Favicons

**WillieN** · 06 May 2009, 06:27 PM

I have only ever used ico extensions. It is easy to get a free icon editing program that saves such a file e.g. IcoFX

IE7 takes time to display the icon, I do not know why, it was several days before mine appeared. Now they work in firefox and IE7. I have not tried IE8 yet.

I must now try and get down to putting them in another site with XWD.

**Soquili** · 06 May 2009, 07:31 PM

Hi Willie,

IE8 displays the ico favicon and it only takes a few seconds for it to display in the address bar and tab.

**amateur** · 09 May 2009, 04:09 PM

Hi, Bill(Soquili)

I still cannot get any page icon for IE8.
I have searched for knowledge to help me understand, but all I found was others complaints about IE8 (and lower versions)'s handling of icons.
Microsoft's pages claim to have solved this in the Release Candidate.

Now, for your two pages and icons, I tried to "Import graphics from Web" of your two images, viz. b.png and xareg256.ico.
The b.png imports OK to WD
The xareg256.ico shows a WD error message (attached screenshot)

I was hoping this could of help to you,

and maybe someone can comment further on my problem.

amateur

**Soquili** · 09 May 2009, 05:14 PM

Hi Amateur,

The error you see when trying to import the XaReg256.ico is because Web Designer and also Xara Xtreme do not have import filters for the ico file type.

If you want to use a favicon on your website that will display in almost every browser you would need to use an ico filetype. You cannot import nor export that filetype using Web Designer or Xara Xtreme.

You can create your image for a favicon in Web Designer or Xara Xtreme and export it as a png or bitmap, then use another application to convert to the ico file format.

There are many programs that will convert a bmp filetype to an ico filetype. See the google search results for a search I performed while writing this reply.
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=bmp2ico&aq=f&oq=

**amateur** · 09 May 2009, 06:09 PM

Hi, Soquili.

Now I'm confused. Both my XX4PRO an XWD help files claim they can import ico file formats. (But not export).

Hence I expected to be able to import your xareg256.ico. Seeing the error message, I suspected xareg256.ico contained some error.

Prior to this I checked the effect using your (two different) lines namely;

<link rel="SHORTCUT ICON" href="http://btaylor.50megs.com/test/b.png" type="image/x-icon"/>
and;
<link rel="SHORTCUT ICON" href="http://btaylor.50megs.com/XaReg/xareg256.ico"/> respectively

(hope you don't mind!)
in my WD placeholder, publishing to my harddisk, and checking using FF3 an IE8.
(The results were as before. Bot b.png and xareg256.ico displays as they should in FF3, and none of them in IE8.)

Regards,
amateur

**Soquili** · 10 May 2009, 01:23 AM

Sorry Amateur, I should have said Xtreme and Web Designer cannot open some newer version ico files that contain larger image sizes.

See attached image.

Any time I try to open an ico that has internal images larger than 48x48 pixels I get an ImproperImageHeader error from Xtreme.

**Soquili** · 10 May 2009, 01:30 AM

Internet Explorer 8 can and does display the xareg256.ico for the favicon.

See Attached image.

BTW the 256 in the filename for the icon is for the maximum image size within, not the number of colours used.

**steve.ledger** · 10 May 2009, 01:33 AM

There's a very neat freeware icon editor available here which would work well for companion editing.

**amateur** · 10 May 2009, 04:57 PM

I finally got it!

But a curious behavior in IE8 though ;
In WD I "export website" to my harddisk.
It produces index.htm, index_2.htm and the folder index_htm_files.
FileZillaClient uploads them to my website. There I have previously uploaded myicon.ico (produced by IcoFX).

Now, IE8 loads from my website, and displays the icon correctly!

But, when loading the file index.htm from my HD into IE8, IE8 does not display the icon at all.

FF3 has no problems with this.
Anyway, I don't care anymore about strange behavior in IE8.

I have learned a lot, but still don't know the relevance of the term "SHORTCUT ICON" versus "icon", and I also have a notion that the term favicon is treated and used in more special ways in IE8, than is necessary for a page tab and address line display.

Again thank you all for your help and assistance.

Regards,
amateur.