PDA

View Full Version : Options -- Webpage Dialog box in the Page/Layout tab



wstansbury
9-May-2013, 10:52 AM
I have created a 'Page' Report

I have created links to reports in DAI and I would like to create a link to an Excel file. Is it best to use the 'WWW' or 'Doc' radio button?

I tried the 'WWW' radio button and put a http address but the file wants to automatically open every time I click the file name.

Do you have a good tutorial on creating Page reports?

Bob Cergol
10-May-2013, 08:05 AM
Wayne,

No separate tutorial exists -- just the information published in the documentation.

The syntax for opening local files in a browser is "File://" not "HTTP: however I couldn't get this to work in a Dynamic AI page layout. I tried various techniques including making a text label comprised of a URL like this: <a href="file://c:\dai\vdf_dai\IPMap.xls">Excel file</a> (a technique I've used successfully for creating a menu of reports on the page by making the URL a Dynamic AI URL to a report) -- but the link doesn't work for this Excel sheet even though it will work when manually entered into the browser's address bar.

I'm not sure this can be done from a page layout in Dynamic AI. OTOH, I have placed links in reports to open content such as PDFs, and text files, so am pretty sure the same could be done for an Excel file. I don't have time today to experiment more but next week I will try again and get back to you.

You do know that any Dynamic Report itself can be opened in Excel, but I guess you have a standalone Excel sheet you want to create a shortcut to from within your page layout.

Bob

wstansbury
11-May-2013, 02:00 PM
Thanks a lot for your helpYes, I have a stand alone file I want to display

Bob Cergol
14-May-2013, 02:17 PM
Wayne,

First I should point out that Dynamic AI is not a web content management system. Page layouts are intended for building data display forms or a type of dashboard that can incorporate content from other webs sites. Using the page layout to open an Excel sheet -- and other reports for that matter is getting a bit "creative" ...

The only way I could get this to work is to use an HTTP request in a text box on the page. Even though a browser will allow the "FILE://" URL to work in the address bar, that will not work from a page layout, or as a link within a report either. Here's how I was able to get it to work:
64566455

NOTE: You'll have to make the folder containing the file a virtual directory in the Dynamic AI web site, or place the file in an existing virtual directory under the default web site and adjust the link to it accordingly. Your IT person should know how to create the virtual directory and/or provide you the correct path to it. The Dynamic AI site user will need rights to that folder. This is not the user that logs into Dynamic AI -- this is the Windows account used by the Dynamic AI system to access Windows resources. In my screenshot "vpjt" is a virtual directory that maps to a much longer Windows folder path.

Regards,
Bob