Aspose.Slides vs Apache POI: Converting HTML to PPTX in Java

I am trying to analyze Apache POI and Aspose.Slides to understand which one fits better for our new product development.

Our requirement is to export a report available in HTML format to PPTX.

How can Aspose help here? In out initial trials, the export did happen but it leaves lot of HTML tags as is and that is looking awful when exported.

So, we started generating the PPT file and the slides and the content inside them programatically.

I am trying to understand how Aspose can help us here when compared to Apache POI.

Any suggestions in this regard are welcome.

@divakarsn

When comparing Aspose.Slides and Apache POI for your requirement of exporting HTML reports to PPTX, Aspose.Slides offers several advantages that may enhance your development process.

  1. HTML to PPTX Conversion: Aspose.Slides provides robust capabilities for converting various formats, including HTML, to PPTX. However, if your initial trials resulted in leftover HTML tags, it may be beneficial to refine the conversion process. You can programmatically manipulate the content after conversion to ensure that the output is clean and visually appealing.

  2. Programmatic Slide Creation: Since you are already generating PPT files and slides programmatically, Aspose.Slides allows for detailed control over slide content, layout, and formatting. You can create slides, add text, images, and other elements while ensuring that the formatting aligns with your requirements.

  3. Support for PPTX Format: Aspose.Slides is designed to work seamlessly with the PPTX format, which is based on the Office Open XML standard. This format is more flexible and expandable compared to the older PPT format, making it easier to implement new features without compatibility issues.

  4. Ease of Use: Aspose.Slides provides a straightforward API that simplifies the process of creating and manipulating presentations. This can save you time and effort compared to using Apache POI, which may require more complex handling for similar tasks.

  5. Conversion Capabilities: If you need to convert between PPT and PPTX formats, Aspose.Slides supports this with ease, allowing you to maintain compatibility with different versions of PowerPoint.

In summary, Aspose.Slides can significantly streamline your workflow for exporting HTML to PPTX and creating presentations programmatically. If you encounter issues with HTML tags during conversion, consider refining your approach or post-processing the content to achieve the desired output.

For more detailed information, you can refer to the Aspose.Slides documentation on working with different presentation formats and conversion capabilities.

Sources:
[1]: PPT vs PPTX|Aspose.Slides for PHP Documentation

How is Programmatic Slide creation is better than Apache POI?

Though the code written is comparatively less, but it is not significant enough. Depending on the component we want to render, the difference of code written is varying from 5-10 %.

@divakarsn,
Thank you for contacting free support. It will take me some time to answer your question. I will get back to you soon.

@divakarsn,
Thank you for your patience. Aspose.Slides for Java surpasses Apache POI in converting HTML to PPTX due to its more specialized support for PowerPoint documents, allowing it to preserve complex formatting elements and document structure. Aspose handles the rendering of graphics, fonts, and styles better, making the resulting presentations visually closer to the original. Additionally, Aspose offers a more advanced API, which simplifies working with slide elements such as charts, tables, and animations. Apache POI, being a free library, is better suited for simpler tasks, but its capabilities in handling multimedia elements and complex formats are limited.

Thanks for the response Andrey. What I am specifically looking for is, if an HTML page contains components created out of JFreeCharts, tables and some other components, how easy it is to export them to PPTX. Can I try a sample and see how it works? The data to the HTML could be coming from DB.

What we are looking for is, WYSIWYG (What you see is what you get) kind of export without having any additional tags or some other debris on the exported PPTX. How can I test this on Aspose, before proceeding?

If the above case is not working, our next alternative is to generate the PPTX programmatically.
In this case, we may have to generate few charts (Pie chart, Bar Chart, Doughnut Chart, Progress Ring and a Number Tile) and Tables in the report.
If the requirement is not beyond this, would Aspose have any advantage over Apache POI?

Please share your thoughts. I need to present this info to our management.

@divakarsn,

Of course, you can perform your tests using Aspose.Slides for Java in trial mode. The following code example adds the contents of an HTML document to a PowerPoint presentation:

var inputStream = new FileInputStream("sample.html");

var presentation = new Presentation();
presentation.getSlides().addFromHtml(inputStream);
presentation.save("output.pptx", SaveFormat.Pptx);
presentation.dispose();

AutoShape objects also support adding HTML text to text paragraphs:

autoShape.getTextFrame().getParagraphs().addFromHtml(someHtmlText);

Import Presentation|Aspose.Slides Documentation

Aspose.Slides supports adding charts, tables, and many other objects to presentation slides. The following articles show you how to do this:
Create or Update PowerPoint Presentation Charts in Java|Aspose.Slides Documentation
PowerPoint Table|Aspose.Slides Documentation

I recommend you to do your own analysis to make sure that Aspose.Slides functionality meets your requirements. We would also be very grateful if you would let us know about any issues you find.