Converting HTML to PDF from .NET

Prince can be called from .NET languages using the Prince .NET wrapper.

The wrapper package includes a DLL file and source code.

Using Prince from VB.NET

To use the Prince .NET wrapper in VB.NET, add a reference to the DLL to your Visual Studio project. Alternatively, you can include the Prince.vb source file directly if you prefer.

To convert HTML or XML files into PDF, instantiate a Prince object with the full path to the Prince engine executable file. Once this is done, you can apply style sheets and scripts, or configure other properties by calling the appropriate subroutines. Finally, you can call one of the Convert functions to generate a PDF file.

The following code sample demonstrates how to convert a single HTML document into a PDF file:

' instantiate Prince by specifying the full path to the engine executable
Dim prn As Prince

prn = New Prince("C:\Program Files\Prince\Engine\bin\prince.exe")

' specify the log file for error and warning messages
' make sure that you have write permissions for this file
prn.SetLog("C:\docs\log.txt")

' apply a CSS style sheet (optional)
prn.AddStyleSheet("C:\docs\css\stylesheet-1.css")

' apply an external JavaScript file (optional)
prn.AddScript("C:\docs\js\test.js")

' convert a HTML document into a PDF file
prn.Convert("C:\docs\test1.html", "C:\docs\pdf\test1.pdf")

To combine multiple HTML documents into a single PDF file, call ConvertMultiple:

' convert multiple HTML documents to a single PDF output file
Dim doc_array() As String

doc_array = {"C:\docs\test1.html", "C:\docs\test2.html"}

prn.ConvertMultiple(doc_array, "C:\docs\pdf\merged.pdf")

Using Prince from C#

To use the Prince .NET wrapper in C#, add a reference to the DLL to your Visual Studio project.

To convert HTML or XML files into PDF, instantiate a Prince object with the full path to the Prince engine executable file. Once this is done, you can apply style sheets and scripts, or configure other properties by calling the appropriate subroutines. Finally, you can call one of the Convert functions to generate a PDF file.

The following code sample demonstrates how to convert a single HTML document into a PDF file:

// instantiate Prince by specifying the full path to the engine executable
Prince prn = new Prince("C:\\Program Files\\Prince\\Engine\\bin\\prince.exe");
  
// specify the log file for error and warning messages
// make sure that you have write permissions for this file
prn.SetLog("C:\\docs\\log.txt");

// apply a CSS style sheet (optional)
prn.AddStyleSheet("C:\\docs\\css\\stylesheet-1.css");

// apply an external JavaScript file (optional)
prn.AddScript("C:\\docs\\js\\test.js");

// convert a HTML document into a PDF file
prn.Convert("C:\\docs\\test1.html", "C:\\docs\\pdf\\test1.pdf");

To combine multiple HTML documents into a single PDF file, call ConvertMultiple:

// convert multiple HTML documents to a single PDF output file
String[] doc_array = {"C:\\docs\\test1.html", "C:\\docs\\test2.html"};

prn.ConvertMultiple(doc_array, "C:\\docs\\pdf\\merged.pdf");