Question

How do I format an NSURL (what path, or path generator function) so that I can display a downloaded local file (NOT part of the application NSBundle) for use offline? The idea is to snag an HTML file, clean it up and stash it in the iFoo application specific storage area, then later use UIWebView to display it.

Next, I go off to RTFM about working with files on iFoo (iPhone / iPad) in general, but any fast-start tips are appreciated.

Answer 1

You could read your local file in a string upon completing its download and then use UIWebView’s loadHTMLString:baseURL: to load the HTML from that string. Use relative paths and set the correct baseURL:

NSArray *paths = NSSearchPathForDirectoriesInDomains(NSDocumentDirectory, NSUserDomainMask, YES); 
NSString *yourFolderPath = [[paths objectAtIndex:0] stringByAppendingPathComponent: @"yourFolder"];
NSString *filePath = [yourFolderPath stringByAppendingPathComponent: @"yourFile.htm"];
NSString *fileContents = [NSString stringWithContentsOfFile: filePath];
NSURL *baseURL = [NSURL fileURLWithPath: yourFolderPath];
[yourWebView loadHTMLString: fileContents baseURL: baseURL];