Rolling over in despair!

**Klaus Nordby** · 15 February 2001, 07:09 PM

Rolling over in despair!

I'm now going CRAZY over the task of making some dirt-simple JavaScript rollover buttons! XaraX's "foolproof" NavBar tool is totally incomprehensible to me, and I never ever can make things work right with it. I don't know how many hours I have wasted with it since XaraX was released, but I now refuse to touch it anymore.

ImageReady works in a comprehensible, easy way, but it creates FIVE states - and files to load - when I only need two states, and I think it also makes needlessly slow, complex JavaScript code.

My Big Question: Does anybody have a good tip for a simple, easy, cheap program which can perform the task of writing HTML/JavaScript code for switching one image with another? It really shouldn't be so goddamn hard, should it?

Thanks,

K

**Jen Worden** · 16 February 2001, 06:01 AM

Here ya go, Klaus!

Create two images per mouseover - one for the "on" state, one for the "off" state. Save this mouseover (rollover) file - I save it as a "snippet" in Homesite.

Add this inside your <head></head> tags :

There are 2 "on" statements and 2 "off" statements per rollover. Name these whatever you want. I usually code it to wherever the button goes. ie :

<blockquote>
abouton = new Image ();
abouton.src = "about-on.gif";

aboutoff = new Image ();
aboutoff.src = "about-off.gif";
</blockquote>

Then in your HTML add this :

Note that you have to add a name attribute in your image tag that corresponds with whatever name you chose to call your on/off states. The image is, of course, the off state.

Please note that this forum adds an underscore in the mouseover statement - it shouldn't have one!

If you have any problems or require any other help, just give a shout!

cfn ... Jen
Jen Worden
Web Developer
www.meadoworks.com

**Klaus Nordby** · 16 February 2001, 07:59 AM

Jen, thank you VERY much for this info - very kind of you! However, I am an artist and not a nerdish programmer, and what I am really looking for is what I wrote in my post: "a simple, easy, cheap program" which can do this. Computers are great at such idiotic, algorithmitic tasks (no offensse intended! :-)) - but we humans should really be spared having to do it. So far, XaraX - our best hope in this battle - has failed miserably at helping out, alas.

K

**artslave** · 17 February 2001, 03:48 PM

Try this. Itâ€™s called the Mighty Mouseover Machine.
http://builder.com/Programming/Kahn/012898/toolmom.html

Charity Kahn was kind enough to create this little JavaScript tool that actually generates the code you need to make rollovers. All you need to do is prepare the â€œonâ€ and â€œoffâ€ images, know what directory they are they sit in-relation to the HTML file that is going to call on them and your set.

Hereâ€™s a description on how to use it.
http://builder.com/Programming/Kahn/012898/

Iâ€™m not a programmer either. HTML is no probâ€™ but JavaScript is a little trickier.
Let us know how this works for you. Also if you need any more help let us know.

**Jen Worden** · 19 February 2001, 05:11 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Klaus said: "ImageReady works in a comprehensible, easy way, but it creates FIVE states - and files to load - when I only need two states, and I think it also makes needlessly slow, complex JavaScript code."<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I use IR when I'm doing mockups in slice'n'dice mode afterwhich I go back in and tidy up I guess I must be a "nerdish programmer" because I like my code lean'n'mean). But I don't get 5 states for rollovers. Maybe you changed your settings?

cfn ... Jen
Jen Worden
Web Developer
www.meadoworks.com

**Anna** · 15 March 2001, 06:16 PM

Well, I don't have a program to offer you, but have made some rollovers in XaraX. These were made using XaraX.

http://www.screenthenet.com/

I admit, it took me a few cracks to do it, but once I had it figured out, it was easy.

As a matter of fact, I came back and added the second button later. I don't know programming, I just did it with Xara. So .... I can't help you with offering another program, but if I can help with XaraX, I would be glad to.

Then again, these Susy Sunshine offers may not be what you want to hear right now. In that event, I will bow low, and back out of the room. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]

Thread: Rolling over in despair!

Thread Tools

Display

Bookmarks

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions