PUB97: Problems Aligning Graphics to Text When Viewing Web Page (166814)

SYMPTOMS

If you vertically align a picture frame with a line of text inside a text frame, and then preview your publication as a Web page, the picture may not line up precisely.

This problem is more pronounced if your text frame contains empty lines, or if you have customized the line spacing inside the text frame. Pictures aligned with text at the bottom of a text frame show this symptom more than pictures aligned with text near the top of a text frame.

CAUSE

When you convert your publication to HyperText Markup Language (HTML), Publisher accurately converts the size and placement of the text frame to a cell in an HTML table. However, the precise placement of text within that cell is determined by your Web browser, not by Publisher. Some factors that contribute to this symptom are:

Publisher uses the HTML break (<br>) tag to start a new line. Some Web browsers ignore this tag when it is on a line by itself.
The Web browser interprets how much space to show between lines of text.
While you can use HTML code to specify which font face and font size to use to format your text, HTML does not actually include the font. If a specific font is not installed on your computer, the Web browser substitutes another font.

WORKAROUND

To make a picture appear level with a certain line of text, use several text frames instead of one text frame. Start a new text frame for each line of text you want to line up precisely with the picture.

NOTE: If you overlap a picture frame and a text frame, or apply a BorderArt design to your text frame, that frame appears as a picture when you convert it to HTML. While this also assures your picture is aligned correctly with your text, it causes your Web page to download more slowly.

MORE INFORMATION

This symptom is not a problem with Microsoft Publisher. It is caused by a limitation in HTML. You may encounter similar issues creating Web pages in any HTML authoring program.