IABanner
Copyright IA, Inc. 1999. All rights reserved. This code may not be modified
without the express written permission of the copyright holder, IA, Inc.
This software and the accompanying files are sold "as is" and without warranties
as to performance or merchantability or any other warranties whether expressed or
implied.
License Agreement
=================
You may use the trial version of this applet for any purpose and on any machine
but you may not reverse engineer it. You are also licensed to make as many
copies of the trial version as you wish and distribute the software and
documentation in it unmodified. However, you are specifically prohibited from
charging or requesting donations for any such copies, however made, and from
distributing the software and/or documentation with other products (commercial or
otherwise) without prior written consent.
Installation
============
You should have received the following files in your distribution archive:
o readme.txt (this text file)
o navigation.gif (the navigation bar)
o IABanner.class (the trial version of the interActive Banner)
o demo.html (sample HTML page)
o oRealEstate[1..5].jpg (5 images for the sample page)
o iab-edit.html (an editor to simplify setting interActive Banner values)
o iab-editBanner.html (file used by the interActive Banner Editor)
o iab-editColors.html (file used by the interActive Banner Editor)
o iab-editFile.html (file used by the interActive Banner Editor)
o iab-editMain.html (file used by the interActive Banner Editor)
o iab-editNav.html (file used by the interActive Banner Editor)
o iab-editOutput.html (file used by the interActive Banner Editor)
To get started quickly, make sure you have all the files in one directory and
then open up the iab-edit.html file to start creating banners for your web page.
If you're missing any files, you can visit our website at http://www.iasys.com
to download the latest version of interActive Banner. To use this software, you
must have a rudimentary knowledge of HTML and its <APPLET> tag. The
IABanner.class and navigation.gif files must be placed together in the same
directory as specified by the <APPLET> tag's CODEBASE parameter. Even if you do
not use the navigation bar, the navigation.gif must be present in the same
directory as the applet or else the first image will not properly appear.
Remember to FTP the IABanner.class file as binary, not ASCII.
The trial version does not include any technical support. You must read and
study the examples on our website and/or the example in this file. The trial
version also limits the number of banners to 5. To obtain a registered version,
please visit our website at http://www.iasys.com.
Features
========
o Light-weight download (only 9K) for web-based applications.
o Unlike traditional banners, it's written in Java and thus allows users of
your website to interact with your banners directly.
o User-customized navigation bar, colors, fonts, and borders.
o Careful coding makes it work even behind firewall/proxy.
o Most parameters are optional, simplifying usage.
o Flexible design permits it to be used in creative ways: random rotating
banner, animator, slide show, blinking text, typed text, product showcase,
online training, catalog, etc.
o Works under Netscape 3.0, 4.0, 4.5, Internet Explorer 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, and
any other Java 1.02+ compliant browser.
o Takes up less screen real-estate and makes it less busy by compacting a
group of pictures into one focused area.
o Increases perceived download time for pages with multiple images since only
the current image that the viewer should focus on is downloaded. While
they are reading the text that goes with the image, the next frame is
downloaded in the background. Contrast this with a traditional page where
all the images are downloaded at once. Images that the user should not be
focusing on are competing directly for download time with the current
image, thus slowing its download time.
o Does not require users to download and install a plug-in locally on their
PC so there is a high probability that they will view your banner since
all major browsers have built-in support.
o Not limited to any particular size. You determine what size shows best on
your pages.
o Comes with an editor to simplify creating and editing banners.
Examples
========
Here are some complete examples. You can paste the code in your own page and
modify the parameters as you see fit. Please see the Parameters section below
for a complete list of valid parameter names and values. To see banner images,
replace the "image..." values with your own images. Make sure that the images
reside in the same directory as the applet or use relative or absolute paths if
they aren't.
Example 1: This example uses all default values and demonstrates that the only
parameters that need to be set are the banner[0..4] parameters.
<applet codebase=. code=IABanner.class width=400 height=68>
<param name=(c) value=www.iasys.com>
<param name=banner0 value="Banner 1|image1.jpg|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
<param name=banner1 value="Banner 2|image2.gif|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
<param name=banner2 value="Banner 3|image3.jpg|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
<param name=banner3 value="Banner 4|image4.gif|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
<param name=banner4 value="Banner 5|image5.jpg|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
</applet>
Example 2: This example shows how you would modify the colors, borders,
algorithm, and fonts for some of the applet. A complete list can be found toward
the end of this file.
<applet codebase=. code=IABanner.class width=400 height=68>
<param name=(c) value=www.iasys.com>
<param name=titlecolor value=#f0e68c>
<param name=txtbgcolor value=#008080>
<param name=copycolor value=#ffffff>
<param name=linkcolor value=#ffa500>
<param name=titlefont value="helvetica|bold|12">
<param name=copyfont value="times|normal|9">
<param name=linkfont value="times|normal|9">
<param name=shownav value=1>
<param name=delay value=10000>
<param name=next value=sequential>
<param name=linktext value="Click here">
<param name=banner0 value="Banner 1|image1.jpg|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
<param name=banner1 value="Banner 2|image2.gif|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
<param name=banner2 value="Banner 3|image3.jpg|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
<param name=banner3 value="Banner 4|image4.gif|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
<param name=banner4 value="Banner 5|image5.jpg|You can add a banner description here and change the image file to one of yours.|http://www.iasys.com">
</applet>
We also included a sample HTML page (demo.html), which you can open in Netscape
and see the interActive Banner in action with images. If you run it under
Internet Explorer, you won't be able to see the images. In this case, you can
view the samples on our home page at http://www.iasys.com. You will also find
more examples and techniques there, too.
Parameters
==========
The following parameters are supported by the interActive Banner. All
parameters except for the copyright and banner data parameters have default
values, making them optional.
(c)
o This is the copyright notice.
o This value is required and must always be www.iasys.com.
o There is no default value. This is a required parameter that must always
be set to www.iasys.com.
banner[0..n]
o This sets the data for each banner. The parameter name is "banner",
followed by a number starting with "0" (zero) and incrementing by 1 up to
the last banner. E.g., banner0 sets the data for the first banner and
banner1 sets the data for the second banner. Do not skip the numbering
like so: banner0, banner1, banner3, banner5. If the applet sees this, it
will only read the data for banner0 and banner1 and will ignore the rest.
o The super-value is a string separated by three bars formatted as
"title|image|copy|link", which delimit the individual banner values. The
first sub-value sets the banner title. The second sub-value sets the
filename for the image and can be relative to the "codebase" parameter set
in the HTML <applet> tag. Please note that due to Java security
restrictions, the image *MUST* reside on the same server as the applet.
The third parameter sets the copy or description for the banner. The
fourth parameter sets the value for the hyperlink and must be an absolute
path (e.g., "http://www.myDomain.com/shopping.html") rather than a relative
path (e.g., "shopping.html").
o There is no default value. This is a required parameter.
titlecolor
o This sets the color of the banner's title.
o The value should be an RGB value, (e.g., "#ffffff" is white). You can use
the IA, Inc. Color Mixer at http://www.iasys.com/_services/color.html to
find those values.
o The default value is black.
imgbgcolor
o This sets the background color for the image-side of the banner.
o This parameter is not currently being used.
txtbgcolor
o This sets the background color for the text-side of the banner.
o The value should be an RGB value, (e.g., "#ffffff" is white). You can use
the IA, Inc. Color Mixer at http://www.iasys.com/_services/color.html to
find those values.
o The default value is orange.
copycolor
o This sets the color of the copy or description for the banner.
o The value should be an RGB value, (e.g., "#ffffff" is white). You can use
the IA, Inc. Color Mixer at http://www.iasys.com/_services/color.html to
find those values.
o The default value is black.
linkcolor
o This sets the color of the hyper link text.
o The value should be an RGB value, (e.g., "#ffffff" is white). You can use
the IA, Inc. Color Mixer at http://www.iasys.com/_services/color.html to
find those values.
o The default value is blue.
titlefont
o This sets the font for the title.
o The super-value is a string separated by two bars formatted as
"family|style|size", which delimit the individual font values. The first
sub-value sets the font family such as Helvetica, Dialog, and Courier.
These values are dependent on which JVM (i.e., the browser) that the applet
runs in (e.g., Netscape will have different fonts than Internet Explorer).
To be compatible with all the browsers, use the common ones like Helvetica,
Dialog, and Courier. The style sub-values can be italic, bold, or normal.
The size sub-value simply specifies the font's point size.
o The default value is "Helvetica|bold|12" which represents a font in the
Helvetica family, bolded, and at a 12 point size.
copyfont
o This sets the font for the copy or description of the banner.
o The super-value is a string separated by two bars formatted as
"family|style|size", which delimit the individual font values. The first
sub-value sets the font family such as Helvetica, Dialog, and Courier.
These values are dependent on which JVM (i.e., the browser) that the applet
runs in (e.g., Netscape will have different fonts than Internet Explorer).
To be compatible with all the browsers, use the common ones like Helvetica,
Dialog, and Courier. The style sub-values can be italic, bold, or normal.
The size sub-value simply specifies the font's point size.
o The default value is "Helvetica|normal|12" which represents a font in the
Helvetica family, normal styling, and at a 12 point size.
linkfont
o This sets the font for the link.
o The super-value is a string separated by two bars formatted as
"family|style", which delimit the individual font values. The first
sub-value sets the font family such as Helvetica, Dialog, and Courier.
These values are dependent on which JVM (i.e., the browser) that the applet
runs in (e.g., Netscape will have different fonts than Internet Explorer).
To be compatible with all the browsers, use the common ones like Helvetica,
Dialog, and Courier. The style sub-values can be italic, bold, or normal.
The size cannot be modified since it must be the same height as the
navigation bar.
o The default value is "Helvetica|bold|11" which represents a font in the
Helvetica family, bolded, and at a 11 point size.
linktarget
o This sets the target window for the hyper link.
o The value can be any valid HTML value such as "_self", "_top", etc. To
link into a new window, simply set this value to any name.
o The default value is "_self", which makes the link behave normally like
most Web pages.
linktext
o This sets the text for the hyper link.
o The value can be any string that fits on the last line of the banner.
o The default value is "Click here".
shownav
o This setting determines whether the navigation bar is shown or not.
o The value can be either "1" to show the navigation bar or "0" to hide the
navigation bar. Typically, the navigation bar is hidden for animations.
o The default value is to show the navigation bar.
delay
o This sets the delay time before another banner is displayed.
o The value is specified in milliseconds without any commas. Remember that
there are 1,000 milliseconds in 1 second.
o The default value is "10000", which gives it a delay value of 10 seconds
before showing a different banner.
border
o This setting determines whether borders should be drawn around the banner
and between the image and the text areas.
o The value can be either "1" to draw the borders or "0" to not draw the
borders.
o The default value is to draw the borders.
next
o This sets the algorithm to be used to process the next banner.
o The value can be either "random" or "sequential". Typically, the
sequential algorithm is used for slide shows or animations.
o The default value is random.
Tips
====
o You can swap in your own navigation bar by replacing the navigation.gif
with your own version. The only caveat is that the button size and their
order must be the same (prev, next, pause). Each button is 14 pixels wide
and 13 pixels high.
o For optimal performance, you should resize images that are taller than the
height of the applet. This will reduce download time. However, if you are
going to use the same image elsewhere on your site, don't resize it since
you will have to download it twice. When reducing the height of your
images, be sure to use a paint program that preserves the aspect ration.
In other words, if you reduce the height by 10 pixels or a reduction of 5%,
the width should be reduced by 5% and not just by 10 pixels unless of
course, 10 pixels also equals 5% of the width. Also remember to take into
account the borders, which is enabled by default. For example, if the
applet's height is 100, you should resize the images to 98 with borders and
100 without broders.
o Use it on your site to sell advertising space. This way, it acts like a
billboard and takes up less space and does not clutter your site with
multiple banner ads. An added benefit is that the page will appear to load
faster to the user since ads are downloaded by the in the background and
the user does not see the browser's download animated icon.
o The CODEBASE parameter of the <APPLET> tag specifies where the browser will
download the interActive Banner and its images. Set this parameter to a
subdirectory if you want to put all banner-related files in one directory.
If you want to access images somewhere else on your website, simply
reference them relative to the CODEBASE directory.
o Remember to use the HTML " if you want to use quotes within a parameter
value (e.g., <param name="quote" value="I said, "Hello."">).
Bugs, Limitations, Issues
=========================
o Due to the security restrictions imposed by browsers upon Java applets, you
cannot specify an image that resides on a different server other than the
one from which the interActive Banner applet was downloaded. E.g., if you
have the banner located on http://www.myDomain.com and you want to link
images from http://www.anotherDomain.com, Java will not permit this. You
will have to copy those images onto your web server or have the interActive
Banner (i.e., IABanner.class) located on the web server hosting
anotherDomain.com.
o Under Netscape, if an HTML page containing the applet is accessed through a
proxy, the applet may not be able to display the images. The cause is
unknown but it could be that Netscape thinks the applet and the images are
from different servers. Nonetheless, our interActive Banner will continue
to run without the images. The text will be displayed and the navigation
bar image will be substituted by a text-based navigation bar (<< >> ||).
o If you are accessing an HTML page locally (i.e., not through the web server
via the http:// protocol), Internet Explorer 3.0 will not load the images.
To work around this problem, you should access your page through a local
Web Server such as Personal Web Server or upgrade to IE4+.
o To make the interActive Banner as small in size as possible for web
applications, we had to compromise the process of setting the parameters
for more visual features. The notable one being the setting of each
"frame" of the banner. We use a "|" character to delimit each field. So
this means that you cannot use that character in any of your data. It's
reserved for the interActive Banner's use. Note that the "|" character is
also known as a "pipe" character and is usually the shifted character
containing the backslash, "\", character. The pipe character is NOT a
lowercase "L" nor the "one" number.
o Java applets using images will have problems when run under AOL's browser
because AOL compresses the graphics in a propietary format. To work
around this problem, do not use the "compress graphics" option for Web
graphics in AOL. An alternative is to make sure the images are smaller
than 1Kb or larger than 8Kb. Images between 1Kb and 8Kb will be compressed
by AOL.
o The interActive Banner Editor has only been tested under Netscape 4.0+ and
IE 4.0+. It uses JavaScript 1.3, which is not supported by lower versions
of these browsers.
o When using the interActive Banner Editor under IE to preview the banner,
images that are correctly specified may not display if they refer to
parent directories (e.g., "../../images"). This has to do with the
security mechanism in IE and is only affected in local mode. When the
banner is viewed on a web server, the images will display fine.
Bug Fix History
===============
o When clicking on the banner, the link would always default to the "_top"
window rather than the default, "_self", because the "linktarget"
parameter was ignored. - (Fixed in 1.01)
Back to the IABanner applet page.
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