Hey everyone! I’m working on a project where I create PDF files using FPDF. Now I want to show these PDFs to users on my website before they download them. Is there a way to use Google Docs viewer for this?
I tried a few things but couldn’t get it to work. It would be great if someone could help me figure out how to embed the FPDF-generated PDF in my webpage using Google Docs viewer. This way, users can check out the content before deciding to download.
Has anyone done something like this before? Any tips or code examples would be super helpful. Thanks in advance!
I’ve actually tackled this issue before in one of my projects. The key is to use Google Docs viewer’s URL structure correctly. Here’s what worked for me:
First, make sure your FPDF-generated PDF is accessible via a public URL. Then, use this format to embed it:
Replace YOUR_PDF_URL with the actual URL of your PDF. Then, embed this in an iframe on your webpage.
One gotcha to watch out for: Google Docs viewer can be a bit finicky with dynamically generated PDFs. I found that adding a cache-busting parameter to the URL (like ?v=timestamp) helped ensure the viewer always showed the latest version.
Also, keep in mind that while this solution works well, it might not be ideal for sensitive documents as you’re essentially sharing them with Google. For those cases, you might want to look into alternative PDF viewers that can be hosted on your own server.
yo, i’ve used pdf.js before and it’s pretty sweet. no need for google docs viewer hassle. just load the library, use some js to render the pdf, and boom - you’re good. it’s way more flexible too. give it a shot, you won’t regret it!
Having worked with FPDF and Google Docs viewer, I can offer some insight. While the Google Docs viewer approach is viable, it’s not always the most reliable solution. In my experience, a more robust method is to use PDF.js, an open-source PDF viewer developed by Mozilla.
PDF.js can be easily integrated into your webpage and offers more control over the viewing experience. It doesn’t require your PDF to be publicly accessible, which is a significant advantage for security-conscious applications.
To implement PDF.js, you’d need to include the library in your project, then use JavaScript to load and render the PDF. This approach has worked flawlessly for me across various projects, providing a consistent and user-friendly PDF preview functionality.
If you’re set on using Google Docs viewer, ensure your server is configured to send the correct Content-Type header for PDF files. This can sometimes resolve issues with the viewer not displaying PDFs correctly.