View Full Version : Website design help...
Right, my patience has been tested to the limit - so its over to you guys/gals please!!
I am building a basic site using Dreamweaver MX that uses three frames (I know people hate frames, but for this exercise its what works best I think) and no matter what I do I cannot get it to work in a browser (IE or Firefox) - it shows the frames but with no content :? Here is the code that Dreamweaver has created.
DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Frameset//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/frameset.dtd">
html>
head>
title>Lintott Control Systems | Intelligent MCC</title>
meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
/head>
frameset rows="187,*,57" cols="*" framespacing="0" frameborder="yes" border="0">
frame src="/banner.html" name="banner" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" id="banner" >
frame src="/main.html" name="main" scrolling="auto" id="main">
frame src="/footer.html" name="footer" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" id="footer">
/frameset>
noframes><body>
/body>/noframes>
/html>
In the Dreamweaver software it is showing them as there, the structure of the site seems fine (all the pages are in the root folder) but do you think I can get it to display - can i f**k!!!! :evil: :evil: :evil:
Any ideas anyone :compcrash:
Zip all the pages up and send it to me.
.
Thanks Greg - unfortunately I am at Mrs Skips at the moment and have no access to the files! Will send them tomorrow afternoon - thanks for your help in advance! 8)
socommk23
27-07-06, 08:36 PM
grinch might be able to help.
Grinch is an idiot :lol: .
(Sorry Dan, only joking :wink: 8-[ )
try, BTW when posting HTML that you dont want it to change, tick the 'Disable HTML in this post' under the posting window.
<DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Frameset//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/frameset.dtd">
<html>
<head>
<title>Lintott Control Systems | Intelligent MCC</title>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
</head>
<frameset rows="187,*,57" framespacing="0" frameborder="yes" border="0">
<frame src="/banner.html" name="banner" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" id="banner">
<frame src="/main.html" name="main" scrolling="auto" id="main">
<frame src="/footer.html" name="footer" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" id="footer">
</frameset>
<noframes></noframes>
</html>
MattTheLoony
27-07-06, 10:02 PM
Not sure if it is your posting or not but all the < in the first column appear to not be there.
Secondly, try taking the / off your links. So for example it's just "banner.html" instead of "/banner.html".
This will make it look for the pages in the same directory as your frames page instead of relative to the root of the site.
I know you pointed out that frames are frowned upon. A better way would be to use DIVs and CSS.
You haven't said what exactly appears in the frames. Is it exactly nothing? or is it some page cannot be displayed error?
If nothing then you may need to post the html of at least one of the other files.
Secondly, try taking the / off your links. So for example it's just "banner.html" instead of "/banner.html".
Yep, adding a / means get file from base dir of site, also absolute link. So if the url of the page was http://xxx/dir1/mypage.htm and you had /image.jpg as your image link code then it would try and find it at http://xxx/image.jpg, this is called absolute links. You also got relitive links which are dir2/image.jpg or ./dir2/image.jpg, if you used this the url it would go and try to find the image would be http://xxx/dir1/dir2/image.jpg. You can also extend it to ./../dir2/image.jpg which would get the image from http://xxx/dir2/image.jpg, the .. making it travel back through the directory structure and the . telling it to start traversing folders starting from its current location.
See all simple now.
Thanks everyone, I will be having another crack at it this afternoon... seems odd though that Dreamweaver would implement the links wrong - it has to be something I have done! :lol:
It does seen odd........I've found DW to be very reliable over the years.
I'll have alook at the dose when I get home this evening.
Thanks everyone, I will be having another crack at it this afternoon... seems odd though that Dreamweaver would implement the links wrong - it has to be something I have done! :lol:
When you create links you can tell it to be relitive or absolute. Also it depends on where the original file was saved etc..
Thanks everyone, I will be having another crack at it this afternoon... seems odd though that Dreamweaver would implement the links wrong - it has to be something I have done! :lol:
When you create links you can tell it to be relitive or absolute. Also it depends on where the original file was saved etc..
I am hoping you are right there TSM - I did try editing the HTML with no / in front of the page names, but it made no difference - the pages all display fine on their own so it has to be a simple links problem - obviously I must be simpler...! :oops:
Silly question but your actual filenames... do they end in .htm or .html? It's an easy thing to miss if you haven't already made sure.
You can test your framset by setting the frame links to other pages outside your site (i.e. set them to http://forums.sv650.org/ - as long as there's no framebusting code)
Good luck :)
Edit: I just tested the frameset code in TSM's post and it works with all the links to here so I reckon you've got files with .htm extensions instead of .html.
Originally I had them with .htm extensions but then changed them to .html thinking that was the problem. Do frames rely on html extensions then? I will double check all this later - thanks :)
MattTheLoony
28-07-06, 11:03 AM
Originally I had them with .htm extensions but then changed them to .html thinking that was the problem. Do frames rely on html extensions then? I will double check all this later - thanks :)
Frames don't rely on extensions. The links just need to match your files.
Originally I had them with .htm extensions but then changed them to .html thinking that was the problem. Do frames rely on html extensions then? I will double check all this later - thanks :)
Frames don't rely on extensions. The links just need to match your files.
I created my own files called footer.html, banner.html and main.htm. The links in the frameset were all directed to .html extensions and couldn't find main.html, so I'm not entirely sure your info is entirely correct.
:?
Btw, I also took out the / in all the links i.e. src="banner.html"
MattTheLoony
28-07-06, 11:10 AM
Originally I had them with .htm extensions but then changed them to .html thinking that was the problem. Do frames rely on html extensions then? I will double check all this later - thanks :)
Frames don't rely on extensions. The links just need to match your files.
I created my own files called footer.html, banner.html and main.htm. The links in the frameset were all directed to .html extensions and couldn't find main.html, so I'm not entirely sure your info is entirely correct.
:?
That's because you created main.htm, of course it can't find main.html
Carsick
28-07-06, 11:11 AM
Originally I had them with .htm extensions but then changed them to .html thinking that was the problem. Do frames rely on html extensions then? I will double check all this later - thanks :)
Frames don't rely on extensions. The links just need to match your files.
I created my own files called footer.html, banner.html and main.htm. The links in the frameset were all directed to .html extensions and couldn't find main.html, so I'm not entirely sure your info is entirely correct.
:?
Btw, I also took out the / in all the links i.e. src="banner.html"
No, he's right. The value of the src attribute must be the same as the full name of the file. The actual extension is irrelevent, so long as they are the same.
Unfortunately, "features" like Windows XP hiding file extensions has meant that most people don't realise that an extension is still a full part of the filename and is nothing special.
timwilky
28-07-06, 11:19 AM
No, he's right. The value of the src attribute must be the same as the full name of the file. The actual extension is irrelevent, so long as they are the same.
Not wishing to teach my granny to suck eggs, I know you were trying to keep thinks simple but.
Errrr. Not quite, the extension tells the web server what to do with the file. You don't write the mime encoding stuff into a HTML file but when the web server presents it ,there are encoding headers dictated by the file type. Similarly a file does not need to be html content, it could be php, perl or an application. The server must know what to do with it and this is dictated either by the file extension, presence in a cgi directory etc.
Originally I had them with .htm extensions but then changed them to .html thinking that was the problem. Do frames rely on html extensions then? I will double check all this later - thanks :)
Frames don't rely on extensions. The links just need to match your files.
I created my own files called footer.html, banner.html and main.htm. The links in the frameset were all directed to .html extensions and couldn't find main.html, so I'm not entirely sure your info is entirely correct.
:?
That's because you created main.htm, of course it can't find main.html
Which is exactly my point. The extensions (link and filename) have to match or it won't work.
Carsick
28-07-06, 11:19 AM
Which is exactly my point. The extensions (link and filename) have to match or it won't work.
I'm pretty positive he said the same thing as you.
Carsick
28-07-06, 11:21 AM
No, he's right. The value of the src attribute must be the same as the full name of the file. The actual extension is irrelevent, so long as they are the same.
Not wishing to teach my granny to suck eggs, I know you were trying to keep thinks simple but.
Errrr. Not quite, the extension tells the web server what to do with the file. You don't write the mime encoding stuff into a HTML file but when the web server presents it ,there are encoding headers dictated by the file type. Similarly a file does not need to be html content, it could be php, perl or an application. The server must know what to do with it and this is dictated either by the file extension, presence in a cgi directory etc.
Dude, I was leaving MIME types out of it deliberately because for the purposes of this discussion, they are irrelevent.
Not a bad description of what they are, though.
Argh! :lol: :D
We're only dealing with flat html files here guys... :lol:
Carsick
28-07-06, 11:26 AM
Argh! :lol: :D
We're only dealing with flat html files here guys... :lol:
That's why I left the other stuff out.
Well, I see you both have things totally under control so I'll leave Skip in your more than capable hands. :P
Well, I see you both have things totally under control so I'll leave Skip in your more than capable hands. :P
No dont leave me here alone Ping! :shock: :lol:
Carsick
28-07-06, 11:35 AM
I just tested it with your code and created the other files. With the slashes it didn't work (inevitably, since the files were all in the same directory which was not the root) without the slashes all worked as expected.
timwilky
28-07-06, 11:39 AM
OK, couple of things, what is your web server and how are you copying the files to it.
What does your log files say etc (look in both the access and error logs).
can you access the individual frame components ie, http://sitename/banner.html etc.
when you request the frame page, do you get that page delivered, (simply view source to confirm content).
One thing that can bugger up many peoples early publishing is file protection of the web server, who owns the files, what is there protection etc. You may end up having to explicitly set them as public readable to permit the web server process to read them etc.
oh and last thing, if you are using a *nix webserver, be careful about the case of the filenames
I like riding my motorbike i do....
this is all over my head so I'll shut up and continue to ride my motorbike...
coat and taxi awaiting @ the exe.prompt
Right I am back home now - turns out that the Dreamweaver software is insisting on the leading slashes for the linked pages - if I remove them they stay away until I save the frameset, when it puts them back in! Cheers! :roll: So now I am having to do all the work on the site, save it all and then manually edit the HTML to remove the slashes and voila it works perfectly! :?
I am wondering why its insisting on them now as I pulled up a test site I did a while ago and it has them missing?! Even wierder! :smt017
Anyway, main thing is I have got to the bottom of it so I can carry on - thanks to everyone for your kind help - especially Queen Ping :D
MattTheLoony
28-07-06, 09:51 PM
No, he's right. The value of the src attribute must be the same as the full name of the file. The actual extension is irrelevent, so long as they are the same.
Not wishing to teach my granny to suck eggs, I know you were trying to keep thinks simple but.
Errrr. Not quite, the extension tells the web server what to do with the file. You don't write the mime encoding stuff into a HTML file but when the web server presents it ,there are encoding headers dictated by the file type. Similarly a file does not need to be html content, it could be php, perl or an application. The server must know what to do with it and this is dictated either by the file extension, presence in a cgi directory etc.
I know this has been hashed out but what I said is still right. Frames don't care about the extension. The web server obviously has to send the right mime type otherwise the browser won't know what to do with it and will most likely try to download the file. And in the simplistic way that I meant it, care even less whether it is .htm or .html, unless the web server is being particularly picky and not set up for one of them.
Right I am back home now - turns out that the Dreamweaver software is insisting on the leading slashes for the linked pages - if I remove them they stay away until I save the frameset, when it puts them back in! Cheers! :roll: So now I am having to do all the work on the site, save it all and then manually edit the HTML to remove the slashes and voila it works perfectly! :?
I am wondering why its insisting on them now as I pulled up a test site I did a while ago and it has them missing?! Even wierder! :smt017
Anyway, main thing is I have got to the bottom of it so I can carry on - thanks to everyone for your kind help - especially Queen Ping :D
Do you use the 'site' functionality? If so that could be what's messing things up. I'm a bit 'old skool' and tend to just create a new blank page, hand code everything (although you can still use the design mode) and upload with an ftp package (I use cuteFTP). Probably a waste of Dreamweaver technology but for me it cuts down on these types of problems since I can't be @rsed to learn the package inside out :oops: . I guess in the case of your frameset you could create a new frameset in 'file/new'... MIGHT stop it from trying to rewrite all your links...? :?
Failing that you could look into the way it handles sites and try to switch off any controls that mess with your links...
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