How do I attach PDF/DOC files to my Mediator project export?

When exporting from Mediator you have several format options. When creating your document in EXE/CDROM mode you will have access to the “ActiveDocument” object – this object type can display any document type that can be viewed in a browser (for example, Word has a plugin to display DOC documents, Adobe Reader has one to display PDF documents).

There are several ways of including PDF files depending on which user experience you wish to achieve. When using the ActiveDocument object type you can manually upload PDF files to a remote location and simply type in the full address including domain and protocol. This will allow you to keep updated files – and end users will not be able to immediately see the URL of the file(s) you reference. This method does not work in HTML and Flash modes – and it requires an Internet connection available to the client to work correctly.

If you use the “web link” action then a browser will be opened with the location of the file you reference as a parameter. When typing the name of the link, simply type the filename enclosed by quotes. Remember to add the file(s) to “additional data files” (option only available in “standard” mode).

If you need to have this functionality in HTML exports you must manually upload the files to the same directory as the HTML files. If you do not upload the file or reference it incorrectly, then an automatic search is made and the user is redirected – if you entered the filename correctly and uploaded the file, the file will be either displayed in the browser (if the proper plugin exists) or it will be presented as a downloadable file (identical to the “save as” dialog).

Exporting to CD is the easiest method – this enables both of the inclusion methods and does not require you to manually copy the data files. Simply use the “additional data files” section from the “document” menu to attach the necessary files.

The described methods work for both Mediator Exp and Mediator Pro.