[aleding]

Hey there Omni user group,

Does anyone have any suggestions regarding how to modify the characteristics of the HTML export function within OmniPlan? I so totally love this application but unfortunately, I am using Merlin2 right now only because of the stuff I get when exporting and then sending this up to our internal project web-page.

What I would like to be able to do is modify how the image file for the Gantt is generated. It seems that now, my image ends up being very very tall and very narrow. I would like this to look more like the view I have when actually working in the project. I have about 200 line items and to view them all, I need to scroll down about 6 inches but this is no big deal. Also, I can view the timeline to the right by scrolling over about 10 inches - again, no big deal to me or the members on my team.

If you have any suggestions or tricks, please let me know.

Thanks.

[skwirl]

We have a feature request in our database for the ability to control the quality/resolution of the exported gantt images. I'll add a vote to this request for you. :)

[aleding]

Awesome - Thanks for the update.

Do you have an ETA for the release - BETA or otherwise - that will have this implemented?

[stordoff]

I also love this software but need to customize the HTML export.
I need to be able to customize the task report to only show columns that I want to show clients and I also want to have the Gantt view be similar to what I see where I can adjust it to view by quarter, by month, etc.
Thanks!:)

[skwirl]

aleding:

It's too early to tell at this point. Any date I say right now would be extremely inaccurate so I'm not even going to try. Don't worry though, we are looking at all the requests in our database and constantly trying to add new features when we can. :)

stordoff:

I have filed a noted your feature requests about the gantt chart as well.

When you say you want to customize the columns, are you referring to the columns in the gantt chart, or in the task/resource reports? The columns in the reports can be customized by going to "File" > "Customize HTML Templates". This will create a folder with the HTML templates that you can modify with any text editing application.

[Tom Bunch]

Originally Posted by stordoff

I also love this software but need to customize the HTML export.
I need to be able to customize the task report to only show columns that I want to show clients and I also want to have the Gantt view be similar to what I see where I can adjust it to view by quarter, by month, etc.
Thanks!:)

I'm not quite sure if I'm interpreting you correctly, but I think you're asking to be able to control exactly what scale the Gantt view is exported in ("Day", "Week", "Month", etc.,...) as well, perhaps independently, as the width of the columns. And I think you're also asking to be able to control which colums are visible in the Outline view that accompanies the Gantt Chart in html export.

The first is a good suggestion and not currently supported. It shouldn't be too much trouble to write an AppleScript to do what you want for the second. The columns that are visible are the ones that are included in the export, so you'll have to set the view colums, at least temporarily. This should get you started

tell application "OmniPlan"
	set frontWindow to front window
	set frontDocument to document of frontWindow
	set oldVisibleColumns to {} & task columns of frontWindow
	set task columns of frontWindow to {"Title", "Total Cost", "Effort", "Planned End"}
	tell frontDocument
		save in "Volumes:Extra:myReport.htmld" as "HTML Full Report" with properties {export template:"Users:tom:Library:Application Support:OmniPlan:HTMLTemplates:Custom Project Report"}
	end tell
	set task columns of frontWindow to oldVisibleColumns
end tell

Note that in the next release, there will be a new export command that will replace "save in", above, which will no longer support "as" or "with properties". This will be your new line, then:

export to "Volumes:Extra:myReport.htmld" as "HTML Full Report" using template "Users:tom:Library:Application Support:OmniPlan:HTMLTemplates:Custom Project Report"

The identifiers of all columns are documented in the AppleScript dictionary for OmniPlan. There are lots of ways this script could go, but hopefully this will get you started.

-Tom

[aleding]

Tom,

Thanks for this information and I think you are correctly interpreting - at least from my perspective - what I am looking to achieve.

When currently exporting to HTML, the Gantt file is scaled in such a way as to fit on a single screen view - no vertical or horizontal scrolling is needed to view the entire Gantt. Well, what happens then is that the scale sucks because the items are all way too tiny to read and the timeline is very tall and very narrow - And I am viewing this on a 23" Cinema display so that is a lot of real estate wasted.

So to be able to scale just how the Gantt image is generated would be a HUGE development and I would, the very same day - drop Merlin 2 and move everything over to OmniPlan.

Thanks.

[pslade]

Originally Posted by Tom Bunch

tell application "OmniPlan"
	set frontWindow to front window
	set frontDocument to document of frontWindow
	set oldVisibleColumns to {} & task columns of frontWindow
	set task columns of frontWindow to {"Title", "Total Cost", "Effort", "Planned End"}
	tell frontDocument
		save in "Volumes:Extra:myReport.htmld" as "HTML Full Report" with properties {export template:"Users:tom:Library:Application Support:OmniPlan:HTMLTemplates:Custom Project Report"}
	end tell
	set task columns of frontWindow to oldVisibleColumns
end tell

Note that in the next release, there will be a new export command that will replace "save in", above, which will no longer support "as" or "with properties". This will be your new line, then:

export to "Volumes:Extra:myReport.htmld" as "HTML Full Report" using template "Users:tom:Library:Application Support:OmniPlan:HTMLTemplates:Custom Project Report"

The identifiers of all columns are documented in the AppleScript dictionary for OmniPlan. There are lots of ways this script could go, but hopefully this will get you started.

-Tom

Is it possible to specify in the applescript the export options? For example I would like to export only tasks matching any of Urgency is this task is due soon, Urgency is this task overdue and Urgency is this task due in less than 1 day.

[Lizard]

Sorry, we don't support filtering in AppleScript export yet. I've created a feature request for this.