Flare 3.1 ignores table specs in my .css

[7man40]

I can't get Flare 3.1 to officially recognize the table-related definitions in my .css file (created outside of Flare). After reading through the help I see that Flare makes a distinction between table styles and other styles, with a separate table style editor. It seems to split table styles up into several separate default .css files.

The help project was a pre-existing set of HTML files that we brought into Flare just for WebHelp output, not for editing. I am now trying to bring the project over for editing in Flare by several writers. I have not been successful in getting Flare to import my existing .css file for table styles (although I can import it for regular styles, and that works). Is there any way to get Flare to use my regular table specs?

Or do I have to copy my styles over to the default Flare table style .css files? Or something else?

Thanks.

[KevinDAmery]

Flare will only use a table.css file if you specify a Table Style in the table properties. If you don't specify one, then you have basic bob HTML tables. So in theory, importing your existing CSS should work.

I'm not clear what the problem is specifically. When you say "I can't get Flare 3.1 to officially recognize the table-related definitions in my .css file" what exactly is happening (or not happening)?

[7man40]

Thanks for your response Kevin. There are a couple things I can't figure out about tables.

1. I can't get the Select Table Type Template dialog to display my existing style sheet that contains my table definitions (and other definitions). I used the info in the "Creating Templates" help topic to add my existing .css to My Documents\My Templates\TableStyles. From the Insert Table dialog I click Add, and in the Select Table Type Template dialog, under My Templates, nothing appears. (Maybe I don't need to have this work, because I have discovered that if I click the CSS Class button, my table styles appear in there for some reason, and I can use them to insert a table.)

2. When I add my .css file with Project > Add Table Style, it adds the file to Resources\TableStyles, but the .css opens in the regular styles editor, not in the table styles editor.

3. Just curious, why are there separate .css files for tables? I'm used to editing raw XML, HTML, CSS and have not run across this.

Regards

[NorthEast]

Just add your existing CSS for table styles to your main stylesheet (not a table stylesheet), e.g. open the stylesheet in text view and just copy and paste them in.

I'd forget about trying to use your existing table CSS in one of Flare's table stylesheets. You can't copy/import your existing table CSS into a Flare table stylesheet, you can only create table stylesheets in Flare's table editor. The CSS in a table stylesheet is quite complicated and in a specific format, and you have to create/edit it using Flare's table editor. I think the table styles are kept separate to keep the main stylesheet tidier, and also because you don't directly edit the CSS in table stylesheets (the CSS definitions are generated based on what you set in the table editor).

[KevinDAmery]

I agree with Dave. Additionally, Flare's Table Styles feature has an unfriendly habit (at least as far as I'm concerned) of adding in-line formatting to your tables, meaning that if you want to change things later you have to dig into the topic code rather than being able to make one change to a css file. Unless you really need them, I would leave Table Styles out altogether.

The one reason I've come across that would make Table Styles useful is that they automate some of the formatting for tables that can be really tricky. For example, if you want alternating shaded rows or columns, the Table Styles handle it very easily and retain the correct formatting when you add or remove rows and columns. So for complex operations like that, they're useful. OTOH, if your tables are more traditional I think the downsides outweigh the benefits.

[LTinker68]

For example, if you want alternating shaded rows or columns, the Table Styles handle it very easily and retain the correct formatting when you add or remove rows and columns.

Except that it then has problems if you merge any of the cells. At least it did before v4. Haven't tested to see if it's still a problem.

[7man40]

Thanks everyone for this table info, it is very useful.