MapInfo Pro

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  • 1.  Browser Transparency in a Layout

    Posted 01-10-2022 21:03
    Have just setup MI21 and finding if we have a browser in a layout and the frame is bigger than the table the default area outside is grey. We have set the frame to transparent but when you insert a table browser all areas outside the table in the frame are grey.
    We want the area outside the table within the frame to be transparent as we dont want to have to manually resize the frame to fit the browser every time we create a new output.


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    Mark Green
    Geotech Information Services
    Mount Waverley VIC
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  • 2.  RE: Browser Transparency in a Layout

    Employee
    Posted 01-11-2022 04:11
    Hi Mark

    That's a great improvement idea. I'd suggest that you add this to the Precisely Ideas site. You can find a link in the Precisely Sites dropdown at the top of this site.

    At the moment, it seems that the browser fills out the entire frame. I think in fact that's the way most of the document frames work.

    There might be one workaround, sort of. Depends a bit on your process.

    I have added a couple of published functions to the Site Mapper tool that you can find and download from the MapInfo Marketplace. Be aware that what I'm show below hasn't yet been published to the Marketplace. I wanted to get some feedback from you if this might solve your request.

    MapInfo Pro has this concept of Smart Text that basically use MapBasic functions to show a value on the Layout and in the Map window. By combining this option in the Layout with the concept of published custom functions, we can do something along the lines of what you see below.
     
    You see a normal embedded Map window and a normal embedded Browser window. As you can see, the frame with the Browser has the grey area under the list of values.

    Now below these two frames, I have inserted five Text frame with a Smart Text expression that each return all the values from a column in the current selection.

    If I double-click on one of these Text frame, I can see the Smart Text expression

    It looks like this:
    Name:
    $mb{SMGetTableColumnValues("Selection","Name", "",1)}

    First line is a fixed text used as a title for the values. The second lines is the actual Smart Text expression.
    $mb{} is the way you tell MapInfo Pro evaluate the string in the {} as a MapBasic expression instead of fixed text.

    This leaves us with the actual expression: SMGetTableColumnValues("Selection","Name", "",1)
    This is a custom function published from a new version of the Site Mapper tool. The function will return a list of values from the specified column in the specified table. In this case it will read all values from the column Name in the table Selection. The third parameter, in this case "", specified the separator to use between the values. If no values is given, it will separate the values with a new line character. The last value, here 1, is used for debugging purpose. If I specify 1, any errors when be shown in the text frame. If I specify 0, the function will return an empty string in case an error occures. An error could be that the specified table isn't open or that it doesn't hold the specified column.

    Do you think this could be a possible workaround, Mark?

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    Peter Horsbøll Møller
    Principal Presales Consultant | Distinguished Engineer
    Precisely | Trust in Data
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  • 3.  RE: Browser Transparency in a Layout

    Posted 01-11-2022 14:50
    Thanks Peter, I will investigate your reply and see if it works for us


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    Mark Green
    Geotech Information Services
    Mount Waverley VIC
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