Help-photo slideshow without Javascript ?

Hi !
I need some help in putting together a website for our family
gathering.

Although I'm still pretty "green", I don't think what I need requires
terribly advanced skills ...except for one area that has me right
baffled.

I want to put up a photo album slideshow but I want to stay away from
Flash & Javascript. It just seems that anytime I use them, somebody
in the family has trouble with their browser or security settings.

So, if I tell you want I want to do, could someone maybe tell me
first, if it can be done and, second, HOW it can be done. I'm really
stumped.

I've got a page designed with UL navs both down the left and right
side of the page. In the center of the page is where I want the
"slideshow". The slide show, I want to run through a serials of jpgs,
each with a link/URL that will open in a new window, and each will
also have caption that also links to the same URL. Having the
ability to stop or pause the playing of the show is an option, but I'm
leaning towards not showing the controls on the page.

As I said, I'd really like to do this with CSS/HTML only, but I can't
find any examples other than javascript.

Can anybody help me? Show me a sample ?

Thanks so much !

Jane

bevoldjling (AT) hotmail (DOT) com wrote:

As I said, I'd really like to do this with CSS/HTML only, but I can't
find any examples other than javascript.

I don't think it's possible to do this in pure CSS. You need either
JavaScript, Flash or even SMIL (!) because you want a time-related
element to it. I'd suggest downloading some well-known JavaScript -
these things are out there.

I don't think you can even do it particularly well with pure CSS even
without the time-based slideshow. It's certainly possible, but you'd
have to download the whole image set early on and this might be
unacceptable with limited bandwidth. With JavaScript it's quite easy to
download the visible images first, then download the rest in the
background.

bevoldjling (AT) hotmail (DOT) com wrote:

Hi !
I need some help in putting together a website for our family
gathering.

Although I'm still pretty "green", I don't think what I need requires
terribly advanced skills ...except for one area that has me right
baffled.

I want to put up a photo album slideshow but I want to stay away from
Flash & Javascript. It just seems that anytime I use them, somebody
in the family has trouble with their browser or security settings.

So, if I tell you want I want to do, could someone maybe tell me
first, if it can be done and, second, HOW it can be done. I'm really
stumped.

I've got a page designed with UL navs both down the left and right
side of the page. In the center of the page is where I want the
"slideshow". The slide show, I want to run through a serials of jpgs,
each with a link/URL that will open in a new window, and each will
also have caption that also links to the same URL. Having the
ability to stop or pause the playing of the show is an option, but I'm
leaning towards not showing the controls on the page.

As I said, I'd really like to do this with CSS/HTML only, but I can't
find any examples other than javascript.

Can anybody help me? Show me a sample ?

Thanks so much !

Jane

Try using a meta tag in the header to refresh the page, and direct to a
different url.

see http://www.seologic.com/faq/meta-refresh-tag.php

For this technique, each picture would need to have it's own page. If
you don't want to keep reloading the navigation, then you could run this
in a frame or a new window (using a target property to open the first
page of the slideshow in the appropriate place).

HTH,
Martin

On Mon, 10 Apr 2006 18:24:56 GMT, Martin Eyles
<martin.eyles (AT) NOSPAMbigfoot (DOT) com> wrote:

Try using a meta tag in the header to refresh the page, and direct to a
different url.

see http://www.seologic.com/faq/meta-refresh-tag.php

For this technique, each picture would need to have it's own page. If
you don't want to keep reloading the navigation, then you could run this
in a frame or a new window (using a target property to open the first
page of the slideshow in the appropriate place).

HTH,
Martin

Hmmm... I had thought about that and, yeah, don't much care for
reloading the nav every time. But, you've got me to wondering...kind
of a variation on the "frames" concept. I could just "call" a page
which in turn would have a redirect after "xx" seconds, and so on and
so on. I'm gonna check that out, 'cause it would really be much
easier for me and much more accessible to the masses.

Thanks a lot !

Jane

On 10 Apr 2006 10:25:46 -0700, dingbat (AT) codesmiths (DOT) com wrote:

bevoldjling (AT) hotmail (DOT) com wrote:

As I said, I'd really like to do this with CSS/HTML only, but I can't
find any examples other than javascript.

I don't think it's possible to do this in pure CSS. You need either
JavaScript, Flash or even SMIL (!) because you want a time-related
element to it. I'd suggest downloading some well-known JavaScript -
these things are out there.

I don't think you can even do it particularly well with pure CSS even
without the time-based slideshow. It's certainly possible, but you'd
have to download the whole image set early on and this might be
unacceptable with limited bandwidth. With JavaScript it's quite easy to
download the visible images first, then download the rest in the
background.

Thanks for your input. I'm gonna try and see what progress I can make
with a metatag refresh. Failing that, I'll revert to JavaScript and
those can't view it will simply have to fly from their country to mine
to view it ...now THERE'S a thought !!

Jane

bevoldjling (AT) hotmail (DOT) com wrote:

I want to put up a photo album slideshow but I want to stay away from
Flash & Javascript. It just seems that anytime I use them, somebody
in the family has trouble with their browser or security settings.

So, if I tell you want I want to do, could someone maybe tell me
first, if it can be done and, second, HOW it can be done. I'm really
stumped.

See <http://jalbum.net/>.

--
jmm (hyphen) list (at) sohnen-moe (dot) com
(Remove .AXSPAMGN for email)

On Mon, 10 Apr 2006, Johannes Koch wrote:

Martin Eyles wrote:

[Slideshow]

Try using a meta tag in the header to refresh the page, and direct
to a different url.

This may also is prohibited according to security settings. In
addition there are accessibility issues with refreshing/redirecting
with a non-null timeout value.

Well, yes; but that *is* what many people mean by a "slide show". As
long as the "show" is optional (i.e with an alternative access which
only switches from slide to slide at user request), I don't see that
there is any actionable accessibility fault in also offering the
automatic option. Those who don't want to watch it don't have to;
and, as you say, any users who know it would be a problem for them
could set their client to prohibit meta refresh, as a defence against
stumbling into such a show inadvertently.

IMHO, anyway.

bevoldjling (AT) hotmail (DOT) com wrote:

I want to put up a photo album slideshow but I want to stay away from
Flash & Javascript. It just seems that anytime I use them, somebody
in the family has trouble with their browser or security settings.

Does your web server have PHP?

brucie gave us a PHP script for a slideshow a couple of years ago that
works well, and with minimal hassle - if you know a bit about PHP.

I could probably dig out the template if you're interested.

--
-bts
-Warning: I brake for lawn deer

On Mon, 10 Apr 2006 22:30:48 GMT, "Beauregard T. Shagnasty"
<a.nony.mous (AT) example (DOT) invalid> wrote:

bevoldjling (AT) hotmail (DOT) com wrote:

I want to put up a photo album slideshow but I want to stay away from
Flash & Javascript. It just seems that anytime I use them, somebody
in the family has trouble with their browser or security settings.

Does your web server have PHP?

I'm sure that they do, but I've never used it.

brucie gave us a PHP script for a slideshow a couple of years ago that
works well, and with minimal hassle - if you know a bit about PHP.

I appreciate the offer. I'm trying to keep this kind of simple 'cause
it's not a business website. Is there a great learning curve
involved? I gather there is more involved than a simple .php file
extension.

I could probably dig out the template if you're interested.

If you think it is something that I could figure out pretty easily, I
would at least take a look at it. [You could send it to
'nospam'freddielives (AT) hotmail (DOT) com [remove 'nospam'].

One problem I have with any Javascript slideshows that I've looked at
is that, once you click on a link from a photo and open the related
page in a new window, the slideshow image is still
"highlighted/selected" in the original window. Since the original
page is just a series of links on either side of the slideshow, I've
just used a metatag refresh, so that the "highlight" disappears by the
time a site visitor returns. It works, but I don't think it's very
slick. Would you agree ?

Thanks !

Jane

bevoldjling (AT) hotmail (DOT) com wrote:

On Mon, 10 Apr 2006 22:30:48 GMT, "Beauregard T. Shagnasty"
a.nony.mous (AT) example (DOT) invalid> wrote:

Does your web server have PHP?

I'm sure that they do, but I've never used it.

brucie gave us a PHP script for a slideshow a couple of years ago
that works well, and with minimal hassle - if you know a bit about
PHP.

I appreciate the offer. I'm trying to keep this kind of simple
'cause it's not a business website. Is there a great learning curve
involved?

Learning curve? No, I don't think so, as long as you understand relative
paths, and what a CSS file is.

I gather there is more involved than a simple .php file extension.

If your server/host *has* PHP but it doesn't run the script, ask them.

I could probably dig out the template if you're interested.

If you think it is something that I could figure out pretty easily, I
would at least take a look at it. [You could send it to
'nospam'freddielives (AT) hotmail (DOT) com [remove 'nospam'].

Here is link to template script. Copy it, save as 'slideshow.phps' then
make another copy of it with your chosen file name, with a '.php'
extension, without the trailing 's'. Work on this file, not the
template.
http://k75s.home.att.net/ss/slideshow.phps

Add your expected variable names (paths, number of images etc) and your
image file names and captions.

and the associated style sheet:
http://k75s.home.att.net/ss/slides.css

One problem I have with any Javascript slideshows that I've looked at
is that, once you click on a link from a photo and open the related
page in a new window, the slideshow image is still
"highlighted/selected" in the original window. Since the original
page is just a series of links on either side of the slideshow, I've
just used a metatag refresh, so that the "highlight" disappears by
the time a site visitor returns. It works, but I don't think it's
very slick. Would you agree ?

As brucie's script does not open a new window, the above is not a
problem.

Where is brucie these days?

--
-bts
-Warning: I brake for lawn deer