How to Extract Text from an HTML Resource

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Introduction

This article will make the beginner walk through the process of adding an HTML resource to their project and accessing that resource through code. What I present here is a simple function that will fill a CString with the contents of an HTML resource.

Background

A few days ago, I was coding up this application that generates an HTML report and wanted to add the template for the report to my code. I wanted to avoid hard-coding any HTML and I didn't want to refer an external file for the template. So I decided to solve this dilemma by adding the HTML template to my project as a resource. Well, as it turns out, I was able to load the resource and get a HANDLE to it, but couldn't figure out how to get the contents into a CString. My fundamental problem was that I did not realize the HANDLE was actually a bald pointer to the HTML I had loaded.

This seemingly simple task was racking my brain for nearly an hour before help arrived via the VC++ forum. I then decided to throw this stuff together in order to serve as a reference for anyone else who may run into this.

Adding an HTML Resource to your Project

Once you have created a project, you can insert an HTML resource by right-clicking the project item found in the resource tab and selecting "Add Resource" as illustrated below:

You will then be prompted to select the resource type. Select HTML and you may choose to create a New one or Import an existing file.

Once you have your HTML in your project, you're ready to access it through your program.

The GetHTML() Function

static bool GetHTML(const int& idrHTML, CString& rString)
{
   bool retVal = false;
   try
   {      
      HRSRC hSrc = FindResource(NULL, MAKEINTRESOURCE(idrHTML), RT_HTML);
      if (hSrc != NULL)
      {
         HGLOBAL hHeader = LoadResource(NULL, hSrc);
         if (hHeader != NULL)
         {
            LPCTSTR lpcHtml = static_cast<LPCTSTR>(LockResource(hHeader));
            if (lpcHtml != NULL)
            {
               rString = CString(lpcHtml);
               retVal = true;
            }
            UnlockResource(hHeader);
         }
         FreeResource(hHeader);
      }
   }
   catch (CMemoryException* e)
   {
      SetLastError(ERROR_FUNCTION_FAILED);
      e->ReportError();
      e->Delete();
      retVal = false;
   }
   catch (CResourceException* e)
   {
      SetLastError(ERROR_FUNCTION_FAILED);
      e->ReportError();
      e->Delete();
      retVal = false;
   }
   catch (CException* e)
   {
      SetLastError(ERROR_FUNCTION_FAILED);
      e->ReportError();
      e->Delete();
      retVal = false;
   }
   catch (...)
   {
      SetLastError(ERROR_FUNCTION_FAILED);
      retVal = false;
   }
   return retVal;
}

Well, that's really all there is to it.

Conclusion

I understand that, all of this may seem second-nature to many seasoned developers, but sometimes the obvious is not-so-obvious. Hopefully this little snippet helps you out in your project.

History

• 10.July.2005

  Initial release.