Using 5.0 for first time -- menu not displaying

Terry Ally · Post by **Terry Ally** » Sun Sep 14, 2003 6:38 pm

Firstly, I cannot give you a URL because I am redeveloping my site on my local hard drive.

I've just read all the instructions and followed them slavishly but the menu is not displaying on the page.

In the milonic_src.js file I left the script path to the default because the scripts are all in the same directory.

I then placed the two script tags on my page pointing to the directory in which the scripts are located and nothing happens.

The directory structure is:

<root> - where the HTML file is located
<js> - sub-directory of the root where the scripts are located.

Require assistance to solve this problem.

Hergio · Post by **Hergio** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 3:48 am

You'll need to give us a couple things...
(1) What is the URL of your page (as viewed in your browser when you view the page)
(2) Copy the two lines of code in your page that you use to include the menu code.
(3) What directoy are the js files located in (root/js/ I assume?)
(4) Copy the scriptpath line out of your milonic_src.js file.
(5) Does your first menu have the alwaysvisible attribute turned on?

Terry Ally · Post by **Terry Ally** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 5:02 am

I re-installed the scripts using all the defaults. That is, placing all the files in the root directory and it works perfectly.

This is not my preferred option because I keep all my Javascripts in another files.

I have encountered another problem.

I am using an image as the background for the menu item which works well. I want onmouseover to change the image and again on my local computer this works well. I am using the "overbgimage" tag. However, I just uploaded to the server and the swap is not smooth. It's taking a little while for the other image to come up.

I've tried to circumvent this by preloading the images using a Javascript and this does not work either!

I've loaded the test page at: http://www.cdera.org/00/

fredlongworthhighschool · Mon Sep 15, 2003 9:02 am

It sounds like you need to add the relevant / or .. into your html to point to the JS directory if your page works ok with the JS in the root.

As for the image change on the menu, the only item I can see which changes to any degree is the 'just for kids' button which, for me, changes over very smoothly, just as if it was on my drive.

I'm sure the rest of the guys will take a look at it later today and pass their comments when they come on line.

Hergio · Post by **Hergio** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 1:13 pm

To put them all in a js directory, reference the script files from your pages like so...
src="/00/js/milonic_src.js"
src="/00/js/menu_data.js"
put your milonic_src file and your menudom and menuns4 in a "js" directory under the "00" directory in your root. And set your scriptpath to
scriptpath="/00/js/";

Regarding preloading the images, I slightly see your dilema, but I have a fast connection so its not as noticable for me, not sure 'bout you. But you are preloading in the wrong spot, you are doing in the main frame page, not the page containing the menu. So any preloading should be done in the page it will be displayed because each page in the frameset is a separate entity, they all load independant of eachother. Heres alittle function you can use to preload your four images...

Code: Select all

<SCRIPT>
// Example:
// simplePreload( '01.gif', '02.gif' ); 
function simplePreload()
{ 
  var args = simplePreload.arguments;
  document.imageArray = new Array(args.length);
  for(var i=0; i<args.length; i++)
  {
    document.imageArray[i] = new Image;
    document.imageArray[i].src = args[i];
  }
}
</SCRIPT>

Then whenever you use the images, the page they are loading in (main.html) will have them cached.

Terry Ally · Post by **Terry Ally** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 8:41 pm

Hergio wrote:Regarding preloading the images, I slightly see your dilema, but I have a fast connection so its not as noticable for me, not sure 'bout you. But you are preloading in the wrong spot, you are doing in the main frame page, not the page containing the menu. So any preloading should be done in the page it will be displayed because each page in the frameset is a separate entity, they all load independant of eachother.

Dave,

I do have a pre-load script running on main.html but that is not helping matters. At the office, where I have a very fast computer the change over is acceptable but my concern is for people with slow systems.

I'll have to think of another solution for the background image.

Hergio · Post by **Hergio** » Tue Sep 16, 2003 3:52 am

Two things...
(1) I just went to http://www.cdera.org/00/main.html and the source looks like
<html><head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Language" content="en-us">
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=windows-1252">
<title>Home Page</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="css/style.css">
</head><body topmargin="3" leftmargin="7">
<SCRIPT language=JavaScript src="milonic_src.js" type=text/javascript></SCRIPT>
<SCRIPT language=JavaScript src="menu_data.js" type=text/javascript></SCRIPT>
 
 
 
<noscript>

</noscript>
</body>
</html>

And I see no preload script. I DO see preload script in http://www.cdera.org/00/index.html but thats not the same page.

Secondly, your packground images seem to be solid color images with a slight drop shadow to them. Why are you using an image when you could use just a background color change, not an image change. I see the need for it on the last item, but the others dont seem to need it. The drop shadow could be achieved using the menus filters, I would think.

Lastly, hope alot of people dont have to use the site very often this season. I've seen a couple hurricanes come barreling through there unfortunately. I have one coming my way now up the east coast of the us, yeah!

Terry Ally · Post by **Terry Ally** » Tue Sep 16, 2003 11:09 am

Hergio wrote:Secondly, your packground images seem to be solid color images with a slight drop shadow to them. Why are you using an image when you could use just a background color change, not an image change. I see the need for it on the last item, but the others dont seem to need it. The drop shadow could be achieved using the menus filters, I would think.

Now this seems like a workable solution. Let me experiment with this BUT I will need your assistance on the menu filter as I have never used those before. Could you post a filter that would create that drop shadow? Thanks

Hergio also wrote:Lastly, hope alot of people dont have to use the site very often this season. I've seen a couple hurricanes come barreling through there unfortunately. I have one coming my way now up the east coast of the us, yeah!

Funny isn't it that a hurricane should make landfall in that part of the United States? A week ago when one of the models showed Isabel headed to Canada I laughed and said "That model needs to go on vacation". Now that is exactly where Isabel is headed!

Hergio · Post by **Hergio** » Tue Sep 16, 2003 12:54 pm

Yeah now I cant test this since I am at work, but I will give you a head start and maybe you can get it. And just so you know, you are already using a drop shadow on your menu! If you look at your menu style, you will see an overfilter and in that is the Shadow filter, see it? I think if you just make the backgrounds of the menu the color and not the image, it might work. Because I THINK the shadow is already rendering.

If that doesnt work, make sure the menu background color is set to transparent and make sure the menu items are spaced out enough (like how they look now) so you can see the shadow behind them. The shadow should render itself off each menu item rather than the entire menu. Give it a shot, if you cant get it, I will play with it tonight.

Post by **John** » Tue Sep 16, 2003 3:03 pm

Terry Ally wrote:Now this seems like a workable solution. Let me experiment with this BUT I will need your assistance on the menu filter as I have never used those before. Could you post a filter that would create that drop shadow?

See the overfilter item in the menu_data.js file in the download (gotta check things out

).

Milonic JavaScript Menu

Using 5.0 for first time -- menu not displaying

Using 5.0 for first time -- menu not displaying

This matter is resolved