TableMaker Instructions

TableMaker Instructions

Introduction

TableMaker will take your comma or tab-delimited data and convert it into HTML tables. You have control over many formatting options including the border, width, height, cell padding, cell spacing, caption, column spanning, row spanning, header cells, and horizontal alignment. Your formatting options are stored in settings files and you can save and reuse them as you please.

It is very easy to use -- just drag and drop one or more text files containing comma or tab-delimited data onto TableMaker. A dialog box will open up for you to select a settings file you want to use, and new HTML files are created containing your tables. Each data file can even have more than one set of data separated by a blank line and the resulting HTML file will have separate tables for each set of data. Please note that the dialog box will not have instructions that you should select a settings file. If you select a different type of file, then TableMaker should recognize the mistake and give you another chance.

Shareware Fee

TableMaker is shareware, but don't worry, it's very cheap. In fact, I think you should pay for it only if it has been helpful to you. No guilt, no pressure, it's your call. If you feel TableMaker has saved you a lot of time in preparing HTML tables, then please send $5.00 (cash, check or money order) to the following address:

Sam Choukri
406 Tucker Hall, UMC
Columbia, MO 65211

Data File(s)

To use TableMaker, you need to drag and drop one or more data files onto it. The data files should contain either comma or tab-delimited text and nothing else. Save the tables from your word processor, database, or spread sheet applications as comma or tab-delimited text files for an easy way to convert them into HTML tables. Here is an example of comma-delimited text and what the resultant HTML table would look like (with a border=1 and the first row as a header).

Animals,Beatles,Cars,Cowboys
tiger,John,Celica,Troy
shark,Paul,Sentra,Emmitt
dog,George,Civic,Michael
cat,Ringo,Ferrari,Deion

Animals Beatles Cars Cowboys

tiger John Celica Troy

shark Paul Sentra Emmitt

dog George Civic Michael

cat Ringo Ferrari Deion

Animals	Beatles	Cars	Cowboys
tiger	John	Celica	Troy
shark	Paul	Sentra	Emmitt
dog	George	Civic	Michael
cat	Ringo	Ferrari	Deion

The data files you drop onto TableMaker are processed and the same number of files are created with the same file names, but with an ".html" extension. The output files contain the HTML tables and you can open them in your favorite web browser to see how they look. Since file names can't be longer than 31 characters, the file names will be shortened as needed to make room for the ".html" extension. The original files are left in their original state.

Settings Files

When you drag and drop files onto TableMaker, a dialog box will open up for you to specify a settings file. The settings file contains which formatting options you want for the output tables. I've included many example settings files in the "Settings Files" folder. I've named the files the best I can to give you some idea of the formatting options they specify. The most important option is whether you want to use a comma or a tab for the delimiter. You'll notice that all the settings files begin either with the name "comma" or "tab" so you can quickly figure out which one to use for your data.

The settings files I included are just samples and I'm sure you'll eventually want to make additional ones. TableMaker can guide you through the creation of new settings files by asking you a series of questions. To create a new settings file, double-click the TableMaker application and a menu of options will appear. Select the option to create a new settings file and then follow the instructions from there.

In addition, you can open any existing settings file in your favorite text editor and change the formatting options manually to suit your needs. The instructions for editing a settings file are included within the file itself, but an example of what you can modify is listed below:

$BORDER = '';

Notice how there isn't any value between the single quotes. This tells TableMaker to make your tables without any borders. If you want your tables to have a border of 5 pixels, you would change the above to read as such:

$BORDER = '5';

Now there is a 5 within the single quotes and your tables will have a border of 5 pixels when using that settings file.

You can modify all the other options in a similar way. Some options require numbers, some require specific text, but your choices will be listed within the settings file. Just be careful that you only modify the values between the single quotes. If you modify anything else, you may prevent TableMaker from being able to use that settings file.

Settings File Options

DELIMITER: The delimiter is the character which separates the different values of your data. Each separated value will correspond to one cell of the HTML table. You can choose to have the delimiter be a comma or a tab.
BORDER: The thickness in pixels of the border surrounding the entire table. Mosaic doesn't support sizing of borders and will display the same size border no matter what value is entered. Leave this field blank if you want a table with no border.
WIDTH -- not supported by all browsers which support tables: The width of the table in pixels or as a relative percentage of the browser window. By default, a number is assumed to be the width of the table in pixels, unless it is followed by a percentage sign (ex: 75%). Leave this field blank if you want the table to be just wide enough to fit all the data, but no wider.
HEIGHT -- not supported by all browsers which support tables: The height of the table in pixels or as a relative percentage of the browser window. By default, a number is assumed to be the height of the table in pixels, unless it is followed by a percentage sign (ex: 75%). Leave this field blank if you want the table to be just tall enough to fit all the data, but no taller.
CELLPADDING -- not supported by all browsers which support tables: The amount of space in pixels between the border of the cell and the contents of the cell. Netscape uses a default of 1 if no value is specified.
CELLSPACING -- not supported by all browsers which support tables: The amount of space in pixels between individual cells. Netscape uses a default of 2 if no value is specified.
CAPTION: A textual description of the table. Netscape wraps long captions so it won't be wider than the table, but Mosaic (at least Mac Mosaic) uses the entire width of the browser window.
ALIGN_CAPTION: If you decide to have a caption for your table, you can choose to place it on the top or the bottom of the table.
SPANNING: Spanning refers to the number of columns or rows a particular cell spans across. TableMaker can look for special codes within your data files in the form of "(cs=#)" to span columns or "(rs=#)" to span rows. For example, to span a cell containing the word "sleepy" across four columns, use the code "(cs=4)sleepy" in your data. You should disable the spanning feature if your data, by strange coincidence, already contains values which may be confused with the special codes. Look at the Examples page for a more-detailed description of column and row spanning.
HEADER: Cells are by default formatted as data cells unless you choose to format them as header cells. Generally, header cells are used to denote the title of a column or row. By default, the values appearing in header cells are centered and bold and the values appearing in data cells are aligned left and plain. The alignment of each type of cell can be changed using the ALIGN option.
ROW_ALIGN: The horizontal alignment of all values within a row, regardless of whether they are in header cells or data cells. This option is the most efficient way to make all your cells have the same alignment. However, you can over-ride the alignment specified by the row by choosing a different alignment (other than the default alignment) for any header or data cell.
TD_ALIGN: The horizontal alignment of values within data cells. The default alignment of values within data cells is left-justified in most browsers, but you can change this to whatever you want.
TH_ALIGN: The horizontal alignment of values within header cells. The default alignment of values within header cells is centered in most browsers, but you can change this to whatever you want. Normally, header cells are used to denote column and/or row headings.

TableMaker Options

As of version 1.1, you can double-click the TableMaker application to see a menu of options which will make the program easier and faster to use. Here are the available options:

Select a default settings file for TableMaker to use automatically each time data files are dropped on it.
Let TableMaker ask for a settings file each time data files are dropped on it.
Create a new settings file by answering a series of questions about which formatting options you want.
Select an application which will be the creator of the output HTML files containing your tables.
Select how the source of the table is formatted within the HTML files.