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FileMaker Pro Custom Functions

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HTMLtoText ( text ; returns )

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Average rating: 3.1 (25 votes)
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Mogens Brun, FM Integrator
http://filemakerintegrator.dk

Convert HTML text to text preserving bold and italic styles (v. 1.04).

Sample Input:

HTMLtoText ( "</h2>
<h2>Product Description:</h2>
Over 50 Conversions Very Quick<br /> Copy With click of 1 button<h2>What's new in this version:</h2>" ; "single" )

Sample Output:

<h2>Product Description:</h2>Over 50 Conversions Very Quick
Copy With click of 1 button<h2>What's new in this version:</h2>

// Convert HTML text to text preserving bold and italic styles. Only HTML body text will be processed. Multiple spaces are removed // Version: 1.06. // Parameters: "text" = HTML text to be converted. "returns" = [ "single" ; "double" ] if no empty lines - or one empty line - are allowed. // NOTE 1: This version is only for use in FileMaker Pro 10 or higher. // NOTE 2: If you need to convert other HTML encodings like "&#230" -> "æ", you may add the needed substitution pairs in the "//Transform" section. // NOTE 3: Requires HTMLtoText_deleteTags ( text ) and HTMLtoText_convertStyle ( text ) // 24oct06 ; Mogens Brun ; FM Integrator ; mogens_brun@mac.com // Mail to mogens_brun@mac.com if you want a demo file with the custom function and instructions for using the function in earlier versions than FileMaker 10. Let ( [ //Setup $Returns = If ( returns = "single" ; 1 ; 2 ) ; $Return1 = Left ( "¶¶" ; $Returns ) ; $Return2 = Left ( "¶¶¶" ; $Returns + 1 ) ; $Return3 = Left ( "¶¶¶¶" ; $Returns + 2 ) ; $Return4 = Left ( "¶¶¶¶¶¶" ; $Returns + 4 ) ; $Return5 = Left ( "¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶" ; $Returns + 8 ) ; //Isolate body, remove comment lines (may contain characters given reason to unbalanced tags) and script and noscript lines $SearchStart = "<form " ; $SearchEnd = "</form>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_deleteTags ( text ) ; $SearchStart = "<script" ; $SearchEnd = "</script>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_deleteTags ( $Text ) ; $SearchStart = "<noscript" ; $SearchEnd = "</noscript>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_deleteTags ( $Text ) ; $SearchStart = "<option" ; $SearchEnd = "</option>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_deleteTags ( $Text ) ; $SearchStart = "<input " ; $SearchEnd = " />" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_deleteTags ( $Text ) ; $StartBody = Position ( $Text ; "<body" ; 1 ; 1 ) ; $SearchStart = "¶//" ; $SearchEnd = "¶" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_deleteTags ( Right ( $Text ; Length ( $Text ) - $StartBody + 1 ) ) ; //Convert bold style $SearchStart = "<b>" ; $SearchEnd = "</b>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_convertStyle ( $Text ) ; $SearchStart = "<h1" ; $SearchEnd = "</h1>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_convertStyle ( $Text ) ; $SearchStart = "<h2" ; $SearchEnd = "</h2>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_convertStyle ( $Text ) ; $SearchStart = "<h3" ; $SearchEnd = "</h3>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_convertStyle ( $Text ) ; $SearchStart = "<strong>" ; $SearchEnd = "</strong>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_convertStyle ( $Text ) ; //Convert italic style $SearchStart = "<i>" ; $SearchEnd = "</i>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_convertStyle ( $Text ) ; $SearchStart = "<em>" ; $SearchEnd = "</em>" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_convertStyle ( $Text ) ; //Delete HTML tags and convert special characters $SearchStart = "<" ; $SearchEnd = ">" ; $Text = HTMLtoText_deleteTags ( Substitute ( $Text ; //Blank [ "¶" ; "" ] ; [ "</li>" ; "" ] ; [ "<tr>" ; "¶" ] ; [ "</tr>" ; "" ] ; [ "</a>" ; "" ] ; [ "</td>" ; "" ] ; [ "·" ; "" ] ; [ "<td>" ; "" ] ; [ "" ; "'" ] ; [ Char ( 10 ) ; "" ] ; [ Char ( 65533 ) ; "" ] ; [ Char ( 0 ) ; "" ] ; //Space [ "</div>" ; " </div>" ] ; [ "</option>" ; " </option>" ] ; [ "<a href" ; " <a href" ] ; [ "</span>" ; " " ] ; [ "|" ; " | " ] ; // Transform [ "<td>" ; Char ( 9 ) ] ; [ " " ; " " ] ; //non-breaking space [ "<li>" ; "¶• " ] ; [ "<li " ; "¶• <li " ] ; [ "</p>" ; "¶¶" ] ; [ "<p>" ; "¶¶" ] ; [ "<p " ; "¶¶<p " ] ; [ "<br>" ; "¶" ] ; [ "<br />" ; "¶" ] ; [ "<tr " ; "¶<tr " ] ; [ "<ul>" ; "¶¶" ] ; [ "</ul>" ; "¶¶" ] ; [ "</table>" ; "¶¶" ] ; [ "&" ; "&" ] ; [ "…" ; "…" ] ; [ """ ; "\"" ] ; [ "&8220;" ; "\“" ] ; [ "&8221;" ; "\”" ] ; [ "®" ; "®" ] ; [ "©" ; "®" ] ; [ "“" ; "\“" ] ; [ "”" ; "\”" ] ; [ "»" ; "»" ] ; [ "«" ; "«" ] ; [ ">" ; ">" ] ; [ "<" ; "<" ] ; [ "’" ; "'" ] ; [ "™" ; "™" ] ; [ "Â" ; "Å" ] ; [ "Ä" ; "Ä" ] ; [ "Æ" ; "Æ" ] ; [ "É" ; "É" ] ; [ "Ö" ; "Ö" ] ; [ "Ø" ; "Ø" ] ; [ "Ü" ; "Ü" ] ; [ "ä" ; "ä" ] ; [ "å" ; "å" ] ; [ "æ" ; "æ" ] ; [ "é" ; "é" ] ; [ "ö" ; "ö" ] ; [ "ø" ; "ø" ] ; [ "ü" ; "ü" ] ; //Clean space & tab & return [ " " ; " " ] ; [ " " ; " " ] ; [ " " ; " " ] ; [ " " ; " " ] ; [ " " ; " " ] ; [ "> <" ; "" ] ; [ "><" ; "" ] ; [ " ¶" ; "¶" ] ; [ "¶ " ; "¶" ] ) ) ; $SearchStart = "&#" ; $SearchEnd = ";" ] ; Substitute ( "Ÿ" & HTMLtoText_deleteTags ( $Text ) & "Ÿ" ; //Clean successive returns [ $Return5 ; $Return1 ] ; [ $Return4 ; $Return1 ] ; [ $Return3 ; $Return1 ] ; [ $Return2 ; $Return1 ] ; //Trim for returns at start and end [ "Ÿ¶¶" ; "" ] ; [ "Ÿ¶" ; "" ] ; [ "¶¶Ÿ" ; "" ] ; [ "¶Ÿ" ; "" ] ; [ "Ÿ" ; "" ] ) )
Then copy & paste into FileMaker Advanced's Edit Custom Function window.

Click here to copy To Clip Manager if you have myFMbutler's Clip Manager installed

Description:

Together with two subordinate custom functions "HTMLtoText_deleteTags" and "HTMLtoText_convertStyle" (also found on this site) this function will parseHTML text to plain text with preservation of any italic or bold markup in the HTML text. Several pages of text may be converted with reasonable text formating. The HTML text could be imported in a field by Troi URL plug-in, Fusion TCPdirect plug-in or by FileMaker GetLayoutObjectAttribute ( "WebViewerName" ; "content" ).

The second parameter (returns) controls if no empty lines should be allowed ( returns = "single") or one empty line may be allowed between paragraphs (returns = "double") with "double" as default.

Note: Requires FileMaker 10 or higher - unless 3 special char-values are stored in global fields.

Note: these functions are not guaranteed or supported by BrianDunning.com. Please contact the individual developer with any questions or problems.

This is my Custom Function and I want to edit it

Discuss:

There is an error in this function; it can't be pasted into Custom Functions without a FM error message about bad punctuation or a missing text constant or field name.

Dennis Burnham, Dallas, TX
August 10, 2010 8:04pm

I did not escape the "&" char with "&" when I pasted the function to this site, so therefor there were several errors in the substitute section. This has now been corrected.

Mogens Brun, Gentofte, Denmark
August 11, 2010 2:06pm

Is there a comparable function that will translate text to HTML?

Dennis Burnham, Dallas, TX
August 05, 2011 6:58am

Make a comment about this Custom Function (please try to keep it brief & to the point). Anyone can post:

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