Browse View

The Browse view displays the contents of objects, such as files or structured documents. Users can attach annotations to elements using the Browse view.

To view an object, right-click the object and select File > View.

Tip: If you have set your Preferences for Miscellaneous Settings to view files or structured documents in the Navigation view by left-clicking (selecting) the object, the Browse view immediately displays the object if selected from the Navigation view. See Setting Miscellaneous Preferences.

If you view a structured document, such as a DITA or XML file, the Browse view displays an HTML rendering of the document.

Note: To search the content of an HTML file displayed in the Browse view. click Ctrl+F (or on a Mac OS, Command+F) and enter search criteria.

If you view a DITA map, the Browse view shows a two-pane display, with links to referenced topics or maps on the left, and the first document content on the right. If you click on a link in the left panel, the right panel displays the selected document content.

Note: Once you have viewed a topic in a map, the next time you view the map, the map remembers the last topic you viewed and displays it initially.

When viewing a DITA map, you can click controls to move through the topics referenced by the map.

Control	Location	Function
	Below TOC pane	Expands the map TOC hierarchy to show all referenced topic titles.
	Below TOC pane	Collapses the map TOC hierarchy to hide all referenced topic titles.
	Next to a topic title in TOC pane	Expands the map TOC to show children topic titles of a parent topic.
	Next to a topic title in TOC pane	Collapses the map TOC to hide children topic titles of a parent topic.
	Below content pane	Displays the map's next topic content in the right pane.
	Below content pane	Displays the map's previous topic content in the right pane.
	Below content pane	Hides the right content pane and show only the TOC of titles.
	Below TOC pane when content pane is hidden	Shows the right content pane.
	Below content pane	Displays a green checkmark () next to the topic title in the TOC pane. Used solely to help a reviewer keep track of their progress in reviewing topics in a map. This information is saved in the user's current browser, and affects the topic only when viewed through this map. If the topic is viewed in a different map, it will have a separate setting. This feature has no relationship to changing the workflow status of the topic or map.
	Below content pane	Removes the green checkmark next to the topic title in the TOC pane. A reviewer can unmark the review setting for a topic in a map that was previously marked as done.

When viewing a structured document, you can add comments (annotations) to an element by clicking . See Adding an Annotation. Elements that already have a comment (annotation) attached are identified by a green comment icon () to the left of the element and a comment box in the right margin which allows you to view, reply to, or manage the annotation.

You can view a historical version of an object (a file, structured document, or element) by right-clicking the object and selecting Versioning > List History, then right-click a version from the list and select File > View. The Browse view tab then includes the version label in the tab.

Tip: Displaying such information is especially helpful if you want to view multiple object versions concurrently. You can pin the Browse view, then select and pin additional versions, with each Browse view tab displaying the version label.

If you are browsing non-DITA structured documents, you can configure how the Browse view handles elements in the TOC pane. See Specifying TOC Settings to Browse Non-DITA Structured Documents.

If you view unstructured files, the result depends on if a browser plugin handles the file type. If the plugin is absent, the native application appears in a separate window.

To view a filtered version of an object, select the object, then right-click and select File > Filtered View. You can select filtering by:

Date
Snapshot Label
Attribute (specifying a filter object)
The repository must be configured to use filtering.

When the Browse view is active, keyboard, mouse, and touchpad actions are delivered to the browser. For example, on the Windows platform, you can zoom in by:

pressing Ctrl and +
pressing Ctrl and mouse wheel up
placing two fingers on the touchpad and stretching out

You can zoom out by:

pressing Ctrl and -
pressing Ctrl and mouse wheel down
placing two fingers on the touchpad and pinching in

You can toggle the display of breadcrumbs for the object you are viewing. See Working With Breadcrumbs.

An application administrator can override the Astoria-supplied style information for structured documents displayed in the Browse view. See Modifying the Style of the Browse View.

The Browse view also allows you to edit Astoria webforms, such as the application document, or Task Sequence, Audience Parameters, and messages documents.