Anyway to pop up a new webpage in a set size using Xara?

Hi All,

I can't seem to find any advice on this anywhere, so I'm hoping the minds in the forum might have an answer. I have an old site that I am retooling, but I've hit a snag. On a number of pages, I have thumbnails that link to a pop-up page that explains the item in greater detail. It's not a simple text pop-up like Xara will let me make. It's a full html page with background, graphics, links, and text. I used Java script to confine the pop-up to a set width much smaller than most browsers. That way the viewer doesn't lose their place on the original website by having to backspace and scroll back to the thumbnails. A simple click to close the popped up window and they're right back where they left off.
Attachment 119919

I really want to reproduce this approach in Xara, but there just doesn't seem to be a simple way to do that. Are there any options available to me? I am at the point where I'm considering creating separate pages for the thumbnails, using the old html I learned years ago and letting the main pages point to them. From there the pop-ups I made would work. I am just hoping to avoid the tables and other antiquated approaches I've used.

Anyone have suggestions?

Thanks,

Eric

Quote:

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Originally Posted by chubstuff

Hi All,

I can't seem to find any advice on this anywhere, so I'm hoping the minds in the forum might have an answer. I have an old site that I am retooling, but I've hit a snag. On a number of pages, I have thumbnails that link to a pop-up page that explains the item in greater detail. It's not a simple text pop-up like Xara will let me make. It's a full html page with background, graphics, links, and text. I used Java script to confine the pop-up to a set width much smaller than most browsers. That way the viewer doesn't lose their place on the original website by having to backspace and scroll back to the thumbnails. A simple click to close the popped up window and they're right back where they left off.
Attachment 119919

I really want to reproduce this approach in Xara, but there just doesn't seem to be a simple way to do that. Are there any options available to me? I am at the point where I'm considering creating separate pages for the thumbnails, using the old html I learned years ago and letting the main pages point to them. From there the pop-ups I made would work. I am just hoping to avoid the tables and other antiquated approaches I've used.

Anyone have suggestions?

Thanks,

Eric

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Eric, i think you have missed the power of Layers on a page. These are not just simple text-pop-ups as they can have paragraphing, images, effects and links all of their own.

Taking your page as an example.
The page, I assume, would be named "tombstones" and as part of a larger website would have been created as a Web document.
In the Page and Layer gallery, the thumbnails would be on the MouseOff layer and each would have a link to a different layer.
for the Erma Gerd tombstone, create an "Erma Gerd" layer that sits above the MouseOver layer.
The link from the thumbnail would be to Link > Pop-up Layer: Erma Gerd. i would add a slow transition of "Slide in from bottom" (bad visual pun).
I would leave "Close pop-up automatically" ticked.
Now select Solo mode for the Erma Gerd layer and add all he detail you need.

Do the same for the other slabs and any click away from the pop-up detail will close the pop-up.

Use the help function and search for the italicised items above for further detail.

Acorn

Hi Acorn,

Thanks for the advice. You're right, I didn't realize I had more flexibility than a simple text box. But I do have two problems still present. The first is that I don't seem to be able to put down a background of a tiling image. I can do a rectangle of a single color, and that's workable, but I much prefer the image. Any suggestions for making that happen?

Secondly: the dialog in the reduced box is sometimes lengthy. With an html created fixed pixel pop-up box, the page presents as a self contained box smaller in width and height than the main page. The reader scrolls in that box to see the images and text. With my pop-up through Xara the entire text box appears. It drops off the monitor view and the set place where the gallery is scrolls away as you read the new pop-up. Is there a way to fix the dimensions of the pop-up box that appears so that they are fixed and the reader scrolls within that box? Both of these dilemas probably won't deter me from using Xara's approach thanks to your suggestions. So THANK YOU very much for your input so far. I just keep hoping to have my cake and eat it too. After all, why make the cake if you can't eat it. ;)

Eric

Not intending to jump between you and Acorn's excellent advice.... but I do pop-up layers all the time so maybe this comment will help you chubstuff....

Simple think of, and design you pop-up layer as just another web page... any size, style you want... with any of the Xara tools you normally use...

If it's the same size as your web pages, you can have an 'X' or a small 'arrow' somewhere on the page (usually in the upper right corner) that will indicate a 'back to' or 'close'.

Hi Cmpan1,

Everybody is welcome to chime in. One of my problems is the last time I used Xara products to help me build a website, Webster was still a thing. :) I'm trying to think of the layers as another page, but when it comes to setting dimensions, I see it letting me set width, but not height. When I try to set a height dimension it just overrides it and shows the entire text as a single panel that goes to the bottom of the page. If I don't make the page long enough, it simply cuts off everything below the cut mark. I've searched everywhere for an option like my old Java script option of telling it to open a new window with fixed dimensions and a scroll bar, but I haven't found one yet. If you know of one, I'm eager to learn where it is.

Eric

Quote:

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Originally Posted by chubstuff

I don't seem to be able to put down a background of a tiling image. I can do a rectangle of a single color, and that's workable, but I much prefer the image. Any suggestions for making that happen?
Eric

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Eric, I would make a box the size of the overall effect you want on that layer and place this at the back.
For your repeating pattern, switch to the Fill tool > Bitmap and add the pattern you want. change it from Single tile to Repeating tile or repeat inverted and adjust the control handles to scale and rotate your pattern.

Acorn

Quote:

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Originally Posted by chubstuff

Is there a way to fix the dimensions of the pop-up box that appears so that they are fixed and the reader scrolls within that box?
Eric

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Eric, I would constrain the text into a scrolling text box: https://www.talkgraphics.com/showthr...ext-Box-Option describes.

To get exactly what you want is a tad more difficult.
I assume your original pop-ups are all the same width and can be longer, depending on the content.
You (re-)create all your original pop-ups as separate Xara pages.
You need to then create Layers as before and in each put a box the width of the "to-be" content and use the Xara widget "Embed a website" to create an IFRAME whose source is one of the new pages.
With auto-scrolling enabled the pop-up would behave as your original.

Acorn

Thanks, Acorn and cmpan1 for all your help. It's been a while working with your suggestions and helping the family get through flu season. I'm still trying to learn the logistics of your suggestions to find what works best, but being very new to the world of webdesign, it's a bit of a learning curve. One thing I have learned is that I'm now working with two separate websites. The first I try everything to find out what I eventually think will work, and that workable solution I plug into the website that will actually get loaded to the web. I found that undoing and redoing things over and over leaves behind bits of code that can really mess things up. But again, thanks so much for your help.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by chubstuff

Thanks, Acorn and cmpan1 for all your help. It's been a while working with your suggestions and helping the family get through flu season. I'm still trying to learn the logistics of your suggestions to find what works best, but being very new to the world of webdesign, it's a bit of a learning curve. One thing I have learned is that I'm now working with two separate websites. The first I try everything to find out what I eventually think will work, and that workable solution I plug into the website that will actually get loaded to the web. I found that undoing and redoing things over and over leaves behind bits of code that can really mess things up. But again, thanks so much for your help.

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A good strategy.

Acorn

As mentioned earlier in this thread, pop up layers are just as functional as pages, so you can have a link in a pop up to open another pop up. So you could let the reader click on a link for next page or more or whatever word you choose to open the next pop up with the continuing text. I don't use the close automatically option when doing this, but rather a dedicated close button that will close all open pop ups at once so when done reading the user clicks that and is right back where they left off. It is easy to copy/paste in place the pop up so you only see one at a time. Just another option that is available to you.