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Foraging Guide - Technical Help

On this page you can find instructions for downloading the guide to various devices and how to access it, as well as some suggestions for suitable software or apps to view the guide.

You will also find answers to some other technical questions. If your question is not covered here, please contact me, and I will try to add an answer.

Please note, however, that I have only tested the guide on a few devices, operating systems and versions, and can only give general guidance based on them. Please test the demo on your device before downloading.

Click or tap on an item for the drop-down information.

Downloadable web apps are cross-platform and can be downloaded to a computer, tablet or mobile device. You can also download to a computer and then transfer to a mobile device. They are web pages, folders and assets which are compressed into a single zip file.

Right-click the download link and choose "save link as.." (or similar, depending on your system) and save to your desktop or download folder.

You need unzipping software to open the folder. Most desktop computers have the software built in, but if yours does not, you could try ExpressZip, the free unzipping software from NDH Software for Mac and Windows. I have no personal experience with it, but have had software from this company before, and had no problems with it.

Once you have unzipped the guide you will have a folder with the same name as the zipped folder, but without the .zip extension. Open this folder. Inside you will find a folder called "content" and a file called "index.html". Doubel-click on the index.html file to open it in your browser. This is the home page of the guide. From here on you can navigate inside the guide with its buttons and other links.

Download as for desktop use, but only unzip for transfer to mobile devices which allow unzipped folder transfers (e.g. Android and Symbian). Apple devices can only receive zipped folders, so keep it zipped for transfer.

If you tansfer an unzipped folder to Android, Symbian or other devices which allow folder tansfer, transfer the parent folder called "forage_UK" or "forage_tna".

You will need software which allows you to import and view web pages (as well as the means to unzip the folder if you download directly to your mobile device). This is generally a web browser or HTML reader. Some apps have this ability built in. I give some information on iOS and Android below, but whatever OS or device you have, please download this zipped demo to test if it works (200kb), as your version may be very different to mine.

Download with Goodreader

Apple makes things difficult, I know. Because of that you may already have Goodreader on your device. With Goodreader you can download, unzip and view the file like any other.

When you receive the email with a link, open the link in a browser (Goodreader has a built-in browser "Browse the Web"). When you get to the page copy the link "click here". In the root view of Goodreader tap "Web Downloads". Under "New Download" tap "Enter URL". Paste the download link and tap OK.

The download should start. Once complete return to "Web Downloads" where you will find the ziped folder under "Recent Downloads". Tap the folder. You will be taken to "Downloads" in "My Documents" where you will find the still zipped folder. Tap it and choose "Unzip" from the pop-up. The unzipped folder will show up above. Tap the folder and follow the path as described below under "How to get to the homepage of the foraging guide".

Goodreader's navigation bar tends to pop up every time you tap a link or a drop-down item - unless - you tap and hold.

Download with DigitalAlbum Free

If you don't already have Goodreader, I would recommend DigitalAlbum Free. This is a presentation app which can display html pages in full-screen mode. At 2MB it is a very light app. It contains an instruction file for downloading so I won't repeat it here.

One downside of this app is some of the app's navigation buttons at the bottom of the screen ovelap the tab bar navigation of the foraging guide. However, the buttons are translucent, and when you want to use a foraging guide buttons you only need to long-tap it and it will override the DigitalAlbum navigation button.

The only limitation with the free version is the number of files you can store. These are high-level files, i.e. if you transfer a zipped folder with 300 files inside, the app counts only the folder.

Download with Atomic Web Browser

If you don't like the navigation buttons getting in the way you can also try Atomic Web Browser - the full version, as the free version won't have the features you will need. It is a great browser, with lots of features, including a file manager which can also unzip files, and is extensively customisable. At $1.99 or £1.49 it is a bargain.

When you receive the email with the download link, open the link in the browser. When you get to the page long-tap the link "click here" and choose "Download File". Tap on the download icon in the tab bar (or at the top on the iPad). Tap the downloaded file and choose "Unzip" from the pop-up. Tap the unzipped folder and follow the path as described below under "How to get to the homepage of the foraging guide".

If you go into Settings > Full Screen Options, you can customise the Full Screen Buttons. To prevent accidental tapping when using the tab bar of the forage guide, it is best to disable all but the outer ones on an iPhone or iPod. You will need the full screen toggle button, and the other one could be Page Down to help scrolling those very long pages.

Download with Safari

You can download the file with Mobile Safari in iOS6 by long-tapping and choosing "Open in", but unfortunately, you still need another app to manage the file and view it.

A Couple of Little Quirks

Not a great deal here, but worth mentioning. On-page links make navigating a long page easier, but there is a small price to pay. They only work after the screen has been scrolled, but even a tiny bit will do it.

Changing orientation will skew the layout until you touch the screen, when everything pops back to where it should be.

Download with Dolphin Browser

I tried several html viewers and browsers, and found the free Dolphin browser to give the best app-like experience with its full-screen mode. You can bookmark the home page of the forager (tap the "+" to the left of the address bar) and access it by opening the browser from your device home screen and then the bookmark.

You will notice that the foraging guide is designed to mimic an iPhone app with the top and bottom navigation bars. These will function fully in Android, and you can still use Android's return button.

Tap on the download link and when prompted by the "Save as:" dialogue, tap OK.

When the download is complete choose from the menu "More" and then "Downloads". Tap on the file called "forage-uk.zip" or "forage-tna.zip". The file will be extracted and saved to your file manager under "download". Go to the file manager and locate the folder with the above mentioned name, but without the .zip extension. Tap the unzipped folder and follow the path as described below under "How to get to the homepage of the foraging guide".

Full-screen mode may need to be installed as an add-on (free). To enable full-screen tap the "Add-ons" icon in the menu and turn on "Full Screen". If it does not show in the slider tap the settings icon there to view a list of add-ons for installation. Once activated you can toggle full-screen mode by simply tapping the menu button.

The download is a zipped file called "forage-uk.zip" or "forage-tna.zip", depending on which version you bought.

The extracted folder has the same name but without the .zip extension.

Some file managing apps will create one or more additional sub-folders with the same name.

Open each folder until you reach one which contains a folder called "content" and a file called "index.html". Open the index.html file. This is the home page of the foraging guide. From here on you can navigate inside the guide with its buttons and other links.

In a browser you only have to manoeuvre to the page for the first time. You can then bookmark the home page and the next time you open the browser you can go straight to the guide via the bookmark.

The information below is for the technical-minded who wish to build a simple app using HTML and CSS and a minimum of javascript.

Accordion

This is the source for the code which allows the list items to expand and collapse, as on this page. The code is open source with a MIT licence. - Link

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