doc: improve documentation and minor code cleanup

Author: nicolaasuni

.github/pull_request_template.md

@@ -12,13 +12,14 @@ Please include a summary of the change and include relevant motivation and conte
 - [ ] Any new code follows the style guidelines of this project.
 - [ ] The code changes have been self-reviewed.
 - [ ] Corresponding changes to the documentation have been made.
-- [ ] The version has been updated in the VERSION file.
+
+> The maintainer bumps the `VERSION` file at release time. Do not change it in your PR.
 
 ## Type of change:
 
-- [ ] Minor non-breaking change (e.g., bug fix, dependencies updates) → The patch number in the VERSION file has been increased.
-- [ ] New feature (non-breaking change which adds functionality) → The minor number in the VERSION file has been increased.
-- [ ] Breaking change (fix or feature that would cause existing functionality to not work as expected) → The major number in the VERSION file has been increased.
+- [ ] Minor non-breaking change (e.g., bug fix, dependencies updates).
+- [ ] New feature (non-breaking change which adds functionality).
+- [ ] Breaking change (fix or feature that would cause existing functionality to not work as expected).
 - [ ] Automation.
 - [ ] Documentation.
 - [ ] Example.

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -4,6 +4,8 @@ Thank you for your interest in contributing to **tc-lib-pdf** — the modern evo
 
 Please take a moment to read this guide before opening an issue or pull request.
 
+> **Pull requests are restricted to project collaborators.** If you are not a collaborator, please [open an issue](https://github.com/tecnickcom/tc-lib-pdf/issues) instead of a pull request, describing the bug or feature in detail. A maintainer will review it and take it from there.
+
 ---
 
 ## Table of Contents
@@ -83,7 +85,11 @@ The more precise and reproducible the report, the faster it can be triaged and f
 
 ## Submitting a Bug Fix
 
-1. [Fork the repository](https://github.com/tecnickcom/tc-lib-pdf/fork) and create a branch from `main`:
+> Only project collaborators can open pull requests. If you are not a collaborator, please [open an issue](https://github.com/tecnickcom/tc-lib-pdf/issues/new) describing the bug in detail (see [Reporting a Bug](#reporting-a-bug)). A maintainer will take it from there.
+
+Collaborators preparing a fix:
+
+1. Create a branch from `main`:
    ```bash
    git checkout -b fix/short-description-of-bug
    ```
@@ -94,9 +100,7 @@ The more precise and reproducible the report, the faster it can be triaged and f
    make qa
    ```
 5. Commit your changes (see [Commit Message Guidelines](#commit-message-guidelines)).
-6. Open a pull request against `main` and fill in the PR template:
-   - Describe the problem and your solution.
-   - Reference the related issue number (e.g. `Fixes #123`).
+6. Open a pull request against `main` and fill in the PR template, describing the problem and your solution and referencing the related issue number (e.g. `Fixes #123`).
 
 ---
 
@@ -107,7 +111,7 @@ Before writing any code:
 1. **Open a Feature Request** on [GitHub Issues](https://github.com/tecnickcom/tc-lib-pdf/issues/new) describing the use case and proposed API.
 2. Wait for feedback from the maintainer. This avoids investing time in a direction that may not be accepted.
 
-Once the feature is agreed upon, follow the same branch → code → test → PR workflow as for bug fixes, using a branch named `feature/short-description`.
+Once the feature is agreed upon, a collaborator will implement it following the same branch → code → test → pull request workflow as for bug fixes, using a branch named `feature/short-description`.
 
 ---
 
@@ -163,6 +167,9 @@ Coverage reports are generated in `target/coverage/`.
 
 ## Pull Request Guidelines
 
+> Opening pull requests is restricted to project collaborators. If you are an external contributor, please [open an issue](https://github.com/tecnickcom/tc-lib-pdf/issues/new) describing the problem or feature in detail instead.
+
+- **Sign the Contributor License Agreement (CLA).** On your first pull request the CLA Assistant bot will comment with a link to sign; the PR cannot be merged until the CLA is signed.
 - Target the `main` branch.
 - Keep PRs focused — one fix or feature per PR.
 - Ensure `make qa` passes locally before opening the PR.

VERSION

@@ -1 +1 @@
-8.65.0
+8.65.1

doc/DIGITAL_SIGNATURES.md

@@ -73,7 +73,8 @@ When LTV is enabled the output PDF contains `/DSS`, `/VRI`, `/OCSPs`, `/CRLs`, a
 
 ```bash
 openssl req -x509 -nodes -days 3650 -newkey rsa:2048 \
-    -keyout tcpdf.key -out tcpdf.crt
+    -keyout tcpdf.key -out tcpdf.crt \
+    -subj "/CN=tc-lib-pdf test certificate"
 # convert to PKCS#12 if needed
 openssl pkcs12 -export -in tcpdf.crt -inkey tcpdf.key -out tcpdf.p12
 ```

examples/index.md

@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ This index lists all runnable examples bundled with tc-lib-pdf, from foundationa
 - [E000_overview.php](E000_overview.php): General feature overview with text, graphics, HTML, SVG, images, barcodes, transparency, gradients, annotations, and bookmarks.
 - [E001_invoice.php](E001_invoice.php): Invoice layout example with embedded Factur-X / ZUGFeRD metadata.
 - [E002_font_dump.php](E002_font_dump.php): Font inspection and glyph dump example.
-- [E003_rtl_languages.php](E003_rtl_languages.php): Right-To-Left (RTL) text rendering example for Persian,  Arabic and Hebrew.
+- [E003_rtl_languages.php](E003_rtl_languages.php): Right-To-Left (RTL) text rendering example for Persian, Arabic, and Hebrew.
 - [E004_page_formats.php](E004_page_formats.php): Page format and orientation samples.
 - [E005_header_footer.php](E005_header_footer.php): Repeating custom page header and footer example with PDF/UA Artifact tagging (`Pagination/Header` and `Pagination/Footer`).
 - [E006_minimal.php](E006_minimal.php): Minimal "Hello, PDF" setup.
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ This index lists all runnable examples bundled with tc-lib-pdf, from foundationa
 - [E043_html_tables.php](E043_html_tables.php): HTML table layout showcase including colspan/rowspan, nested tables, and CSS styling.
 - [E044_toc_index.php](E044_toc_index.php): Bookmark outline example with generated table of contents via addTOC.
 - [E045_encryption_and_permissions.php](E045_encryption_and_permissions.php): PDF encryption and permission controls with user and owner passwords.
-- [E046_pangrams.php](E046_pangrams.php): Multilingual pangram showcase covering 14 scripts: Latin, Arabic, Hebrew, Thai, Devanagari, Hangul, Greek, Japanese, Russian, Armenian, Georgian, Tamil, Bengali, Amharic, Khmer, Tibetan, and Chinese.
+- [E046_pangrams.php](E046_pangrams.php): Multilingual pangram showcase covering 17 scripts: Latin, Arabic, Hebrew, Thai, Devanagari, Hangul, Greek, Japanese, Russian, Armenian, Georgian, Tamil, Bengali, Amharic, Khmer, Tibetan, and Chinese.
 - [E047_remote_resources_security.php](E047_remote_resources_security.php): Remote resource security configuration using fileOptions host/path allowlists, size limits, and cURL controls.
 - [E048_page_boxes_prepress.php](E048_page_boxes_prepress.php): Prepress page-box guide showing Media/Crop/Bleed/Trim/Art boundaries with visual overlays.
 - [E049_output_targets_integration.php](E049_output_targets_integration.php): Multi-target output example covering render, download, save-to-file, and MIME attachment workflows.
@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ This index lists all runnable examples bundled with tc-lib-pdf, from foundationa
 - [E073_css_supported_categories.php](E073_css_supported_categories.php): Consolidated CSS category showcase covering cascade, selectors, box model, typography, float/clear/position, tables, and paged media.
 - [E074_text_cell_fit_modes.php](E074_text_cell_fit_modes.php): Visual inspection grid for getTextCell() fit modes (T, S, F) including disabled precondition cases.
 - [E075_external_signature_injection.php](E075_external_signature_injection.php): External/remote signing walkthrough using signature placeholder setup, ByteRange digest export, and injected CMS/PKCS#7 signature bytes.
-- [E076_absolute_position.php](E076_absolute_position.php): Absolute coordinates position inside a give page.
+- [E076_absolute_position.php](E076_absolute_position.php): Absolute coordinate positioning within a given page.
 - [E077_html_table_header_px_unit.php](E077_html_table_header_px_unit.php): HTML table pagination with px document units, verifying replayed header rows keep the same column geometry on continuation pages.
 - [E078_htmlcell_page_margins.php](E078_htmlcell_page_margins.php): Single page with 100mm top and bottom margins, placing getHTMLCell text blocks in the top border, central content area, and bottom border.
 - [E079_font_stretch_spacing_matrix.php](E079_font_stretch_spacing_matrix.php): Font stretching (Tz) and character spacing (Tc) matrix across L/C/R/J alignment for both the direct text API and the HTML/CSS font-stretch/letter-spacing engine.

src/Base.php

@@ -701,7 +701,7 @@ abstract class Base
     /**
      * TCPDF version.
      */
-    protected string $version = '8.65.0';
+    protected string $version = '8.65.1';
 
     /**
      * Encrypt object.

src/HTML.php

@@ -18076,17 +18076,19 @@ protected function parseHTMLTagOPENhr(
         }
 
         $lineY = $tpy + ($this->getHTMLLineAdvance($hrc, $key) / 2);
-        // A horizontal rule carries no semantics, so in PDF/UA mode its stroke is wrapped
-        // as an Artifact (tagPdfUaArtifactContent is a no-op outside PDF/UA mode). Without
-        // this the rule would be untagged real content, violating PDF/UA-1 7.1.
-        $out .= $this->tagPdfUaArtifactContent($this->graph->getLine($tpx, $lineY, $tpx + $width, $lineY, [
+        $lineStyle = [
             'lineWidth' => $strokeWidth,
             'lineCap' => 'butt',
             'lineJoin' => 'miter',
             'dashArray' => [],
             'dashPhase' => 0,
             'lineColor' => $elm['fgcolor'] === '' ? 'black' : $elm['fgcolor'],
-        ]));
+        ];
+        $outLine = $this->graph->getLine($tpx, $lineY, $tpx + $width, $lineY, $lineStyle);
+        // A horizontal rule carries no semantics, so in PDF/UA mode its stroke is wrapped
+        // as an Artifact (tagPdfUaArtifactContent is a no-op outside PDF/UA mode). Without
+        // this the rule would be untagged real content, violating PDF/UA-1 7.1.
+        $out .= $this->tagPdfUaArtifactContent($outLine);
         $this->moveHTMLToNextLine($hrc, $key, $tpx, $tpy, $tpw);
 
         return $out;

src/Text.php

@@ -892,9 +892,9 @@ public function endStructElem(): void
         $top = $this->pdfuaStructStack[$topIndex];
         unset($this->pdfuaStructStack[$topIndex]);
 
-        // Log elements that received marked-content or nested structure children.
-        // Elements flagged "required" (e.g. table cells) are kept even when empty so
-        // the table grid stays regular and rows keep their full column count.
+        // Record elements that picked up marked-content or nested structure children.
+        // "Required" elements (e.g. table cells) are retained even when empty, so the
+        // table grid stays uniform and every row keeps its full column count.
         if (
             $top['kids'] !== []
             || isset($top['annots']) && $top['annots'] !== []