using the application associated with extension .txt.

Please refer to TEXT Output to learn more about the outputted TEXT. Text output cannot be performed with AH Formatter V5.0 Lite.

The information of axf:document-info in FO is displayed. The content can be changed here, and it can be reflected to the output PDF. The content of the change is not reflected in former FO. Refer to axf:document-info for details.

Specify a sequence of characters to search. This dialog continues being displayed until it closes. When some characters have found in the last searching, It start searching from the following character. For example, when ABCDE is searched and is found, the next searching starts from B. When having found nothing, the searching begins from the first or the last page. In order to cancel the highlight of a searching result, please click anywhere on the GUI screen.

• Ignore Case

  Searches a sequence of characters without distinguishing upper-case and lower-case. It is applied to all Latin alphabets, Cyrillic alphabets, etc. that have upper and lower case characters.

• First Page / Last Page

  When these check boxes are checked, It starts searching from the first or the last page. When the Reverse check box is unchecked, the display of the check box on the left side changes to [First Page]. When the Reverse check box is checked, the display of the check box on the left side changes to [Last Page].

• Reverse

  When the [Reverse] check box is checked, it starts searching toward the first page.

This search function has the following limitations.

• Impossible to search neither what has been deleted such as a white space, nor the strings summarized to one.
• Impossible to search the strings whose spelling has changed by the hyphenation.
• Impossible to search the strings whose spelling has changed by the hyphenation.

Specify a property to search. This dialog continues being displayed until it closes.

• Underline / Line Through / Overline / Change/Revision Bar

  Specify a property to search.

• First Page / Last Page

  When these check boxes are checked, It starts searching from the first or the last page. When the Reverse check box is unchecked, the display of the check box on the left side changes to [First Page]. When the Reverse check box is checked, the display of the check box on the left side changes to [Last Page].

• Reverse

  When the [Reverse] check box is checked, it starts searching toword the first page.

Used to specify the page number to go to and can be from 1 to the total number of formatted pages displayed in the Status Bar.

Specifies the zoom ratio. Can be set from 5% to 2000%.

By default if the AHFSettings.xml (AHFSettings(x64).xml for Windows x64 version) file exists in the application data directory this file is automatically loaded at startup as the Options Setting File. The application data directory is indicated by the environment variable, APPDATA. [APPDATA]\AntennaHouse\AHFormatter\5.0\ If you want to load the other setting file, click Import Setting Files on the Format menu. Through the Format Option Setting Dialog, formatting items in the Option Setting File can be modified. Once changes are made through the Format Option Setting Dialog, click [OK] to write the changed items to the AHFSettings.xml (AHFSettings(x64).xml for Windows x64 version) file that exists in the application data directory. Next time AH Formatter V5.0 is started the saved settings will be used.

Font

Format

Color, Border, Unit

Page

XSLT

CSS

In PDF Option in the Other Setting Dialog, the item concerning PDF set in the Option Setting File is adjusted. The contents changed here are written out to AHFSettings.xml (AHFSettings(x64).xml for Windows x64 version) which exists in the application data directory by clicking the [OK] button. Therefore, it is reflected next time of the starting.

Version

Font

Security

Compression

Others

SVG Option

Editors

Window

Others

This enables you to load an Options Setting File with previously saved preferences from the Option Setting Dialog. By default if the AHFSettings.xml (AHFSettings(x64).xml for Windows x64 version) file exists in the application data directory this file is automatically loaded at startup as the option setting file. The application data directory is indicated by the environment variable, APPDATA. [APPDATA]\AntennaHouse\AHFormatter\5.0\

Writes the current setting to the Option Setting File. Most of the setting contents can be referred to in the Option Setting Dialog.

Displays the version of AH Formatter V5.0 and the license information. If you are using an evaluation license the evaluation period remaining can be confirmed here.

The GUI program AHFormatter.exe can be invoked with parameters.

• Only one of the -d, -p, -pt, -pts, -pdf, -pdft, -pdfts parameters can be specified.

The GUI has certain formatting restrictions that do not apply when using the other interfaces.

• The maximum number of pages that can be formatted is controlled by the Others tab in the Other Settings Dialog. This is because storing formatted pages for browsing in the GUI consumes memory. For very large documents the system would run out of memory without this restriction.

  When using one of the other interfaces it's possible to format a very large number of pages because the information of already formatted pages is aggressively discarded while formatting.

  In the GUI all pages can be outputted to PDF or the printer regardless of this limitation.

• Windows functions are used for EMF and WMF drawing on the GUI. For this reason there may be a case that the formatted results in GUI and the formatted results in the PDF may be different. The same applies to the printing of EMF and WMF using Windows printer drivers from GUI or the Command-line Interface.

• There may be a case that the SVG drawing in GUI and in the PDF may be different.

• There may be a case that fonts displayed in an image are dropped when outputting to PDF. This is because Windows might substitute the fonts. It is necessary to specify the proper font-family in the FO or CSS in order to avoid this.