Drop-down menus

[Muddysideup]

Having made dozens of normal sets of Navigation menu buttons with Webstyle over the past years, I have now been asked to produce some drop-down menus.

I have no trouble making them and seeing them in Browser pre-view with Xara Webstyle. The problem comes when I insert them into the FrontPage 2003 website I am creating.. The cascading part just does not appear, despite including the JS files that are part of their content and following, to the letter, their help topic called MENUS..

Please help as my street cred is about to go down the pan. My flippant remark to the client "Oh I can easily make drop-down menus" is looking a bit dodgy...

[Muddysideup]

Having made dozens of normal sets of Navigation menu buttons with Webstyle over the past years, I have now been asked to produce some drop-down menus.

I have no trouble making them and seeing them in Browser pre-view with Xara Webstyle. The problem comes when I insert them into the FrontPage 2003 website I am creating.. The cascading part just does not appear, despite including the JS files that are part of their content and following, to the letter, their help topic called MENUS..

Please help as my street cred is about to go down the pan. My flippant remark to the client "Oh I can easily make drop-down menus" is looking a bit dodgy...

[Muddysideup]

Having had no reply to my query and no reply from Webstyle support, does anyone know where I could get an answer to my problem ?

[hockeysmart]

My experience has been if you created the navbar in Webstyle first, and second, try to insert it into Frontpage, you can experience this problem.

Try this...if you haven't already done so. You probably know all of this, but I'm trying to give you some help.

1)Make sure your navbar is the way you like it. CLOSE your NAVBAR in WEBSTYLE/4, and shut down WEBSTYLE/4.

2) OPEN Frontpage FIRST.

3) SELECT an AREA on your page where you want the NAVBAR to be placed.

4) At the FILE MENU in Frontpage, select INSERT, then WEBSTYLE4 / NAVBAR & MENUS.

5) WEBSTYLE/4 will automatically startup. SELECT your NAVBAR, ensure your done with ALL editing. Make sure the SAVE location (sub-directory) is the SAME location as your web page. CLICK on SAVE. SAVE GRAPHIC.

6) WEBSTYLE/4 will close and revert you back to Frontpage, with your NAVBAR in place.

7) SAVE your page, SELECT FILE, PREVIEW IN BROWSER. It should work.

(Don't ever base your final html work of something in WEBSTYLE/4's preview window, as your only looking at the WEBSTYLE design graphics, components, etc. No underpinnings, javascript, etc. are included in that view. Always use the PREVIEW IN BROWSER in Frontpage. Also, don't use the PREVIEW tab at the bottom of your page in Frontpage, as it skews the view of your work. It gives an innacurate perspective.)

I have seen this problem before. The XARA Frontpage Plug-in is written in a manner that you go THROUGH Frontpage FIRST to launch WEBSTYLE/4 to CREATE or EDIT any component, then Frontpage automatically "integrates" with the Webstyle plug-in and allows for a COMPLETE INSERT into your page. The problem is...if you create and edit in WEBSTYLE OUTSIDE of Frontpage, then try to INSERT and PASTE into Frontpage, you will NOT get all the graphic and WEBSTYLE generated code (i.e. sub-menus and javascript) to show up on your page.

Also, make sure all the .js (javascript) and components are residing exactly where your web page is located. Same sub-directory.

I hope this works and was helpful!

Good luck!

hockeysmart

[Muddysideup]

Hello Hockeysmart,

Thank you so much for the reply... For today I am cross-eyed with trying every which way to get the sub menus to work, but I am just printing off your reply to study. Tomorrow I will be back on the case.. It must be something so simple because the browser view is always OK..

Your way will hopefully do it.

I`ll let you know tomorrow how it worked.
Thanks once again.

[Muddysideup]

I couldn`t resist trying your saving method today Hockeysmart... And YES, YES YES it worked.

I just knew that it would be my error as Webstyle is so user friendly and just does not go wrong..

Thankyou once again - I was just going round in circles. http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/rolleyes.gif

Muddysideup

[hockeysmart]

Hey! Great! I'm glad it worked. Hopefully others can glean this information and make use of it.

The MOST IMPORTANT THING I've found using WEBSTYLE/4 and ALWAYS REMEMBER.....

YOU MUST MAKE YOUR WEBSTYLE EDITS TO A PAGE FROM WITHIN FRONTPAGE (or ANY HTML EDITING TOOL)!, by using the INSERT option inside FRONTPAGE AND LETTING FRONTPAGE AND WEBSTYLE/4 COMMUNICATE THROUGH THE FRONTPAGE/WEBSTYLE PLUG-IN. THAT'S HOW THEIR INTEGRATION WORKS!

ALSO, WEBSTYLE/4 IS "LITERAL" ABOUT WHERE IT SAVES COMPONENTS (i.e. graphics, borders, etc.) AND THE SUPPORTING JAVASCRIPT. ALWAYS SAVE YOUR DESIGNS TO THE SAME PATH (SUB-DIRECTORY LOCATION) AS YOUR WEB PAGE. ONCE YOU SAVE THEM, NEVER, NEVER MOVE THE FILES TO OTHER FOLDERS. IF YOU DO, THE JAVASCRIPT WON'T WORK AND YOU HAVE TO EDIT THE JAVASCRIPTS AND CHANGE THE "SRC=LOCATION".

Else, You WILL "rack" your brain for hours and never resolve your issue. It can be very frustrating, I know, but ALWAYS REMEMBER this information and you can't (and won't) go wrong!

In a sense, WEBSTYLE/4 IS ONE BIG FILING SYSTEM WHEN IT COMES TO SAVING FILES AND STRUCTURE.

Muddysideup - Where do I send my bill? http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

Hockeysmart

[Muddysideup]

Hockeysmart I have printed your last very useful post to keep to hand for the duration.. Both your messages have been C & P`d into a techy folder which is full of useful stuff..
Thankyou for your help.

Your bill?? Your bill? Quick nurse, the screens.... http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/eek.gif