Office 97 applications make it easier than ever to publish documents on the Web. Several new tools and features create a seamless integration between Office documents and the Internet. I'll start by discussing some of the tools that are common to all
the Office products. Later, I'll explore features unique to particular applications.
Common to all Office 97 applications is the addition of the Web toolbar (see Figure 17.1). The Web toolbar can be hidden or displayed using the Web Toolbar icon located on the standard toolbar of any Office application. You can also display the Web
toolbar by selecting the View | Toolbars menu and selecting Web from the list of available toolbars or right-clicking the standard toolbar and selecting Web.
Figure 17.1. The Office 97 Web toolbar.
Whenever you select a command or button from the Web toolbar, Microsoft Internet Explorer starts and connects to the Internet. If you're familiar with Internet Explorer, you'll notice some of the same controls and functions available in that
application.
NOTE
Before you use the Web toolbar, make sure your Internet connection in Internet Explorer is set up properly, either through a remote dial-up or LAN connection.
Once you've displayed the Web toolbar, there are several ways you can easily browse the Web. If you know the URL address of the Web page you want to link to, simply enter the location in the address box on the Web toolbar. For example, to connect to
Microsoft's home page, you enter http://www.microsoft.com.
TIP
You can also use the address box on the Web toolbar to jump to any Office document. Simply enter the path and filename of the document you want to open.
Another way to browse the Web is through your favorite Web sites. If you've defined a list of favorite locations in Internet Explorer, you can simply select that site from the Favorites pull-down menu on the Web toolbar. Because Internet Explorer
features are integrated in Office applications, you can also include Office documents in your Favorites list by following the next few steps:
Figure 17.2. The Add to Favorites dialog box used to create shortcuts to your favorite Office documents or Web sites.
Browsing the Web is easy if you know the URL address of a Web site. Often, you might not know the address or you might want to search the Web for a particular topic. By selecting Go | Search the Web from the Web toolbar or selecting the Search the Web
icon, you can connect to a page on the Microsoft Network that includes six of the more popular and widely used search engines on the Internet. Figure 17.3 shows the Web page located at http://www.msn.com/access/allinone.asp and
displayed when you search the Web from the Web toolbar. Simply enter a word or words in the edit box and select Search.
Figure 17.3. Searching the Web using some popular Internet search services.
Because each Internet search service catalogs information differently, your search results may vary depending on which one you use. The following list outlines some of the features unique to each service:
A hyperlink is used to jump to a location in the same file, another file, or even a URL location on the World Wide Web. Word is unique among the Office applications because it automatically formats Internet, network, or e-mail addresses as hyperlinks.
However, you can format any text, graphic, logo, or scanned image as a hyperlink as well. The following steps show you how:
Figure 17.4. The Insert Hyperlink dialog box used to create and edit hyperlinks.
Hyperlinked text is represented by colored underlined text. If you hold the mouse pointer over the hyperlinked text, the pointer changes to a hand and a note displays the location of the linked file. Simply click hyperlinked text to jump to the new
location. If you used a graphic to create a hyperlink, you have to right-click the graphic and select Hyperlink | Select Hyperlink from the menu.
To remove or edit a hyperlink, select the hyperlink and use the Insert | Hyperlink menu to display the Edit Hyperlink dialog box. Edit the link in the Link to File or URL box or click the Remove Link button.
TIP
You can also right-click a hyperlink and select Hyperlink | Edit Hyperlink to quickly display the Edit Hyperlink dialog box.
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) is a method of marking up, or tagging, a document so it can be published on the World Wide Web. When you save an Office document in an HTML format, information on text formatting, graphics, and user controls is stored.
You can then use a Web browser (such as Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator) to view HTML documents.
The easiest way to create a Web page from one of the Office applications is to use one of the wizards supplied with Office 97. However, you might sometimes have a document that you want to quickly convert to an HTML format. When converting documents,
keep in mind that some of the formatting features used in Office applications are not supported by HTML and you might lose some data. It's always a good idea to keep a backup copy of the document in its native .ppt
(PowerPoint), .doc (Word), .xls (Excel), or .mdb (Access) format.
The following procedure outlines the steps necessary to convert a Word document to an HTML format:
Figure 17.5. Using the Save As HTML dialog box to convert a Word document to an HTML document.
There are thousands of FTP sites on the Internet that allow users to download and upload anything from documents and shareware to graphic images and clip art. By saving a file to an FTP site, you can make your file available to anyone who has access to
that site.
Some FTP sites are public and allow anonymous login. This means that anyone can download and upload information. For security reasons (for example, a private company's FTP site), some sites require a pre-approved username and password.
The following steps show you how to save a file to an FTP site:
Figure 17.6. Choosing an FTP site from the Save As dialog box.
Figure 17.7. Adding or modifying an FTP site.
NOTE
You do not have to save a document in HTML format in order to save it to an FTP site. The document format is independent of the document location. You can think of an FTP site as another drive or subdirectory; the only difference is that this location is on the Internet.
PowerPoint 97 has a complete set of templates specifically designed for online presentations. The easiest way to begin creating a presentation for the Internet is to use PowerPoint's AutoContent Wizard.
Using the AutoContent Wizard in PowerPoint is easy. Here's how it's done:
Figure 17.8. Selecting the type of PowerPoint presentation from the AutoContent Wizard.
Figure 17.9. Choosing how the presentation is used from the AutoContent Wizard.
Figure 17.10. Selecting presentation options from the AutoContent Wizard.
Remember, even if you're creating a presentation to be viewed on the Web, it's always a good idea to save it in a PowerPoint format. To save your presentation in HTML format, select Save As HTML from the File menu.
TIP
When you save a presentation in HTML format, you can also save your current Internet Assistant settings so you can easily reuse them when you convert other presentations. For more information on using Internet Assistant for PowerPoint, see Chapter 19, "Using Internet Assistant for PowerPoint."
The PowerPoint Animation Player is an Internet browser extension that allows you take full advantage of all the animation, hyperlinks, sound and special-effects functionality of PowerPoint. If you know how to use PowerPoint, you already know how to
create and view dynamic Web pages rather than static HTML pages. With the Animation Player, you can also
You can download the PowerPoint Animation Player software from the Microsoft Web site at http://www.microsoft.com.
When you author Web pages in Word, many familiar Word features, such as spelling and grammar checking, AutoText, and tables, are available. However, there are some features that aren't supported by HTML. Table 17.1 explains which features are changed
or unavailable when authoring Web pages or converting a Word document to an HTML format.
Word Feature | Availability in HTML |
Columns | Columns aren't supported in HTML, but you can use tables to create a two- or three-column effect. |
Comments/track changes | Word's comments and track changes features aren't supported in HTML. |
Paragraph borders | You cannot place borders around paragraphs in HTML, but you can place borders around graphical objects or tables. |
Updatable OLE objects | When you save charts, equations, and other OLE objects in HTML format, a graphical image is created. These graphics appear on your Web page, but you won't be able to update the data they represent through an OLE link. |
Text effects | Shadowed, embossed, and engraved text aren't supported in HTML. Strikethrough, bold, italic, and underline are supported. |
Headers and footers | Web pages don't have headers and footers. If you convert a Word document to HTML, the data appears on the Web page, but it is no longer in a header or footer. |
Footnotes | Footnotes are not supported. |
Cross-references | Cross-references are not supported. |
Master documents | Master documents and sub-documents are not supported in HTML. |
Mail merge | Mail merge is not supported in HTML. |
Shared documents | Word's document sharing isn't available during Web authoring. |
Styles | Styles are customized so they reflect those supported by HTML. |
Earlier in this chapter, I explored how to convert a Word document to an HTML format. A much simpler method, however, uses Word's Web Page Wizard. The following steps show you how to take advantage of this time-saving Web authoring tool:
NOTE
If you don't see the Web Pages tab, the Web authoring components might not be installed. Rerun Office Setup and select the Add/Remove button. Make sure the Web Page Authoring (HTML) checkbox is activated under the Options for Microsoft Word.
Figure 17.11. Creating an HTML document using a Simple Layout and Elegant Style from the Web Page Wizard.
Once you've created your HTML document using the Web Page Wizard, you might want to jazz it up using some different graphics and a textured background. The following list shows the graphic file types supported by Word:
TIP
GIF and JPEG are Web standard file formats. If you insert graphics into an HTML document, it's best to use one of these two formats so that your Web page can be viewed properly using a Web browser.
To insert a graphic in an HTML document, follow the next few steps:
Figure 17.12. Using the Insert Picture dialog box to add graphics to an HTML document.
CAUTION
Large graphics or a large quantity of graphics increase download time. To decrease the file size of graphics, use fewer colors, decrease the size of the graphic, and repeat images when you can. For instance, you can use the same image for a bullet throughout all your Web pages. The image is downloaded only once, even if it appears on several pages.
Backgrounds are only visible when you display your document in Online Layout view. If you add a background to your Web page, it should contrast with the text color. Keep in mind that you want to design your Web page so that it's easy to read. You
should avoid a dark background with white type because this might not print properly. The following procedure shows you how to change the background color or texture:
Figure 17.13. Using the Fill Effects dialog box to change the background in an HTML document.
You can also add animated text that scrolls across your page to your HTML document. The following steps show you how:
Figure 17.14. Adding scrolling text to an HTML document.
TIP
Don't over-design your Web page with a lot of scrolling text. Keep the text short and use it to emphasize features on your Web page.
Although videos can be exciting and certainly take advantage of the multimedia capability of the Web, they aren't supported by all Web browsers and they take a long time to download. You should avoid presenting essential information in videos and
provide an alternative version of the material, such as a text-only version. Also, you need to create and edit your desktop video in an application such as Microsoft Camcorder 97 (not included with Office 97).
NOTE
Adding videos to Web pages with FrontPage is covered thoroughly in Chapter 11, "Adding Sound and Video to Web Pages."
Here's how you add a video to your Web page:
Figure 17.15. Inserting a video into an HTML page with the Video Clip dialog box.
CAUTION
Because video files can be even larger than graphic files, you need to exercise the same caution when adding videos to a Web page as you did when adding graphics and backgrounds. Try reducing the height or width of the video, use fewer panels, or consider using black-and-white instead of color to decrease the file size and download time.
Once you've customized your Web page with text, hyperlinks, graphics and possibly a video, it's time to preview your page. Select the File | Web Page Preview to display your Web page in Internet Explorer.
Web forms can make your Web site extremely powerful by soliciting information from users and then adding that information to a database on your Web server. You can use this feature to take orders, track customer information and product requests, or
even run contests and promotions from your Web site.
Before you can set up a data gathering system, however, you need to do some preliminary planning. The following lists some questions you need to answer before you begin using Excel or Access to design a form:
You can simplify data input on a form by using controls common to desktop publishing applications. These controls include buttons, edit boxes, drop-down list boxes, option buttons, checkboxes, spinners, and scroll bars. Word, Excel, and Access all
contain a control toolbox to allow you to quickly create a Web form in any of the Office applications. To display the Forms toolbar, right-click the standard toolbar and select Forms. Figure 17.16 shows the Forms control toolbox in Excel.
Figure 17.16. The Forms control toolbox.
Controls are helpful because you can assign a macro to a control. Depending on the control and the action taken by the user, the macro can perform a variety of functions. For example, suppose you want to collect demographic information on users who
visit your Web site and you want to know whether they are male or female. You could add two option buttons to a Web form and when a user selected one of the options, a M or F could be dropped into a database field named Gender. For more information about
designing forms in Excel or Access, see the Help file.
Excel's Web Form Wizard configures your worksheet to an HTML form to make submitting information to a Web database easy for the user. The following steps show you how to use this handy feature:
Figure 17.17. Using Excel's Form Wizard to create an HTML form.
![]()
If the Web Form Wizard command does not appear on the Tools | Wizard menu, install the HTML Form Wizard add-in program. Select the Tools | Add Ins menu and make sure the Web Form Wizard checkbox is activated.
The only thing you have left to do is copy the form and other files to the appropriate subdirectory on your Web server. Then, your form is online and ready to use.
The Microsoft Excel Viewer allows users to open and view Excel workbooks, but they can't save Microsoft Excel workbooks. Users who have either Microsoft Excel or the Viewer can open workbooks directly from an Office-compatible Web browser, such as
Microsoft Internet Explorer. You can download the Viewer software from the Microsoft Web site located at http://www.microsoft.com.
In much the same manner that Excel's Web Form Wizard allowed you to quickly create a Web form from Excel, the Publish to the Web Wizard simplifies the Web form creation process from Access. There are some features unique to Access.
With the Publish to the Web Wizard, you can publish reports, forms, tables, and queries to the Web in an HTML format. In addition, you can specify an HTML template to give all your pages a consistent look. When you use the wizard in Access, each
datasheet, each form, and each page of a report becomes one Web page.
The following example uses the Northwind Traders sample database that ships with Access to show you how to use the Publish to the Web Wizard:
Figure 17.18. The Publish to the Web Wizard in Access.
Figure 17.19. Selecting which Access items to publish.
Figure 17.20. Specifying an HTML template.
Figure 17.21. Choosing the type of page to create.
Figure 17.22. Choosing a publication format.
In addition to the controls you see in the controls toolbox, Access supports ActiveX controls. Like the built-in tools, ActiveX controls allow users to interact with a form and input data in a user-friendly manner. The calendar control is an example of
an ActiveX control.
In previous versions of Access, these controls were sometimes referred to as custom controls or OLE controls. Although Access ships with some ActiveX controls, you can also add third-party controls. Before you can use a third-party control, however, it
must first be registered. Use the following procedure to register an ActiveX control that isn't included with Access:
CAUTION
Because some ActiveX controls are supplied by third-party vendors, some controls might not work well in Office applications. To see a list of controls that have been tested and verified with Access, see the Readme file.
You can add a control by following these steps:
NOTE
If you've installed ActiveX controls with other applications, such as Microsoft Excel, those controls show up if you click the More Controls tool in the toolbox or select the Insert | ActiveX Controls menu.
NOTE
You can also set properties for an ActiveX control in the Microsoft Access property sheet. Microsoft Access displays ActiveX control properties at the bottom of the property sheet. If the Build button appears next to an ActiveX control property, you can click it to open the ActiveX control property sheet.
NOTE
To get Help on any property, click the property in the property sheet and press F1. For more information on using ActiveX controls, see Chapter 28, "Exploring ActiveX and ActiveX Controls," and Chapter 29, "Creating Interactive Pages with VBScript and ActiveX."
Microsoft Office 97 provides an exciting gateway to anyone who wants to publish on the Web. Use the techniques covered in this chapter as a starting point. As you work with Office 97, you will learn more about using and creating HTML documents.