Converting text to HTML

[Walter W. Giesbrecht]

Our library has been adding URLs to the catalogue records of
electronic journals for some time now. The staff in Bibliographic
Services need a relatively simple way to check the links in these
records on a periodic basis. The catalogue software (Sirsi's
UNICORN) allows them to generate a report (in ASCII) of the
catalogue records that include URLs (a single record in this
report looks something like this):

	via web browser by entering the following URL:
	http://www.idealibrary.com/cgi-bin/links/toc/ab
	ISSN: 0  : |a0003-2697
	Subject:  0 : |aBiochemistry|xPeriodicals.|?UNAUTHORIZED
	Electronic access: 7  : 
	|uhttp://www.idealibrary.com/cgi-bin/links/toc/ab|2
	http|zhttp://www.idealibrary.com/cgi-bin/links/toc/ab
	  YORK--
        Location: YORKSTEACIE --
      	Textual holdings: v.10, 1965 -

What we need to know is: how can we convert this ASCII file into
HTML and make all the embedded URLs active links? Once we get
this, we can use link-checking software to test them all. Word 97
will make a URL into a link by putting a hard return after the
URL, but doing this is impractical when the most recent report
was just over 800K in size! Any ideas?

-- 

Walter W. Giesbrecht                             walterg at yorku.ca
York University Libraries                (416)736-2100 ext. 77551
Toronto, Ontario, CANADA                                  113 SSB