RH 2019 Responsive HTML5 Exclude Search

[saratogacoach]

I am trying to create a preview version of an eBook: a selectively cut-down version of the larger one.

So, I have used "hide in output" in each Topic's TOC property to exclude several topics, without deleting them from the eBook. When published as Responsive HTML5, as planned, these topics which are excluded intentionaly from the preview version are no longer displayed.

I can also exclude the index successfully, so that readers of the preview version can not use it to navigate to index words in topic text in excluded topics.

Problem is that I cannot find a way to completely exclude the search feature in the preview version. The reader can still search a word in the preview version, and upon clicking the result, even for an excluded topic, can still navigate to and view that excluded topic.

Not sure if there is any way to disable all search? (If not, the only option would be to delete all excluded topics from the preview version, create a new cut-down version.)

Any suggestions appreciated.

[Amebr · Accepted solution]

I'm not sure if there's any way of totally disabling search, but you should be able to mark individual topics as excluded from search.

Assuming New UI, I think it should be in the Topic Properties panel under Search. Something like "Exclude this topic from search".

[saratogacoach]

Would like to mark this as the correct answer, but my view of the forum, even when signed in, doesn't give me the option to mark this answer (or any answer) as correct. Maybe a forum fix is needed for this?

[Captiv8r]

In addition to what Amber suggested, you might want to consider using the Conditional Build Tags feature. If you created and applied tags to topics, they should be completely omitted from the build. Then it wouldn't matter about index or search because they simply wouldn't be there.

[saratogacoach]

Thank you for these suggestions.

For now, used Amebr's suggestion to hide search in the topics excluded from the preview. Worked perfectly!

Plan to learn more about conditional build tags to have this as a tool when needed.

Again, much thanks.

S

[Captiv8r]

Whatever you think is easiest.

[Captiv8r]

Sorry, didn't get to finish that thought. Silly new forum software just posts when you press the Enter key. Grrrrr Anyhoo, when you are ready the tagging is super simple to use. You just create a tag. Perhaps call it "RemoveForTrial". Then you associate the tag with the topics that you don't want included. Then you create something called a "Build Expression" that you use when you generate your output. The Build Expression basically says: Leave anything with this tag out of the build. And any links that point to it are no longer links, and any index keywords that point to it no longer point to it and of course, Search won't find it either. The beauty of that is that when you produce the full ebook, you simply don't use the build expression. Doing it the way you are headed means that you will need to carefully re-visit all those topics you flagged and re-enable the search. And that means more work for you. Cheers... Rick 🙂

[saratogacoach]

Thanks, Rick, for these additional suggestions, methodology. Yes, a more comprehensive approach, which can save time in the long run.

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

@Rick - got to remember to use Shift-Enter for those new line things...[Nope clearly not in these silly in-line replies]

[Captiv8r]

And that's precisely what I did when it posted. Then again, I just clicked the "Reply" link and I didn't go up to the top of the thread and click the "Blue Reply Button". Apparently they work differently. Grrrrr

[saratogacoach]

Rick, As a follow-up, after using "hide in output" as a "quick" solution, I tried out using conditional tags and find them labor-saving in the long run, when needing to do subsequent edits. I had been creating a separate preview version with topics marked "hide in output" so when I edited the full version, needed to then separately edit the preview. With conditional exclusion tags, can generate a full version without the tagged topics excluded or generate a preview version with the tagged topics excluded. Much easier for me, since I regularly edit and update the project. Now all editing is done in one version. Thanks, again.

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Test of using Shift-Enter in the "Blue" Reply button
Yes! Much better ;>)

[Peter Grainge]

It's a known bug that will hopefully get fixed. Meantime only moderators can mark posts "correct". I have done that for you.

[saratogacoach]

Thank you again, Peter.

S