Re: problems with frames

On Wed, 21 May 1997, Dataweaver wrote:

> I would like to suggest a few improvements on frame implementation:
> 
> 1. It would be useful to have a TARGET attribute in a FRAME tag; the effect 
>    would be similar to having a <BASE TARGET=url> in every html document loaded 
>    into that frame.  

My automatic reaction is - why? Are you so lazy you can't set the BASE, or
even get your editor/page construction tool to set it for you? Then I
thought something worse: it's highly confusing. If you have a single HTML
document, you should really be able to tell, from within the document,
roughly what each link will do. Moving targetting out into the
frame-parent document would make things too confusing IMO.

Or is it just that I'm thick and everyone else would be able to follow it
fine? :-)

> 2. I would like to see a method of overriding the initial frame contents in the 
>    URL; as an example:
> 
>    frameset.html##frame2=src3.html
>    [would load frameset.html with frame2 containing src3.html instead
>     off what was specified in frameset.html]

If you want this functionality I suggest you write a CGI script which
allows you to do something like:

<URL:http://your.host.here/frameset.html?frame2=src3.html>

> On a somewhat-related note, I'd suggest allowing simple arithmetic (addition 
> and subtraction would probably suffice) in WIDTH and HEIGHT attributes; for 
> example,
> 
>    WIDTH=100%-50

You mean: WIDTH="100%-50". However I don't see what the point is anyway.
Obviously the 100% wouldn't usefully refer to the width of the image,
since you could calculate it by hand. If you meant to make the image 50
units (units being what? Pixels? Centimetres?) smaller than the page
width, then you'll run (as usual) into rendering problems.

However this could probably be done some way using scripting; I'll leave
it to someone who knows what they're on about in this department to
discuss it ...

James

-- 
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   James Aylett -- Crystal Services (crystal.clare.cam.ac.uk) Ftp and Web
            Clare College, Cambridge, CB2 1TL -- sja20@cam.ac.uk

Received on Wednesday, 21 May 1997 18:15:57 UTC