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XSL: Formatting Objects (FO)

XSL: Formatting Objects (FO). XSL-FO is about formatting XML data for output. Introduction Apache-FOP Document Structure Output Page Flow Block Inline List Table Links and Cross-Reference Graphics. Introduction. What is XSL-FO (formatting objects)?

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XSL: Formatting Objects (FO)

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  1. XSL: Formatting Objects (FO) XSL-FO is about formatting XML data for output

  2. Introduction • Apache-FOP • Document Structure • Output • Page • Flow • Block • Inline • List • Table • Links and Cross-Reference • Graphics

  3. Introduction • What is XSL-FO (formatting objects)? • XSL-FO stands for Extensible Stylesheet Language Formatting Objects • Styling is both about transforming and formatting information • XSL-FO is about formatting • XSL-FO is an XML based markup languagedescribing the formatting of XML data for output to screen, paper or other media • XSL-FO is a W3C Recommendation • XSL-FO became a W3C Recommendation 15. October 2001. Formally named XSL • XSLFO is an XML vocabulary that is used to specify a pagination and other styling for page layout output

  4. Introduction (cont.) • XSLFO can be used in conjunction with XSLT to convert from any XML format into a paginated layout ready for printing or displaying • XSLFO defines a set of elements in XML that describes the way pages are set up. • The contents of the pages are filled from flows. • There can be static flows that appear on every page (for headers and footers) and the main flow which fills the body of the page

  5. Introduction (cont.) • The Object Formatting Process • Use an XSLT stylesheetto transform the XML document into a file of XSL-FO elements • To perform the transformation, you simply invoke the XSLT processor with the XML document and the stylesheet • An XSLT stylesheet that converts XHTML elements into formatting objects • Use a rendering engine (for example, FOP) to convert the XSL-FO elements into a PDF file

  6. Software Tool Set Up • XSL-FO Processors • FOP (Formatting Objects Processor) from apache • http://www.apache.org/dyn/closer.cgi/xml/fop • Version: the 0.20.5 version of FOP • Requirement • XML parser • XSLT Processor • Apache Batik: an SVG library

  7. Apache FOP • Introduction • FOP (Formatting Objects Processor) is the world's first print formatter driven by XSL formatting objects (XSL-FO) • The world's first output independent formatter • A Java application that reads a formatting object (FO) tree and renders the resulting pages to a specified output • Output formats currently supported include PDF, PCL, PS, SVG, XML (area tree representation), Print, AWT, MIF and TXT • The primary output target is PDF • The latest version of FOP (0.20.5) is a partial implementation of the XSL-FO Version 1.0 W3C Recommendation

  8. Apache FOP (cont.)

  9. Apache FOP (cont.) • FOP process • Uses the standard XSL-FO file format as input <fo:XXX> • Lays the content out into pages • Renders it to the requested output • One great advantage to using XSL-FO as input is that XSL-FO is itself an XML file, which means that it can be conveniently created from a variety of sources • The most common method is to convert semantic XML to XSL-FO, using an XSLT transformation

  10. Apache FOP (cont.) • FOP Objectives • The goals of the Apache XML FOP Project are to deliver an XSL-FO file to a PDF formatter • Conformance to the XML 1.0 Recommendation, XSLT 1.0 Recommendation and the XML Namespaces Recommendation • The FOP layout system is currently being rewritten to better support the XSL-FO standard • For detail information regarding the spec. of FOP, visit: http://xml.apache.org/fop/index.html

  11. XSL-FO Document • XSL-FO documents are XML files with output information • They contain information about the output layout and output contents • XSL-FO documents are stored in files with a *.fo or a *.fob extension • XSL-FO document structure at a glance Most of the things in the figure never change Output slide

  12. The <fo:root> contains a <fo:layout-master-set> and a <fo:page-sequence>. The <fo:layout-master-set> contains page layouts information, The <fo:page-sequence> contains actual content XSL-FO Document (cont.) XSL-FO Document Structure XSL-FO documents have a structure like this:

  13. XSL-FO Document (cont.) • The <fo:root> element contains the XSL-FO document. • It also declares the namespace for XSL-FO: • Typically, the root element contains • A <fo:layout-master-set> • Followed by one or more<fo:page-sequence>s

  14. XSL-FO Document (cont.) The <fo:layout-master-set> element contains one or more page templates: • The <fo:layout-master-set> element specifies page definitions. • In a simple document, one layout might be enough, • Complex documents typically have several page definitions. • Use a <fo:simple-page-master> element to define each of the page layouts you need; • Then you store them in the <fo:layout-master-set> element

  15. XSL-FO Document (cont.) • Each <fo:simple-page-master> element contains a single page template • The element defines the layout for a particular page • Each template must have a unique name (master-name):

  16. XSL-FO Document (cont.) • Here's an example, • master-name • Defines a name for this page master. • You can create several different <fo:simple-page-master> elements • Then refer to each of them as you need to use different page layouts throughout your document. • margin-top and margin-bottom • Define the margins at the top and bottom of the page. • Acceptable units are points, picas, inches, and centimeters <fo:simple-page-master master-name="main" margin-top="36pt" margin-bottom="36pt" page-width="8.5in" page-height="11in" margin-left="72pt" margin-right="72pt"> <fo:region-body margin="50pt" /> </fo:simple-page-master>

  17. XSL-FO Document (cont.) • page-width and page-height • Define the size of the physical page. • This example defines a letter-sized page; • To use A4-sized paper, the attributes page-width="21cm" and page-height="29.7cm" would do the trick. • margin-left and margin-right • Define the margins at the left and right side of the page. <fo:simple-page-master master-name="main" margin-top="36pt" margin-bottom="36pt" page-width="8.5in" page-height="11in" margin-left="72pt" margin-right="72pt"> <fo:region-body margin="50pt" /> </fo:simple-page-master>

  18. Units in XSL-FO documents XSL-FO supports these actual units for length properties, for measuring items such as margin-left, page-width, and page-height:

  19. The <fo:region-body> element • The XSL-FO spec defines five regions on a page • region-body defines the dimensions of the main area in the center of the page. Here's a sample: <fo:region-body margin="50pt" /> • marginsfor the region-body area. • region-before, the area at the top of the page (normally used for running heads) • region-after, the area at the bottom of the page (normally used for running feet) • region-start, the area to the left of the page • region-end, the area to the right of the page

  20. Note: These definitions assume that the text in your document goes from left to right and top to bottom

  21. XSL-FO Document (cont.) -- Page • One or more <fo:page-sequence> elements describe page contents (i.e., output pages) • It defines the sequence of page layouts to be used within the document • The master-reference attribute refers to the “master-name” of the <fo:simple-page-master>with the same name • Each output page refers to a page master which defines the layout • Each output page has a <fo:flow> element defining the output • Each output page is printed (or displayed) in sequence Note: The master-reference "A4" does not actually describe a predefined page format. It is just a name. You can use any name like "MyPage", "MyTemplate", etc.

  22. XSL-FO Output • Output? How to insert some content to be rendered • XSL-FO defines output inside <fo:flow> elements • XSL-FO Page, Flow, and Block • "Blocks" of content "Flows" into "Pages" and then to the output media • XSL-FO output is normally nested inside <fo:block> elements,  nested inside <fo:flow> elements, nested inside <fo:page-sequence> elements Structure What’s this?

  23. Error in the text book An Output Example Simple1

  24. XSL-FO Output -- <fo:flow> • <fo:page-sequence>: refers to slides #20 • XSL-FO pages are filled with data starts from <fo:flow> elements • <fo:flow> defines some content that will be flowed within the current layout • When the page is full, the same page master will be used over (and over) again until all the text is printed. <fo:flow flow-name="xsl-region-body"> The legal values are: xsl-region-body (into the region-body) xsl-region-before (into the region-before) xsl-region-after (into the region-after) xsl-region-start (into the region-start) xsl-region-end (into the region-end) format

  25. XSL-FO Output -- <fo:block> • Two main XSL-FO elements for formatting content are <fo:block> and <fo:inline> • Blocks are sequences of output in rectangular boxes • Think of it as similar to the HTML <p> element. • A <fo:block> element always causes a line break

  26. space before margin border padding content space after XSL-FO Output -- <fo:block>(cont.) • Since block areas are rectangular boxes, they share many common area properties: • space before and space after • margin • border • padding Note:for the attributes of each, refers to W3c spec. • The content area contains the actual content like text, pictures, graphics, or whatever.

  27. An XSL-FO Blocks Example Normally XSL-FO document do not combine formatting information and content like we have done here Simple2

  28. XSL-FO Output -- <fo:inline> • The <fo:inline> formatting object is commonly used for formatting a portion of text • It defines some text properties within an existing <fo:block> • If you want to italicize several words within a paragraph, as in the example, you use <fo:inline> to do the job. • <fo:block font-size="20pt" line-height="30pt"> • This is a paragraph of text. font size = 20 pt, line height = 30pt, • Notice that we applied fo:inline here: • <fo:inline font-style="italic" font-weight="bold" color="red"> • this meaningless prose • </fo:inline> • , the inline stops here. drones on and on, the FOP • software automatically calculates line breaks for us. • Isn't that fascinating? • </fo:block> Simple3

  29. XSL-FO Output -- <fo:inline> • Here's how you can use the attributes of XSL-FO <fo:inline> element to format text: • Bold text: Use the <fo:inline> element with an attribute of font-weight="bold". • Italicized text: Use the <fo:inline> element with an attribute of font-style="italic". • Monospaced text: Use the <fo:inline> element with an attribute of font-family="monospace". • Changing fonts: Use the <fo:inline> element with an attribute of font-family="serif" for a serif font (usually similar to Times-Roman). • Use the attribute font-family="sans-serif" for a sans serif font (usually similar to Arial). • See the FOP documentation for information on how to convert the fonts installed on your machine into fonts FOP can use • Others: http://www.w3schools.com/xslfo/obj_inline.asp

  30. XSL-FO Properties • Many XSL-FO properties are identical to the CSS properties you might recognize. • XSL-FO and CSS also share the same way that elements usually inherit properties from their ancestors • An XSL-FO property is just an XML attribute

  31. XSL-FO -- list • The three most common types of lists in HTML : • unordered lists • ordered lists • definition lists • When building these lists with XSL-FO, you must handle a number of things yourself: • How much horizontal space separates the label of a list item (the bullet or number) and the item itself • How much the list items are indented from the normal margins

  32. XSL-FO – list (cont.) • When building these lists with XSL-FO, you must handle a number of things yourself (cont.): • What the bullet character is • How much vertical spacing falls between list items • Other properties • Almost all of these properties are handled automatically in an HTML browser, • but when you use formatting objects, it's up to you to define them.

  33. XSL-FO – list (cont.) • XSL-FO uses list-blocks to define lists • There are four XSL-FO objects used to create lists: • fo:list-block (contains the whole list) • fo:list-item (contains each item in the list) • fo:list-item-label (contains the label for the list-item - typically an <fo:block> containing a number, character, etc.) • fo:list-item-body (contains the content/body of the list-item - typically one or more <fo:block> objects)

  34. XSL-FO – list (cont.) • XSL-FO uses list-blocks to define lists • There are four XSL-FO objects used to create lists: • fo:list-block (contains the whole list) • fo:list-item (contains each item in the list) • fo:list-item-label (contains the label for the list-item - typically an <fo:block> containing a number, character, etc.) • fo:list-item-body (contains the content/body of the list-item - typically one or more <fo:block> objects) • <fo:list-block> • <fo:list-item> • <fo:list-item-label> • <fo:block/> • </fo:list-item-label> • <fo:list-item-body> • <fo:block/> • </fo:list-item-body> • </fo:list-item> • ... More <fo:list-item>s • </fo:list-block>

  35. <fo:list-block> ………… </fo:list-block> <fo:list-item> </fo:list-item> <fo:list-item-label> …………. <fo:list-item-label> <fo:list-block> …………. <fo:list-block> <fo:list-item> ………….. </fo:list-item> XSL-FO – list (cont.) • The main structure is the <fo:list-block> • It contains some number of <fo:list-item>s, • each of which contains • A <fo:list-item-label> • A <fo:list-item-block>

  36. XSL-FO – list (cont.) An Example list1

  37. XSL-FO – list (cont.) label-end() function returns the value of the start-indent property of the <fo:list-item-body> element minus the value of the provisional-label-separation property of the <fo:list-item-block> element The body-start() function returns the value of the start-indent property of <fo:list-item-label>plusthe provisional-distance-between-starts property of <fo:list-block>. • Trouble to separate the label and content? • Time to look at some properties that can make a change • Taking a look at this drawing that outlines a list and its properties • <fo:list-item-label end-indent="label-end()">: defines the distance from the normal ending margin and the end of the <fo:list-item-body> elements • <fo:list-item-body start-indent="body-start()">: defines the distance from the normal starting margin to the start of either the <fo:list-item-label> or <fo:list-item-body>.

  38. XSL-FO – list (cont.) • In the picture, two properties of the <fo:list-block> element, • provisional-distance-between-starts : definesthe distance between the start of the <fo:list-item-label> and the <fo:list-item-body> • provisional-label-separation: defines the distance between the end of the <fo:list-item-label> and the start of the <fo:list-item-block> • Here's a typical <fo:list-block> with these properties specified: <fo:list-block provisional-distance-between-starts="0.75cm" provisional-label-separation="0.5cm"> • Let’s applied these properties to the previous example list2

  39. XSL-FO – list (cont.) • How to convert HTML tags to FO? for example: <ol> <item>List item 1.</item> <item>List item 2.</item> <item>List item 3.</item> </ol> • Refers to “formatting objects for lists” http://www.w3.org/TR/xsl/slice6.html#section-N17076-Formatting-Objects-for-Lists lists

  40. XSL-FO – table <fo:table> • The <fo:table> is used to format the tabular material of a table. • The <fo:table> contains • <fo:table-column> • <fo:table-header> • <fo:table-body> • <fo:table-footer> • Each of these elements has one or more <fo:table-row> objects, with one or more <fo:table-cell> objects:

  41. XSL-FO – table <fo:table> • The basic table structure • Information of the table: caption, header, and footer • The main complication in formatting XSL-FO tables with FOP is that you must specify the widths of all columns in the table • A typical example: table1

  42. XSL-FO – table <fo:table>: An Example • Three different styles of tables are presented in this example • We can only demo here, refers the example code after class tables

  43. XSL-FO : links and Cross-Reference • Related topics • Creating anchor points • Creating cross-references • Creating Web links • Anchor points • Creating an anchor point is pretty simple; all you have to do is add an id attribute to an XSL-FO element • You can add this attribute to just about any formatting object. • Here's an example document heading with an id of “BID” • This ID creates an anchor point in the XSL-FO file with the name “BID”. • If the XSL-FO file contains another element with an id of “BID”, you'll get an error. • <fo:block id=“BID" • font-size="18pt" • line-height="21pt" • font-weight="bold"> • cross-references • </fo:block>

  44. XSL-FO : links and Cross-Reference • Cross-Reference • Once you've created an anchor point, you can create a reference to it. • Here's what a reference might look like: • <fo:block> • For more information, see • <fo:basic-link color="blue" internal-destination=“BID"> • Links and cross-references • </fo:basic-link> • . • </fo:block> interlink

  45. XSL-FO : links and Cross-Reference • Web-Reference • The main difference here is that the thing you're linking to isn't part of the PDF file. • XSL-FO defines the external-destination property of the <fo:basic-link> element for this. • Here's what an XSL-FO reference to a html file in local drive would look like • <fo:block> • For all the technical information you'd ever want, visit • <fo:basic-link color="blue" • external-destination="file://CompSci196.htm"> • KIMO • </fo:basic-link> • and prepare to be amazed! • </fo:block> Externlink

  46. XSL-FO : links and Cross-Reference • Example demo • Cross reference: Internal link • Web reference: External link links

  47. XSL-FO Graphics • To add graphics to a PDF file throughout the FO file, use the <fo:external-graphic> element. • Here's an example: <fo:external-graphic src="images/x.gif"> • You can use this element to embed GIF and JPEG images in PDF files. • The XSL-FO spec also defines the height and width attributes; • Those element and attributes help the FOP engine figure out how much room the graphic requires. exmGraph

  48. That’s it for today! • Next week We’ll have • XSL-FO vs. XSLT! • XSL-FO Graphics – SVG • Content pages • Some advanced XSL-FO technologies

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