FAQ

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General

• What Is HTMLDOC?
• Is there a mailing list for HTMLDOC?
• Is there a newsgroup for HTMLDOC?
• Do I have to pay to use HTMLDOC?
• What do I get when I purchase HTMLDOC Basic?
• Can I evaluate HTMLDOC before I buy it?
• What is your refund policy?
• Do I have to pay Adobe to generate PDF files?
• Do I need to buy Adobe Acrobat to use HTMLDOC?
• Why just HTML?
• How do I enter a license from the command-line?

Licensing/Legal Questions

• I thought that HTMLDOC was open source software?!?
• Can I license HTMLDOC under different terms?
• Is it possible to embed HTMLDOC in my own product?
• Does HTMLDOC use LZW compression?
• Do I need an import/export license to use HTMLDOC outside the United States?

Download Questions

• What platforms are supported?
• Where can I download the source code?
• Where can I download binaries?

Functionality Questions

• What level of HTML is supported?
• Are stylesheets supported?
• How fast is HTMLDOC?
• Does HTMLDOC support remote documents/URLs?
• Does HTMLDOC support secure (encrypted) URLs?
• Can HTMLDOC generate encrypted PDF files?
• Can HTMLDOC generate 128-bit encrypted PDF files like Acrobat 5.0?
• Is UTF-8/Unicode/Chinese/Japanese text supported?
• Can I use ASP with HTMLDOC?
• Is there a DLL that can be called?
• Can HTMLDOC embed fonts?
• How can i embed my own fonts?
• Does HTMLDOC support forms?

Troubleshooting Questions

• Why does the format change when converting from HTML to PDF or Postscript?
  

  First, verify that your HTML conforms to the HTML 3.2 specification using one of many HTML "lint" or "validator" applications available on the 'net. The W3C has links to a few good ones that can be used on-line. If you use HTML that does not conform to the HTML specification, then what you get out of HTMLDOC may or may not be what you expect. Just because your favorite browser displays the HTML as you like, don't assume that your HTML is conformant!

  Second, HTML is not (by definition) a WYSIWYG format. The formatting varies depending on the software and output device. All the HTML specification defines is the general behavior and function of each HTML element (P, H1, B, TABLE, etc.) HTMLDOC follows the W3C display recommendations in the HTML specification. When no behavior is explicitly specified, it chooses a behavior that most closely resembles Netscape/Mozilla.

  Third, PostScript and PDF are quite different than HTML. Printed documents have fixed page sizes, while a web browser can provide scrollbars for content that goes beyond the window boundaries. Pagination often has formatting side effects that are not an issue when viewing the HTML on-line. Scripting languages offer dynamic content when viewed with a web browser, but that content will be unavailable when converting to PostScript or PDF for a variety of reasons. Some web pages use custom fonts which may not be available when printing or viewing PostScript and PDF files.

  Finally, please read the Users Manual that comes with the software! Chapter 6 provides a reference for the HTML elements that HTMLDOC supports as well as the HTML comments you can insert to control and tune the final output.

• Why Does the & Character Not Appear in the Output?
• Why Does the < Character Not Appear in the Output?

Windows-Specific Issues

• How can I get wildcards (*.htm) to work?
• Can I use HTMLDOC with Apache on Windows?