Automatically displaying a pdf file

T

Todd Cary

I want to have a pdf file automatically load into the users system and I
cannot figure out how to do that. Could someone refer me to an example?

Many thanks....

Todd
 
S

Steve R.

Todd Cary wrote in message ...
I want to have a pdf file automatically load into the user's
system and I cannot figure out how to do that.

What if they don't have a pdf reader ?

D'oh :~(
 
P

PeterMcC

I want to have a pdf file automatically load into the users system
and I cannot figure out how to do that. Could someone refer me to an
example?

<a href="name_of_file.pdf">View the pdf file</a>

If the user hasn't got a pdf reader, or the one they have is not configured
to automatically display the file, the file will download; otherwise it will
display automatically. If someone has configured their pdf reader not to
display files automatically, I guess they have their reasons.
 
S

Steve R.

Todd Cary wrote in message ...
I have a link to download the PDF Reader....

Why why should they, (even if they have 'Adobe' reader), be forced to do
what *you* want when it would be better to do it in HTML. That way they can
read your information on their browsers without downloading a pdf file :~)
 
T

Todd Cary

Steve -

My task is to present to lawyers, handling a large class action case,
TIFF images of the claimant's application that have been converted to
pdf's. The lawyer has selected the claim number from a database of
800,000 the "scan" of the submitted claim. So the user has already
decided to view the image. Now I need to present the image to the user
(lawyer).

Todd
 
T

Todd Cary

Many thanks.....exactly what I needed...

Todd
<a href="name_of_file.pdf">View the pdf file</a>

If the user hasn't got a pdf reader, or the one they have is not configured
to automatically display the file, the file will download; otherwise it will
display automatically. If someone has configured their pdf reader not to
display files automatically, I guess they have their reasons.
 
J

Jukka K. Korpela

Todd Cary said:
My task is to present to lawyers, handling a large class action
case, TIFF images of the claimant's application that have been
converted to pdf's. The lawyer has selected the claim number from
a database of 800,000 the "scan" of the submitted claim. So the
user has already decided to view the image. Now I need to present
the image to the user (lawyer).

So is this about images or about PDF?

Anyway, if it's about a database query, then the server-side script
that performs the query could pick up the right image, or the right PDF
document, and send _it_ as the response. No reason to involve HTML.

However, such systems are normally built so that the query response is
an HTML document, containing texts (or, if you prefer, images, but you
can't really use TIFF images as embedded into HTML) that are links to
PDF documents.
 
J

Jim Royal

Steve R. said:
Why why should they, (even if they have 'Adobe' reader), be forced to do
what *you* want when it would be better to do it in HTML. That way they can
read your information on their browsers without downloading a pdf file :~)

How do you know that the visitor doesn't want a PDF file?

If I had a 40-page glossy annual report to post on a company's web
site, would you created an HTML version of the whole dang thing when
providing a PDF would be more covenient for the visitor?

One shouldn't make assumptions about the needs of people asking
questions. Often they already have a grasp on what they need to know.
 
M

mscir

Jim said:
How do you know that the visitor doesn't want a PDF file?

If I had a 40-page glossy annual report to post on a company's web
site, would you created an HTML version of the whole dang thing when
providing a PDF would be more covenient for the visitor?

One shouldn't make assumptions about the needs of people asking
questions. Often they already have a grasp on what they need to know.

While it is not always practical, I would post anything but pdf whenever
possible: html, word, plain text... to me anything is preferable to pdf,
I avoid them whenever possible. I for one will be very happy when
something better (better looking, smaller-faster engine) replaces them.
 
J

Jim Royal

mscir said:
While it is not always practical, I would post anything but pdf whenever
possible: html, word, plain text... to me anything is preferable to pdf,
I avoid them whenever possible. I for one will be very happy when
something better (better looking, smaller-faster engine) replaces them.

Likewise, HTML, Word, and plain text are not always practical. PDF is a
marvelous format for delivering certain types of information... And is
terrible for others.

PDF is searchable, printable, portable. HTML is none of those things,
unless you have server-side support, which is not always a given. If I
had a 100 page manual to provide to a customer, HTML would be an
intolerable cruelty.

I pick the tool that suits the job.
 
T

Toby A Inkster

Jim said:
PDF is searchable, printable, portable. HTML is none of those things,
unless you have server-side support

HTML is all of those things without server-side support.
 
J

Jim Royal

Toby A said:
HTML is all of those things without server-side support.

Uh, huh. Right.

Print 50 web pages at once. Search 50 web pages at once. Email 50 web
pages at once.

HTML is a clumsy solution for some things, and PDF files are a perfect
alternative.
 
M

Matthias Gutfeldt

Jim said:
HTML is all of those things without server-side support.


Uh, huh. Right.

Print 50 web pages at once. Search 50 web pages at once. Email 50 web
pages at once.[/QUOTE]

Hmm, hmm. It looks like you are comparing one 50-page PDF document to 50
one-page HTML documents. Apples and oranges.


Matthias
 
J

Jeffrey Silverman

Hmm, hmm. It looks like you are comparing one 50-page PDF document to 50
one-page HTML documents. Apples and oranges.

But have you *tried* printing an HTML document lately, from a browser? It
never prints as expected or desired. PDF (nearly) always prints exactly as
expected.
 
J

JustAnotherGuy

Jeffrey said:
But have you *tried* printing an HTML document lately, from a browser? It
never prints as expected or desired. PDF (nearly) always prints exactly as
expected.

HTML is surely not an ideal document publishing format.
 
T

Toby A Inkster

Jeffrey said:
But have you *tried* printing an HTML document lately, from a browser? It
never prints as expected or desired. PDF (nearly) always prints exactly as
expected.

Opera has great support for the CSS printing stuff.
 
A

Andrew Glasgow

Jukka K. Korpela said:
So is this about images or about PDF?

Anyway, if it's about a database query, then the server-side script
that performs the query could pick up the right image, or the right PDF
document, and send _it_ as the response. No reason to involve HTML.

However, such systems are normally built so that the query response is
an HTML document, containing texts (or, if you prefer, images, but you
can't really use TIFF images as embedded into HTML) that are links to
PDF documents.

Most browsers will display a TIFF inline if you embed it, I believe. At
least on my computer.
 
J

Jim Royal

Matthias said:
Hmm, hmm. It looks like you are comparing one 50-page PDF document to 50
one-page HTML documents. Apples and oranges.

This is my point. You cannot have a 50-page HTML document.

I object to the blanket statement that PDF files should be avoided at
all costs, as an earlier poster suggested. This is unrealistic, and can
actually hurt a site's usability.
 

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