Question

How do you display XML content with line feeds (pretty print) in a PrimeFaces dataTable column?

My XML content is already in pretty print format and I can see it with line feeds when doing a System.out.println from a FacesConverter that converts the bytes to a String before it is rendered on the table column.

Here is the code for the FacesConverter:

@FacesConverter(value="xmlStream")
public class ByteConverter implements Converter {

    @Override
    public Object getAsObject(FacesContext context, UIComponent component, String value) {
        byte[] buffer = null;
        try{
            buffer = value.getBytes("UTF-8");
        }catch(UnsupportedEncodingException e){
            buffer = value.getBytes();
        }
        return buffer;
    }

    @Override
    public String getAsString(FacesContext context, UIComponent component, Object value) {
        String text = null;
        if (value instanceof byte[]){
            try{
                text = new String((byte[])value, "UTF-8");
            }catch(UnsupportedEncodingException e){
                text = new String((byte[])value);
            }
        }
        System.out.println("text=<" + text + ">");
        return text;
    }

}

And here is what I see in the console when doing a System.out.println above:

<linkUp>
  <ifName>eth1</ifName>
  <linkProperty>
    <name>1</name>
    <flags>42</flags>
    <extensions>
      <name>foo</name>
      <value>bar2</value>
    </extensions>
  </linkProperty>
  <linkProperty>
    <name>2</name>
    <flags>4668</flags>
    <extensions>
      <name>foo</name>
      <value>bar2</value>
    </extensions>
  </linkProperty>
</linkUp>   

But when the data displays on the PF dataTable column, it appears as a single line string without line feeds – Is there a way to display it as it displays on the console? How do others display XML content in a PF table?

Hmmm, It looks like this does the trick:

.whiteSpaceClass{
    white-space: pre-wrap;
}

But now I am having to deal with rows that span half the page because the XML is so large. I guess the old saying ‘Beware of what you ask for’ applies here…:)

Still, it would be nice to display just the first few lines and be able to expand / collapse the rest based on single click event, or even display it in a box when the cell is double clicked – problem is, I have no idea how to do that or if PF supports that…:)

Answer 1

You could use expandable rows to show your entire XML.
See a example of use of p:rowExpansion in showcase.