topic Re: creating a html file with target sections in ODS and Base Reporting

creating a html file with target sections

gzr2mz39 — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 23:31:29 GMT

I have the following data:
number location
1 a
2 b
3 c

I would like to create a single html file (test.html) where (for example) test.html/#2 would should:
number=2
location
b

Is this possible to do with ods html and
proc print;by number;var location;run;
Or is there another procedure that I need to use to get these results?
Thank you.

Re: creating a html file with target sections

Cynthia_sas — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 01:29:46 GMT

Hi:
According to the HTML specification, if you have an <A> tag like this:
[pre]
<a name="section"></a>
[/pre]

Then you are defining a named attribute (in this case, section) and therefore, any reference to
filename.html#section would allow navigation directly to that named section, assuming that the browser was compliant with the HTML spec.
http://www.w3schools.com/html/html_links.asp
[quote from above page]
When the name attribute is used, the <a> element defines a named anchor inside a HTML document.

Named anchor are not displayed in any special way. They are invisible to the reader.
[endquote]

That is the HTML specification. ODS actually inserts name attributes into your ODS HTML output file. The default NAME= attribute starts with 'IDX' and looks like this:
[pre]
<a name="IDX"></a> (for the first output table)
<a name="IDX1"></a> (for the second output table)
<a name="IDX2"></a> (for the third output table)
[/pre]

.... and the numbering continues from there...

If you use the CONTENTS= and FRAME= options, then ODS builds an HTML FRAMESET file that uses the CONTENTS= file and the BODY= file to display inside an HTML frame. Even if you do NOT use CONTENTS= or FRAME=, ODS still inserts the IDX NAME= attributes into the file.

After you create your HTML file with ODS, you would have to look at the file with NOTEPAD to see the use of the NAME=IDX, NAME=IDX1, etc. For example, if I run this code:
[pre]
data numloc;
infile datalines;
input number location $;
return;
datalines;
1 a
2 b
3 c
;
run;

ods listing close;
** default named section #IDX, #IDX1, #IDX2;
ods html file='c:\temp\default.html' style=sasweb;
proc print data=numloc noobs;
by number;
var location;
run;
ods html close;
[/pre]

Then this is what I would see in NOTEPAD when I examine the HTML file:
(some HTML tags deleted to only show relevant sections):
[pre]
<a name="IDX"></a>
<div class="c Byline">number=1</div>

<th class="l Header" scope="col">location</th>
<td class="l Data">a</td>

<a name="IDX1"></a>
<div class="c Byline">number=2</div>

<th class="l Header" scope="col">location</th>
<td class="l Data">b</td>

<a name="IDX2"></a>
<div class="c Byline">number=3</div>

<th class="l Header" scope="col">location</th>
<td class="l Data">c</td>

[/pre]

You can alter the string that is used for the NAME= attribute by using the ANCHOR= option in your ODS HTML invocation statement. To alter the string used for NAME=, you would submit an invocation statement something like one of these:
[pre]
ods html file='c:\temp\use_anchor_w.html' anchor='wombat'
style=sasweb;

ods html file='c:\temp\use_anchor.html' anchor='wombat10'
style=sasweb;

ods html file='c:\temp\use_anchor.html' anchor='1'
style=sasweb;

[/pre]

for the above invocations, the following NAME= sections would be created:
--ANCHOR='wombat' will make NAME= wombat, wombat1, wombat2
--ANCHOR='wombat10' will make NAME= wombat10, wombat11, wombat12
--ANCHOR='1' will make NAME= 1, 2, 3

Of course, now that the NAME= attributes are in the file, you will have to properly construct the HREF= attribute to link directly to that section. Again, looking to the W3C for guidance, the correct way to reference a NAME= section is not with a slash (/) in the HREF= attribute.
[quote from w3c site]
Example:
A named anchor inside an HTML document:

<a name="tips">Useful Tips Section</a>

A link to the Useful Tips Section from the same document:

<a href="#tips">Jump to the Useful Tips Section</a>

A link to the Useful Tips Section from another document:

<a href="http://www.w3schools.com/html_tutorial.htm#tips">
Jump to the Useful Tips Section</a>

[endquote]

Note that none of these examples contain a slash before the # reference to the NAME= section.

The insertion of a NAME= attribute is not related to any particular procedure -- it is part of how ODS constructs an HTML output file. Every output table created by your procedure will get a NAME= section. If your procedure creates 3 tables (which is what happens with the data you describe) then you would get three NAME= attributes. If your procedure of choice only creates 1 output table, then you would only get one NAME= attribute in the HTML file.

cynthia

Re: creating a html file with target sections

gzr2mz39 — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 16:55:11 GMT

Great. Thank you for this information.

I tried the code out and I got this to work:
'href="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX20" target=_blank';

However, this doesn't work (the variable count is 1,2,3, etc):
href="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX'||trim(left(count))||' target=_blank';

Any ideas? Thank you.

Re: creating a html file with target sections

Cynthia_sas — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 17:02:58 GMT

Hi:
I guess I don't understand -WHERE- or -HOW- you're trying to build the HREF= attribute??

Are you doing this in a DATA step, in PROC PRINT, in PROC REPORT?? In a SAS/GRAPH program??? Inside the HTML file??

How do you know that COUNT is going to be aligned with the #IDX numbers that SAS automatically assigns when it builds the NAME= attribute for the named sections??

cynthia

Re: creating a html file with target sections

gzr2mz39 — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 17:25:27 GMT

href= is in a data step with html='href="

I used proc sort and count+1 to create count.
I confirmed that the numbers match the NAME= attribute.

Thank you.

Re: creating a html file with target sections

Cynthia_sas — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 19:43:13 GMT

Hi:
Are you doing something for SAS/GRAPH?? If so, this example may be useful:
http://support.sas.com/documentation/cdl/en/graphref/61884/HTML/default/gr08ods2-ex.htm

Modifying the code example a bit using SASHELP.CLASS, I can make the #IDX number use a dataset variable as shown below.

Usage-wise, I'm not sure that the "target=_blank" is going to be OK, depending on where/how you plan to use this variable value. Usually, for ODS HTML output, you use the HREFTARGET style attribute to set TARGET=_BLANK:
http://support.sas.com/kb/24/058.html

If you have questions about creating hyperlinks with ODS and/or with SAS/GRAPH, you might wish to open a track with Tech Support.
cynthia
[pre]
data testit;
length namedrill $70;
set sashelp.class;
keep name namedrill;
count+1;
namedrill=catt('HREF=','"','http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX',left(put(count,2.0)),' target=_blank','"');
run;

proc print data=testit;
run;
[/pre]

Produces:
[pre]
Obs namedrill Name
1 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX1 target=_blank" Alfred
2 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX2 target=_blank" Alice
3 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX3 target=_blank" Barbara
4 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX4 target=_blank" Carol
5 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX5 target=_blank" Henry
6 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX6 target=_blank" James
7 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX7 target=_blank" Jane
8 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX8 target=_blank" Janet
9 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX9 target=_blank" Jeffrey
10 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX10 target=_blank" John
11 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX11 target=_blank" Joyce
12 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX12 target=_blank" Judy
13 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX13 target=_blank" Louise
14 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX14 target=_blank" Mary
15 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX15 target=_blank" Philip
16 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX16 target=_blank" Robert
17 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX17 target=_blank" Ronald
18 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX18 target=_blank" Thomas
19 HREF="http://test.com/zipinfo.html#IDX19 target=_blank" William
[/pre]