Photoshop CS generator

[dorayme]

In a moment of weakness, staring at unmanageable numbers of
pictures on my machine, I thought to take a peek on the auto web
photo generator in PS CS. Some of the options generated quite
good enough looking albums - at least off line in most browsers.

One can fiddle about with the template html files provided (there
are just very few (this is prior to any actual generation). These
files contain bits and pieces that the inbuilt generator latches
onto to do its thing. I managed to remove a lot of table based
code as an experiment and this was encouraging. But a lot of the
stuff is based on iframes and much else that it would be nice to
be rid of.

I suspect it is a bit of a lost cause but just wondered if anyone
has done anything interesting to make PS CS generate half decent
accessible web pages to a higher standard?

 

[Jonathan N. Little]

In a moment of weakness, staring at unmanageable numbers of
pictures on my machine, I thought to take a peek on the auto web
photo generator in PS CS. Some of the options generated quite
good enough looking albums - at least off line in most browsers.

One can fiddle about with the template html files provided (there
are just very few (this is prior to any actual generation). These
files contain bits and pieces that the inbuilt generator latches
onto to do its thing. I managed to remove a lot of table based
code as an experiment and this was encouraging. But a lot of the
stuff is based on iframes and much else that it would be nice to
be rid of.

I suspect it is a bit of a lost cause but just wondered if anyone
has done anything interesting to make PS CS generate half decent
accessible web pages to a higher standard?

Don't know about PS CS but if your dump the preset template in IrfanView
you can make a custom template with HTML strict + CSS (I have for a
CD-ROM project) for a much better price than PS, like $0.00

 

[dorayme]

Don't know about PS CS but if your dump the preset template in IrfanView
you can make a custom template with HTML strict + CSS (I have for a
CD-ROM project) for a much better price than PS, like $0.00

If it is Mac compatible I will try it (I faintly recall it *not*
being so ages ago). I suppose I could use my Winbox. Radical
thought!

If anyone has used a Mac compatible generator that is template
customisable (not just with some options but with user being able
to write the html and css without roadblocks), would not mind
hearing about it.

(btw. ... not a better price if you already use PS).

 

[Jonathan N. Little]

If it is Mac compatible I will try it (I faintly recall it *not*
being so ages ago). I suppose I could use my Winbox. Radical
thought!

Nope!

IrfanView is a very fast, small, compact and innovative FREEWARE (for
non-commercial use) graphic viewer for Windows 9x/ME/NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista.

See a MAC is all about choices...you don't see the scruffy little guy on
tv talking about that. (those damn annoying MAC vs PC commercials
running in the US) It is kind of why my Linux boxes are servers, but I
must say the Ubuntu box I recently put together looks interesting. Got
Wine to do some amazing things but is still is only about 50% complete
and not ready for the average Joe.

If anyone has used a Mac compatible generator that is template
customisable (not just with some options but with user being able
to write the html and css without roadblocks), would not mind
hearing about it.

(btw. ... not a better price if you already use PS).

Of course after you have ponied up the big $$$$ to get it in the first
place!

 

[dorayme]

Nope!

IrfanView is a very fast, small, compact and innovative FREEWARE (for
non-commercial use) graphic viewer for Windows 9x/ME/NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista.

OK I better look at it then. I will be in a more comfortable
position to do so in a week's time, this morning I ordered a new
flat panel monitor (that will be a second LCD on the desk for the
Mac) freeing up the 19" CRT for the Winbox (which normally shares
a screen with the Mac via a switch).

See a MAC is all about choices...you don't see the scruffy little guy on
tv talking about that. (those damn annoying MAC vs PC commercials
running in the US)

Talking of ads, MS, Mac, someone on a Mac group posted this
amusing link:

http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1774935

But Jonathan, I am not sure it will be so good on dial up?

 

[Jonathan N. Little]

Talking of ads, MS, Mac, someone on a Mac group posted this
amusing link:

http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1774935

But Jonathan, I am not sure it will be so good on dial up?

Well it is taking a while to load but what a trip! I like the three
babes in the Star Trek uniforms and is that Al Yankovitch! Yep that is
about a geeky as you can get. The one for Windows 1.0 is a good one.

BTW technically the BSOD didn't appear until *after* Windows not before.
DOS 5.0 was a real turkey, 4.2 was better with 3rd party enhancements
than MS boasted in 5.0 like 386MAX or QEMM for memory managers, XTGold
was far superior to DOSSHELL <shudder>, and Stacker over DoubleSpace
(oops that's DOS6.0)

 

[dorayme]

Well it is taking a while to load but what a trip! I like the three
babes in the Star Trek uniforms...

That was the moment to sit up and pay attention.

[OT: The last classroom "musical" scene I can recall in film was
from the American version of Dennis Potter's Pennies from Heaven
with Steve Martin. Wonderful film. There was a differently
wonderful BBC TV series of the same name, with Bob Hoskins. I
don't recall the classroom scene in the TV version.]

 

[David Segall]

If anyone has used a Mac compatible generator that is template
customisable (not just with some options but with user being able
to write the html and css without roadblocks), would not mind
hearing about it.

The free, cross platform JAlbum <http://jalbum.net/> probably fits. It
requires some CSS and HTML templates that you can write so there is no
problem making a generated album match the look of your site. A
possible roadblock would be that it is an album generator so having,
say, arbitrary variable information on each page would be difficult.

 

[Travis Newbury]

I suspect it is a bit of a lost cause but just wondered if anyone
has done anything interesting to make PS CS generate half decent
accessible web pages to a higher standard?

You know, I use it [Photoshop Weg Image Gallary] every time we come
back from a trip with the family. I share the URL with family,
friends, and several photo newsgroups so it actually gets quite a bit
of viewing. I have never had a single person tell me it did not look
or work perfectly well. So while it may not create perfect code, the
code it does create works pretty much everywhere.

Oh I am sure someone could take any browser and change the
configuration to make it not look or work right, but someone that does
that runs into a ton of sites where they have to turn something on or
change something to see the site so they are use to doing that.

Could you find a perfect template? Maybe, I am sure you could make
one from scratch if you wanted, but hell, if you have photoshop you
might as well just use it. I just created a 300 image thumb page of
Asheville NC, the process was painless and it works perfectly well for
everyone that looks at it. Why worry about the small things.

I mean, how much effort would I put into something like this? Well
about as much as the keystrokes needed to type the above text.

and that text too...
and those 3 periods...
those 3 too...
yep

 

[dorayme]

I suspect it is a bit of a lost cause but just wondered if anyone
has done anything interesting to make PS CS generate half decent
accessible web pages to a higher standard?

You know, I use it [Photoshop Weg Image Gallary] every time we come
back from a trip with the family. I share the URL with family,
friends, and several photo newsgroups so it actually gets quite a bit
of viewing. I have never had a single person tell me it did not look
or work perfectly well. So while it may not create perfect code, the
code it does create works pretty much everywhere.

Sure, it might satisfy many people. But how selfless do you
expect me to be? I am the poor schmuck whose pics they are, who
puts on the show, who is wont to revisit these things and
rearrange them to suit different purposes or tastes. Now and in
the future.

*If* it looked fine enough to me in a range of modern browsers,
that would be half the battle. With PS - I had a long hard look -
it is a bigger uphill battle to thoroughly hand change the
templates to suit one's tastes than I would be wanting (it is not
impossible actually, just a bit counterproductive given one is
going for ease. You can get different skins (basically relying on
others to make different "looks" available) but one is too
dependent on others.

It depends on your interests, I would be loathe to depend on a
mechanic to fix my car or even my computer. Just don't want to be
quite as dependent on PS for something I damn well ought to be
able to code for myself. It is a matter of interest and pride I
guess. It is not just a practical matter with a deadline. I have
my own taste and it is as important where my own pics are
concerned as some other person who makes this or that template.

Oh I am sure someone could take any browser and change the
configuration to make it not look or work right, but someone that does
that runs into a ton of sites where they have to turn something on or
change something to see the site so they are use to doing that.

Could you find a perfect template? Maybe, I am sure you could make
one from scratch if you wanted, but hell, if you have photoshop you
might as well just use it. I just created a 300 image thumb page of
Asheville NC, the process was painless and it works perfectly well for
everyone that looks at it. Why worry about the small things.

Am I worrying about the small things? If I don't want frames or
heavy use of tables or many other things, it is not a small thing
for me. It is a big irritation. I give a CD of stuff to a friend
or family member and they are really happy. Great! But I know
that I have given them something with a stinking pile of shit
inside it. Do I want to do this? What if someone were to peep at
the code? The nephew of the cousin of the... who is studying html
and css and knows that Aunty and Uncle Dorayme might know a thing
or two about these things only to find that ... Listen Travis, I
don't even want to be turning in my grave if this happens when I
am gone.

Do not misunderstand me. I am not complaining about PS or any
program. There is always do it all completely on your own, that
is easy but a slog.

 

[dorayme]

The free, cross platform JAlbum <http://jalbum.net/> probably fits. It
requires some CSS and HTML templates that you can write so there is no
problem making a generated album match the look of your site. A
possible roadblock would be that it is an album generator so having,
say, arbitrary variable information on each page would be difficult.

Thanks David, I will take another look, I have downloaded this
twice in the past and still have it. I did not look closely at
the flexibility of writing one's own templates. Have you actually
done this with this program or know anyone who has?

 

[Travis Newbury]

I suspect it is a bit of a lost cause but just wondered if anyone
has done anything interesting to make PS CS generate half decent
accessible web pages to a higher standard?

You know, I use it [Photoshop Weg Image Gallary] every time we come
back from a trip with the family...

Sure, it might satisfy many people. But how selfless do you
expect me to be?...

what ever

 

[David Segall]

Thanks David, I will take another look, I have downloaded this
twice in the past and still have it. I did not look closely at
the flexibility of writing one's own templates. Have you actually
done this with this program or know anyone who has?

Yes, I have. If you visit
<http://profectus.com.au/albums/Wise Tennis/index.html> you can look
at a gallery produced by JAlbum and can navigate back to the main site
to see that the gallery matches the general layout of the site. The
mismatches are either my fault or deliberate because, for example, I
did not want the Company logo on a page of photographs. They are not
the fault of JAlbum.

You may get a 404 when you access the URL. If so, it will be because I
host the site on my computer and if my computer is down I
automatically switch to a duplicate site hosted on the free space
provided by my ISP which is not sufficient to include photograph
albums. This shows up a possible flaw for you with JAlbum but which,
for me, is a feature. JAlbum expects a particular directory structure
with a top level of albums. On the fallback site the albums directory
contains an apology for the missing photographs.

As ever, it comes down to the perennial "visual web page designer"
versus "pointy stick in the sand" debate. I find JAlbum an excellent
compromise but I must confess that I like Dreamweaver .

 

[dorayme]

Just btw, I assume there might be a Flash option to auto generate
an album somewhere and that you would be a bit keen on this?

I have been looking at JAlbum and it seems pretty good in its
latest version... Just using it with set options is at least a
way of organising masses of pics in a pleasing enough fashion.

 

[dorayme]

<http://profectus.com.au/albums/Wise Tennis/index.html> you can look
at a gallery produced by JAlbum and can navigate back to the main site
to see that the gallery matches the general layout of the site. The
mismatches are either my fault or deliberate because, for example, I
did not want the Company logo on a page of photographs. They are not
the fault of JAlbum.

That's fine. I was able to see them ok. Very nice. As I said in
last post, I have updated my JAlbum and it does look pretty good.
Have even made a small album this morning. Thanks for the
reminder about this software. I am looking at the folder in which
the software sits in my Apps and will look into where the
templates are kept etc. Will let you see the first album I get to
publish via it - perhaps on that JAlbum hosting site which I
signed up for while at it. I like this generator more than the PS
CS one...

 

[Travis Newbury]

Just btw, I assume there might be a Flash option to auto generate
an album somewhere and that you would be a bit keen on this?

I believe there are a few Flash options for the photo gallery. They
let you add music to the slide show if you like. I personally use the
plain old thumbs on the left side and larger images on the right.

I have been looking at JAlbum and it seems pretty good in its
latest version... Just using it with set options is at least a
way of organising masses of pics in a pleasing enough fashion.

JAlbum looks like a perfectly good option for creating your photo
album

 

[dorayme]

I believe there are a few Flash options for the photo gallery. They
let you add music to the slide show if you like. I personally use the
plain old thumbs on the left side and larger images on the right.


JAlbum looks like a perfectly good option for creating your photo
album

I have been fiddling with it a bit and the set options are easy
at least and would please many people well enough. They even have
their own free hosting for albums.

I have yet to work out how to do what I want in the html and css
with this software. My thoughts are also turning to reviewing
posts and things about server side options.

 

[dorayme]

Thanks David, I will take another look, I have downloaded this
twice in the past and still have it. I did not look closely at
the flexibility of writing one's own templates. Have you actually
done this with this program or know anyone who has?

Yes, I have.[/QUOTE]

Well, I finally got around to having a play with jAlbum. It is
pretty impressive. I have asked a question about the following on
the jAlbum forums but perhaps I will mention it here to follow up
and also thank you for mentioning this software which works well
on my Mac.

Have been experimenting on the minimal skin. I really would like
to be rid of the table layout (basically for a solid tactical
reason rather than a strategic one, to use the browser window
effectively rather than merely not use tables for layout).

Here is my first experiment:

http://dorayme.myjalbum.net/AustraliaDay/index.html

I have roughly got the hang of altering the html and css for the
actual enlargements ("slides"), but am unsure whether it is
possible to be rid of the tables layout for the index page at the
pre generation level, that is the index.htt file. It looks as if
this might be tricky since the generating code seems wedded to
tables? I favour quite a different sort of layout; a simple model
would be just all images or their containing divs getting a
float: left. Not asking about how to make the html or css,
rather, how to adapt such a thing to this index.htt so that the
indexes are generated automatically. Anyone any ideas besides
hand crafting the index page separately after the album is
generated?

 

[David Segall]

Yes, I have.

Well, I finally got around to having a play with jAlbum. It is
pretty impressive. I have asked a question about the following on
the jAlbum forums but perhaps I will mention it here to follow up
and also thank you for mentioning this software which works well
on my Mac.

Have been experimenting on the minimal skin. I really would like
to be rid of the table layout[/QUOTE]
I don't know enough to give you a definitive answer but I think you
have hit the "roadblock" I mentioned in my post. I believe that JAlbum
is based around a fairly rigid structure and although I'm sure you can
get the look you want I doubt if you can specify the CSS and HTML that
you want.

 

[dorayme]

I don't know enough to give you a definitive answer but I think you
have hit the "roadblock" I mentioned in my post. I believe that JAlbum
is based around a fairly rigid structure and although I'm sure you can
get the look you want I doubt if you can specify the CSS and HTML that
you want.

Fair enough. It is perhaps easier than I thought to post process.
I rejigged a produced index file to suit my taste yesterday and
it was not so hard. With a bunch of greps, it should be possible
to make the job more painless still.

One tactic that might help is to tell the program (there are
options for this, as you will know) to make just one row and as
many cols as there are pics in the table it insists on making.
Then it will be easier to fashion replacement patterns to fashion
it into a fluid floating div structure that I am a bit fond of at
the moment.