Last Reviewed: April 8, 2002

Article: DTS0118

 

Applies to: dtSearch Web (all versions)

Symptoms

After a search, click on a document in the search results list and a blank page appears in the document frame.

Possible Causes

- PDF files are not in a virtual directory

- Missing Adobe Reader plug-in

- Older version of Internet Explorer

- Older web server version that handles PDF files incorrectly

- Directing PDF files to a new window using Target= links

Troubleshooting Steps

1. Virtual Directory. PDF files cannot be displayed over the web if they are not ina virtual directory. (This is because Adobe Reader must have a web URL that points directly to a PDF file in order to display it.) If the "Location" item in the search results list shows either a drive letter ("c:\something") or a UNC path ("\\server\share\something") then the PDF files are not in a virtual directory. For information on setting up a virtual directory for your documents, click here.

2. Client Software. Web browsers use an Adobe Reader plug-in to display PDF files. If this plug-in is not installed, or if an older version is not installed, PDF files may not display correctly.

To use Adobe Reader in Internet Explorer, you need:

- Internet Explorer 5.5 or later (older versions have problems displaying PDF files)

- Adobe Reader 4.05 or later, available from www.adobe.com.

First install Internet Explorer 5.5, then Adobe Reader.

To use Adobe Reader in Netscape, you need:

- Netscape Communicator 4.5 or later

- Adobe Reader 4.05 or later, available from www.adobe.com.

First install Netscape, then install the Adobe Reader.

3. Server Software. Some web servers process PDF files incorrectly, which can also produce the blank page problem. These web servers in particular are known to have problems:

- Microsoft Internet Information Server version 2

- Microsoft Personal Web Server (included with FrontPage 98)

If you have Windows NT, upgrade to Microsoft Internet Information Server version 4 or later. If you have Windows 98 or Windows 95, the Windows NT 4 Options Pack contains an upgrade to Personal Web Server that you can install (for some reason, this Windows 98/95 product is included only with the Windows NT 4 Options Pack).

4. Link type. This potential problem applies only to developers who are using the dtSearch ASP interface to generate their own web-based interface. Links to PDF files that ask the browser to open a new window seem to be more prone to the "blank page" problem than links that reference an existing window. dtSearch Web creates links that look like this:

     <a href="...url goes here..." target=doc>

The target=doc attribute tells the browser to use the "doc" frame in the dtSearch Web frameset, which is initialized by the search form. If you use a "target=new" attribute instead to direct the PDF file to a new, separate window, we have found that the "blank page" problem is likely to occur.

Additional Information

Microsoft Q177321 - Adobe Acrobat .pdf Files Appear as a Blank Window or Frame
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q177/3/21.asp

Adobe Document 315029 - Configuring Internet Explorer and AOL for Windows to Display PDF Files
http://www.adobe.com/support/techdocs/315029.html

Adobe Document 325875 - PDF Pages Don't Appear in Web Browser Window:
http://www.adobe.com/support/techdocs/325875.html