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Generating HTML and displaying it in Python

Generating HTML and displaying it in Python

Submitted by Peter on Wed Nov 10 2004 14:38 over 4 years ago

Under Windows the following python uses the Win32 extensions to launch whatever default html browser you have showing the appropriate html file: 

import win32api

strPathToFile = "c:\\path\\for\\file.html"

win32api.ShellExecute( 0, "Open", strPathToFile, None, None, 0)

This is coolest when combined with the Cheetah Template Library: 

   1  import Cheetah.Template
   2  
   3  #
   4  # Define report template. This is mostly html, the $ stuff will be
   5  # replaced by Cheetah.
   6  #
   7  strTemplate = """
   8  <html>
   9  <head>
  10  <title>$title</title>
  11  <head>
  12  <body>
  13  Hello $name, how are you today?
  14  </body>
  15  </html>
  16  """
  17  
  18  #
  19  # Build a dictionary of the $ symbols above and what should be displayed instead
  20  #
  21  oDict = { 'title': "This is my title", 'name': 'Peter'}
  22  
  23  #
  24  # Cheetah does it's magic
  25  #
  26  oHtml = Cheetah.Template.Template( strTemplate, [oDict])
  27  
  28  #
  29  # Write html to file and display it.
  30  #
  31  open( 'c:\\tmp\\file.html', 'wt').write( str(oHtml))
  32  win32api.ShellExecute( 0, "Open", 'c:\\tmp\\file.html', None, None, 0)

Cheetah is very powerful. The following code demonstrates a few features:

  • can use for loops to generate the rows of a table
  • instances of classes can be passed into cheetah and it can access member variables or call member functions
  • it tends to work first time the way you think it will. 
   1  #
   2  # Show test report
   3  #
   4  
   5  import Cheetah.Template
   6  
   7  strTemplate = """
   8  $wiffle.blub
   9  $wiffle.nub
  10  $wiffle.grub()
  11  <table>
  12  <tr>
  13  #for $awiff in $wiffles
  14  <td>$awiff.blub</td>
  15  <td>$awiff.nub</td>
  16  <td>$awiff.grub()</td>
  17  #end for
  18  </tr>
  19  </table>
  20  """
  21  
  22  class Wiff:
  23      def __init__( self):
  24          self.blub = 'blublub'
  25          self.nub = 'nubnubnub'
  26      def grub( self):
  27          return 'i am grub'
  28  
  29  oDict = { 'wiffle': Wiff(), 'wiffles': [ Wiff(), Wiff(), Wiff()] }
  30  
  31  oHtml = Cheetah.Template.Template( strTemplate, [oDict])
  32  print str(oHtml)

Filed under: cheetah python windows

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