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WebCompiler 2000 Kai Chandler takes a look at WebCompiler 2000.
Have you ever wanted to ‘zip up’ a web site send to a colleague? Perhaps just for their convenience? Or to hide the underlying HTML code? If so, then WebCompiler from Oakley Data Services is worth a look. Although it’s a mature product, a new version (1.62) has just been released. WebCompiler is an "HTML Compiler". It takes a set of HTML and associated files such as images and embedded video and turns it into a self-contained executable that can be distributed. You could send out your website or presentation on floppy disk, CD, email or download, safe in the knowledge that it can’t be changed. The end-user only needs Windows to view the compiled version although Windows 95 or NT4 users will also need Internet Explorer v4 or later.
There are dozens of reasons why you might want to compile a web site. Top of the list are: Presentation – it’s easy to create a presentation from your HTML files without either you or end-user needing a presentation tool such as Powerpoint. Support for Microsoft's Embedded Font technology means that the end-user will see the content exactly as intended, whether or not the user has all the fonts installed. You can tailor the appearance of the content by removing Toolbar and Status Bar. A "Kiosk Mode" to provides a captive environment. You can also fix the size of the interface window. Use of a specified logo, icon and splash screen lets you quickly create professional looking branded pages. Convenience – create a single executable file that can be run from floppy disk, CD or downloaded file without any installation or need for a browser on the target PC. Even beginners can view your presentation without any special software being needed. A built-in search tool lets the user search all the pages of the web site or presentation and even save the results of searches for future reload which makes it ideal for creating e-texts of material for learners. Security – you can make the HTML source code inaccessible to the end user so not only can they not view it but, more importantly, they can not change it. You can also put passwords and user-ids onto pages or complete directories of HTML with or without an expiry date beyond which the HTML cannot be accessed. This makes it ideal for creating time-sensitive material such as price lists in your company format. The compiled version can also call external programs which means that presentations can be "chained" or you can create a simple menu system. What’s supported? WebCompiler supports most aspects of HTML including Dynamic HTML, Cascading Style Sheets and JavaScript and VBScript scripting languages. Java is not supported because of the unique way the Microsoft Java VM accesses its data. A minor disadvantage is that the resultant file is typically about 300kB larger than the source files. To sum up, WebCompiler is an excellent tool for anyone distributing web based information. Download the trial version from our top downloads library
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Why
compile? 