Use different Table Header on first page

Question

I'm using iText and create a dynamic table which has a a reoccurring header in the method createTabularHeader:

PdfPTable table = new PdfPTable(6);
// fill it with some basic information
table.setHeaderRows(1);

Yet on the first page I would like to display different information. (but the table structure/size remains the same)

Due to the dynamic content which is obtained in a different method I can't say when a new page starts.

I tried with the most primitive variant - just adding a white rectangle over the text and insert the different text. As it's just on the first page all I have to do is creating that rectangle between both methods. But the white rectangle doesn't have any opacity and can' cover anything.

Yet by trying around I found the method writer.getDirectContent().setColorStroke(BaseColor.WHITE); which set the text to white. Later I just set the BaseColor of my cells manually to black. But the even though the new text is applied after the calling of my createTabularHeader-method its layer is under the layer of the original text and the letters are covering the new text partly.

Using the answer to How to insert invisible text into a PDF? brought me to the idea of using myPdfContentByte.setTextRenderMode(PdfContentByte.TEXT_RENDER_MODE_INVISIBLE); was not so helpful as it resets only on the 2nd page regardless what I do and the regular text on the first page stays invisible.

I'm unable to find a proper solution... How can the table-header be modified only on the first page?

Qohelet · Accepted Answer · 2016-11-26T15:16:04.097

The solution is not really nice, but works... and as some sort of bonus I want to add how you can modify the indentions on the first page.

public void createPdf() {
    document = new Document();
    try {
        PdfWriter writer = PDFHead.getWriter(document);
        //If it's a letter we have a different indention on the top
        if (letterPDF) {
            document.setMargins(36, 36, 100, 36);
        } else {
            document.setMargins(36, 36, 36, 36);
        }
        document.open();
        document.add(createTabularContent());
        document.close();

    } catch (DocumentException | FileNotFoundException ex) {
        try {
            document = new Document();
            PdfWriter.getInstance(document, new FileOutputStream(FILENAME));
            document.open();
            document.add(new Phrase(ex.getLocalizedMessage()));
            document.close();
            Logger.getLogger(Etikette.class.getName()).log(Level.SEVERE, null, ex);
        } catch (FileNotFoundException | DocumentException ex1) {
            Logger.getLogger(Etikette.class.getName()).log(Level.SEVERE, null, ex1);
        }
    }
}

The PDFHead is used to create a regular header (the one which appears on every page, not only on pages with the table):

public static PdfWriter getWriter(Document document) throws FileNotFoundException, DocumentException {
    PdfWriter writer = PdfWriter.getInstance(document, new FileOutputStream(filename));
    HeaderFooter event = new HeaderFooter("Ing. Mario J. Schwaiger", type + " " + DDMMYYYY.format(new java.util.Date()), 835, isLetterPDF(), customerNumber);
    writer.setBoxSize("art", new Rectangle(36, 54, 559, 788));
    writer.setPageEvent(event);
    return writer;
}

And in that HeaderFooter-Event I use the fact the function is called after the PDF is basically created (for the page number for instance):

@Override
    public void onEndPage(PdfWriter writer, Document document) {
        if (isLetter) {
            //That's only for the first page, apparently 1 is too late
            //I'm open for improvements but that works fine for me
            if (writer.getPageNumber() == 0) {

            //If it's a letter we use the different margins
            document.setMargins(36, 36, 100, 36);
            }
            if (writer.getPageNumber() == 1) {
            PdfContentByte canvas = writer.getDirectContent();

            float llx = 460;
            float lly = 742;

            float urx = 36;
            float ury = 607;

            //As I add the rectangle in the event here it's 
            //drawn over the table-header. Seems the tableheader
            //is rendered afterwards
            Rectangle rect1 = new Rectangle(llx, lly, urx, ury);
            rect1.setBackgroundColor(BaseColor.WHITE);
            rect1.setBorder(Rectangle.NO_BORDER);
            rect1.setBorderWidth(1);
            canvas.rectangle(rect1);

            ColumnText ct = new ColumnText(canvas);
            ct.setSimpleColumn(rect1);
            PdfPTable minitable = new PdfPTable(1);
            PdfPCell cell = PDFKopf.getKundenCol(PDFHeader.getCustomer(customerNumber));
            cell.setBorder(Rectangle.NO_BORDER);
            minitable.addCell(cell);

            //A single cell is not accepted as an "Element"
            //But a table including only a single cell is
            ct.addElement(minitable);
            try {
                ct.go();
            } catch (DocumentException ex) {
                Logger.getLogger(HeaderFooter.class.getName()).log(Level.SEVERE, null, ex);
            }

        //In any other case we reset the margins back to normal
        //This could be solved in a more intelligent way, feel free
        } else {
            document.setMargins(36, 36, 36, 36);
        }
    }

    //The regular header of any page...
    PdfPTable table = new PdfPTable(4);

    try {
        table.setWidths(new int[]{16, 16, 16, 2});
        table.setWidthPercentage(100);

        table.setTotalWidth(527);
        table.setLockedWidth(true);

        table.getDefaultCell().setFixedHeight(20);
        table.getDefaultCell().setBorder(Rectangle.BOTTOM);
        table.addCell(header);
        PdfPCell cell;

        cell = new PdfPCell(new Phrase(mittelteil));
        cell.setHorizontalAlignment(Element.ALIGN_CENTER);
        cell.setBorder(Rectangle.BOTTOM);
        table.addCell(cell);

        table.getDefaultCell().setHorizontalAlignment(Element.ALIGN_RIGHT);
        table.addCell(String.format("Page %d of ", writer.getPageNumber()));
        cell = new PdfPCell(Image.getInstance(total));
        cell.setBorder(Rectangle.BOTTOM);
        table.addCell(cell);
        table.writeSelectedRows(0, -1, 34, y, writer.getDirectContent());
    } catch (DocumentException de) {
        throw new ExceptionConverter(de);
    }
}

Use different Table Header on first page

1 Answers1