Variable length text box with fill attribute

[LesSjo]

I have a business card template setup that has a solid 6 pt solid line running horizontally across the business card. My customer wants to have a white fill behind the name that covers this line so that the text box has a 3 pt bleed to the left and right of the name, which is horizontally centered on the line.

 

Because most names are variable in length, is there a method of controlling the length of the text box so that it will contract/expand to produce the desired effect I am after?

 

A picture says a thousand words, so I have attached an image of what I am after.

 

Thanks is advance.

sample.pdf

[step]

I'm not sure that you can adjust the width of the text box based on the length of a field but you can adjust the width of a cell in a table on the fly.

 

I created a table with 1 row and 3 columns. The outside columns are empty and are set at the width of 3pt to give you your 3pt white space on either side of the name. I used TextMeasure to variably adjust the width of the inside column based on the length of the "Name" field. This should be a good starting point for you:

 

// Use TextMeasure to measure the length of each name
var tm = new FusionProTextMeasure;
tm.pointSize = "10 pt"; // set the type size
tm.font = "Helvetica"; // set your typeface
tm.CalculateTextExtent(Field("Name")); // Replace with your field
tm.useTags = false;
var tmWidth = tm.textWidth;

// Create table 
var myTable = new FPTable;
myTable.AddColumns(300, tmWidth, 300); 
myTable.AddRows(1);

// Declare TableMargin object to adjust margins
myTable.Rows[0].Cells[0].Margins = new FPTableMargins;
myTable.Rows[0].Cells[0].Margins.Top = 60;
myTable.Rows[0].Cells[0].Margins.Bottom = 60;
myTable.Rows[0].Cells[0].Margins.Left = 0;
myTable.Rows[0].Cells[0].Margins.Right = 0;

myTable.Rows[0].Cells[0].VAlign = "Middle";
myTable.Rows[0].Cells[0].HAlign = "Center";
myTable.Rows[0].Cells[0].Font="Helvetica";
myTable.Rows[0].CopyCells(0, 1,2);

myTable.ShadingColor1 = "White";
myTable.ShadingPct1 = 100;
myTable.ShadingRepeat1 = 1;
myTable.ShadingType = "ByRow"; 

myTable.Rows[0].Cells[0].Content = "";
myTable.Rows[0].Cells[1].Content = Field("Name");
myTable.Rows[0].Cells[2].Content = "";

return myTable.MakeTags().replace(/^\<table/, "<table alignment=center"); // Center table in Text box

[alisha]

I am new to FusionPro and javascript. I think the code you provided will help with the issue I am having; however when I create the new rule with this code and apply it to the text box, it generates code. Is this what it's supposed to do or am I supposed to see a table within the text box?

 

Thanks in advance.

[Leosmith]

Check box in rules editor "Treat returned strings as tagged text"

Step - thanks for this and the many other well commented posts.

Leo

[David Miller]

I am new to FusionPro and javascript. I think the code you provided will help with the issue I am having; however when I create the new rule with this code and apply it to the text box, it generates code. Is this what it's supposed to do or am I supposed to see a table within the text box?

 

Open the Rule and check the box that reads "Treat returned strings as tagged text".

[tou]

Very nice.....hopefully there's other text box beautifying tricks on later versions of FP.

highlight name trick-output.pdf