How to make a WYSIWYG editor

furia_cross · November 25th, 2005, 07:30 PM

Hi there,

I want to make a WYSIWYG editor, but I don't know where to start. I don't get it how you can select some text, then press a button and the text changes.
I need a WYSIWYG editor form my content management system, does someone know where to get one with Commercial License.
I would really would like to know how it works!
Thank you in advance,

Joris vd Berg

Imar · November 25th, 2005, 08:38 PM

Is a non commercial but completely free license OK as well??

Then check out: http://www.fckeditor.net/

Cheers,

Imar
---------------------------------------
Imar Spaanjaars
Everyone is unique, except for me.
While typing this post, I was listening to: Close Encounters by The Orb (Track 5 from the album: U.F.Orb) What's This?

furia_cross · November 26th, 2005, 09:22 AM

I know this editor, but I can't use it. When I want to use it, I need to pay around the $700 for a commercial license. But does somebody know how a WYSIWYG editor works?

Imar · November 26th, 2005, 11:19 AM

Since the entire editor is open source, you can download it and examine the source to see how it works.

For Internet Explorer it uses a combination of the Internet Explorer editing component and JavaScript. To find out more about editing in IE, check out this MSDN section: http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/de..._ovw_entry.asp

Editing in FireFox is done with a different engine, but I can't recall its name.

But I don't understand your initial question. You asked for a commercial license. FCKeditor provides one if you don't want to distribute the source. What's wrong with that?

Imar
---------------------------------------
Imar Spaanjaars
Everyone is unique, except for me.

furia_cross · November 26th, 2005, 11:54 AM

Ik zou graag een WYSIWYG editor in willen bouwen in mijn content management system. De CMS word dan voor commerciele doeleinde gebruikt dus zou ik een andere licentie moeten hebben. En de licentie voor de fckeditor is rond de $700 dollar, reden genoeg om er zelf eentje te maken. Alleen het probleem is dan dat ik het pricipe achter de editor niet snap. Hoe kan je nou een geselecteerde text bewerken? Hopelijk kan je me verder helpen!

MVG Joris

Imar · November 26th, 2005, 01:17 PM

Did my previous post not point you in the right direction?

Imar
---------------------------------------
Imar Spaanjaars
Everyone is unique, except for me.
While typing this post, I was listening to: Let Your Good Heart Lead You Home by Editors (Track 1 from the album: Cuttings) What's This?

furia_cross · November 26th, 2005, 02:44 PM

I don't get the point of that website. I don't know a thing of C++ and I think you need it to make a editor...

richard.york · November 26th, 2005, 04:11 PM

Can you keep your posts in English please? You know, the language every other post in this forum is written in. How are the rest of us supposed to help if we can't figure out what you're saying.

> Editing in FireFox is done with a different engine, but I can't recall its name.

It's called Midas :-)

There is another open source WYSIWYG called Xinha, which is based on the open source HTMLArea WYSIWYG, which is no longer being developed.

Xinha is a fork of that project, and last I checked in Alpha quality. Though recent nightly builds function very well for me. I forked a version of it for a CMS in a framework I'm developing.

http://xinha.python-hosting.com/

License is BSD, so commercial use should be no problem.

HTH!

Regards,
Rich

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Imar · November 26th, 2005, 04:23 PM

Maybe you should try to read one or two links further than the link I supplied.

On the first page it says: "These customization features are only available in C++." It doesn't say you need C++ to use it.

In the tree on the left, there is an item called "Activating the MSHTML Editor" that shows you stuff like this:

Code:

document.designMode = "On"

and

Code:

document.all("editableblock").contentEditable = true;

and

Code:

<div CONTENTEDITABLE="true">The text in this div is editable.</div>

which looks like HTML and JavaScript to me.

Below that section there is an article called "How to Create an HTML Editor Application". Boy, doesn't that sound like what you're looking for? It even starts with this:

Quote:

quote:This tutorial describes how to use features found in Internet Explorer 5.5 or later to create an HTML Editor Application. The application you create in this tutorial contains an editable region where users can type and format text using all of the standard formatting commands. For example, users can make the text bold or italic, change the font size, and make bulleted or numbered lists. A toolbar provides the formatting buttons, buttons for opening and saving files, and drop-down list boxes for font and block formatting selections. A menu allows alternate access to the functionality provided by the toolbar. As of Internet Explorer 6, you can also use the Dialog Helper object to change the face or color of the font.

Whoohoo, just what you need....

Shall I go on? Or do you get my point?

Creating an editor is not an easy undertaking. If you have trouble investigating these kind of subjects, I wonder if it isn't better to shell out $700 for a commercial editor.

Imar
---------------------------------------
Imar Spaanjaars
Everyone is unique, except for me.
While typing this post, I was listening to: God Is On The Radio by Queens of the Stone Age (Track 12 from the album: Songs For The Deaf) What's This?

furia_cross · November 26th, 2005, 06:47 PM

Perhaps you are right. I might be to high taken for a beginner like me, I know the basics and want to go futher. But as I hear you speaking it might be a to big leap voor me. You are right about the website, there is indeed a lot of information on it but I don't get it. So I think I need to learn the some more before beginning this. Do you know a place were I could start or should I just keep on to getting a WYSIWYG editor working?

Joris