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TABLA is a Python-based script that can build simple HTML tables. A version of this script has been employed to create the official on-line bus schedule for a mid-size US city. Using the same password controlled Python script, the city's transportation department updates all bus arrival times as well as adds or subtracts bus stops (columns) and bus runs (rows). The titles of all columns can be edited and the overall title of the table together with the title's background color can be specified.

To fully automate table creation and maintenance, TABLA must have access to an HTML area that the Web server can read from and write to. In the case of the city bus department mentioned earlier, the Web server runs as the owner of the HTML directory containing the public bus schedule. If write access to a live HTML directory cannot be supported, TABLA can be configured to write to an open directory such as /tmp but then some other mechanism (such as the Web administrator) must be used to place the files created and edited by TABLA in the proper live HTML directories.

In this version of TABLA, the working directory is set to /tmp/ the IP address of the client. This can be edited by the Web administrator. When invoked as a cgi script (e.g., http://somehost.domain/cgi-bin/tabla.py), TABLA presents an HTML page which requests the user to identify a table to open or create. The name of the table may be entered in the field "Enter file name" or selected from a sorted pop-up list of titles of the tables the user has already saved on the system. "Cancel" resets the form. "New" asks the user to enter a new file name, whereupon a new screen (the TABLA edit screen) appears which allows the user to edit the content and structure of the new table. The user must specify a password for the table if "New" is selected. If the user selects "Open" and a filename or a table title has been selected, the TABLA edit screen is invoked for editing the specified table. If the user selects "Open" but has not specified a table title or filename, then the user is prompted for a filename to open. In the initial distribution of TABLA, the filename specified by the user is prefixed with the working directory path ("/tmp/$REMOTE_HOST/") and suffixed with a file type designator (".tab").

The TABLA edit screen is an HTML form for editing the content of the selected table. A new table starts out with three columns and 6 rows. The TABLA edit screen contains a header identifying the current table (file) being edited, a password field, and control buttons for manipulating the current table. The password field must be filled in when saving any changes made to the table being edited. The password was specified when the new table was created.

The buttons are organized into two groups. The leftmost group is "Open", "Save", "Save as HTML", "View", "Refresh" and "Reset". The rightmost group is for navigating tables consisting of more than 4 columns. In edit mode, TABLA allows no more than 4 columns at a time to be viewed. The navigation buttons are "<<Prev", "Prev", "Next", and "Next>>".

"Open" simply returns the user to the table selection screen (and populates the "Enter file name" field of that screen with the file name of the currently selected table). In this version of TABLA, no attempt is made to ensure that the user has saved any pending changes to the current table. If the user has mistakenly selected "Open" from the TABLA edit screen, the user can return to the table being edited by pressing the back button of the browser (assuming that the browser is running with cache enabled).

"Save" saves all changes made by the user to the table's content and structure into the file identified by the "current file:" message at the top of the TABLA edit screen. The table's content includes the cell values and the title, the title's background color, the column header names, and the cell data in each row. The table's editable structure consists of the number of columns and rows of the table. The table is saved in a simple type/value format similar to LDIF.

"Save as HTML" saves all changes made by the user into an HTML file which is named by prefixing the current file with the working directory path (e.g., "/tmp/$REMOTE_HOST/") and appending (".html"). The current TABLA file is also updated.

"View" presents an HTML "browser view" of the table being edited. As a quick way to grab the table's HTML, the user can view the table's source using the browser's view source facility.

"Refresh" rereads the current table from the last saved file. All changes made by the user since the last "Save" will be lost. "Reset" simply resets all content (but not structure) of the current table to what was last read from the file system.

The navigation buttons are straightforward. "<<Prev" scrolls the current table up to 4 columns to the right depending upon how many columns are hidden on the left. The editing form will display only 4 or fewer columns at any given time. "Prev" scrolls the table back 1 column. Similarly, "Next" scrolls the table to the left by 1 column and "Next>>" scrolls the table up to 4 columns to the left.

The next line of the TABLA edit screen contains the table's title and a field to the left of the title for specifying the background color of the title row. This color may be specified as an HTML color (such as red) or as a hexidecimal RGB value in normal HTML notation (such as #ff0000).

Below the table's title, groups of radio button appear for each column of the table. The first button of a group deletes the column under it. The second button adds a new column to the left of this button group. The third button adds a new column to the right of the button group. Any combination of adds or deletes may be selected against multiple columns. However, only one action at a time can be performed on any one column.

At the beginning of the next row of the TABLA edit screen, a message identifies the range of columns currently being viewed (e.g., cols 1-4 of 8). The range of up to 4 columns changes as the navigation buttons are selected. In the same row, the name, or title, of each visible column can be specified in the text edit fields.

The next line of the TABLA edit screen begins the data content of the table. Each data row of the currently visible range of columns is presented. The text edit fields allow the user to enter or edit data in each cell of the table. In addition, button groups to the left of each row allow the deletion and addition of table rows. The first button of each group deletes the corresponding row. The second button adds a row above the current row and the third button adds a row below the current row.

Structural changes (the deletion or addition of rows or columns) to the current table are only performed when the user enters in a valid password and selects "Save". Requests for structural changes are ignored if the navigation buttons are used. However, content changes are honored and a password must be entered if the navigation buttons are used.

We hope that you find TABLA useful in your environment. Please email us, at tabla@cwareco.com, if you have any questions or even just to let us know how you are using this tool.

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