Web based custom PDF creation with Flash front end

Hi all,

I need to make a web based application that creates custom postcards.

I would like to have a Flash front-end where the user can choose different variables such as; background image, headline text, return address, graphic icons or logos, etc. and view the postcard in Flash. I can do this part, the next part I need some advice with...

After the user sees the finished postcard in Flash, I want them to push an "Approve" button that creates a "Print Ready" PDF for them to approve and print on their desktop printer. Then I want them to hit a "Submit" or "Order" button that creates a "Press Ready" PDF and saves it on the server to be retrieved by the printshop and printed on a printing press.

Any ideas on how to do this? I know it can be done I have seen a password protected site that does it. Sorry I can't get the link.

Thanks.

Dan

I found this software for a server that allows for a pdf api
http://www.bcltechnologies.com/docum...FSYRWAodU1uM7g

most of the code looks like
Set oPrinter = CreateObject("easyPdfSdk.Printer")
Set oPrintJob = oPrinter.IEPrintJob
' Set IE specific option
oPrintJob.Header = ""
oPrintJob.Footer = ""
oPrintJob.SaveSetting
oPrintJob.PrintOut "C:\input.htm", "C:\output.pdf"

Thank you very much for your reply but that will not do what I want to do for several reasons.

1. I should have mentioned that my server does not support ASP or DotNet, I a only can use PHP.

2. It will print (PDF) a document that exists or is already created, but it will not create a PDF on the fly from paramaters passed to it from a data base.

3. I don't want to use high-resolution images in the Flash front-end because it would be way too bulky. I only want them to assemble and customize a preview in Flash and then have the server spit out a finished PDF.

Sorry I did not give better info.

Thanks.

Dan

I use FPDF (http://www.fpdf.org) for my PDF creations. It's just a PHP class. I'd imagine that you can allow the user to make their choices and then when they click approve it would post a form to a page which then calls this class and generates the PDF with the variables given to it.

Baileys,

That looks like it will do the trick. I will let you know how it turns out.

Thank you so much.

Dan

Hi,

if you want to put text. images, and whatnot on a page, it is probably easier to create a PS file in the first place. To do that, you would require ghostscript as a converter. It is usually available on the server, but you certainly should check whether you can actually use it

Musicman

Thanks Musicman. I will look into it.

hi all,

I would like to use flash as a document creation tool for design wireframes. YOu can see why this would be great to illustrate interactions, but I will also need to be able to print the dynamic content on every frame (each frame as a page in the document).

I've been playing around with the PrintJob class and it works but only for the first frame of the file.

I can add a page as many time as I like, but still only printthe content of the first frame on each page.

anyone ever do anything like this before????

Hi,

as this is a serverside forum, I would suggest that the movie sends data (e.g. coordinates of the lines) to the server, and the server would use some graphics library to generate a jpeg, pdf, or whatnot

Musicman