To display rich text in Delphi using database data, the TDBHTMLabel component (part of the TMS VCL UI Pack) is one of the most efficient solutions. Unlike the standard TDBText which only displays plain text, TDBHTMLabel natively parses and renders a lightweight subset of HTML tags (referred to as Mini HTML) directly from your dataset. 1. How It Works
TDBHTMLabel sits on your form and links to a TDataSource, just like any other data-aware component.
Data Format: It reads fields containing standard text mixed with HTML tags (e.g., This is bold and this is red).
Rendering: It automatically strips the tags out of the visual display and uses them to format the layout. 2. Core Setup Steps
To start displaying rich text from your database, drop the component onto your form and configure these three properties:
DataSource: Point this to your standard TDataSource component.
DataField: Select the specific database field containing the HTML text string (typically a VARCHAR, NVARCHAR, or MEMO/BLOB text field).
HTMLText (Optional / Design-time): You can use the built-in, design-time HTML editor by right-clicking the component in the Delphi IDE to preview formatting layout templates. 3. Supported “Mini HTML” Tags
TDBHTMLabel does not load a massive, resource-heavy web browser engine. Instead, it uses a fast, native parser that supports the most common formatting needs: Basic Text Styling Bold: Text Italic: Text Underline: Text Strikeout: Advanced Layout & Styling Display simple markup in a Label in Delphi – Stack OverflowText
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