How to use AllWebMenus with CoolPage

CoolPage is a rather simple HTML editor that uses many automated web design processes. AllWebMenus has a very clear integration path with CoolPage:

Step 1: Export your CoolPage pages in a directory in your PC.

CoolPage functions in a way that conceals entirely the HTML form of the documents from the user. In order to include AllWebMenus in the CoolPage pages you will need to have access to the raw HTML format of the pages and manipulate those in order to attach the menu to them. However, this is done very easily through the automated mechanism of AllWebMenus, and without the need to access the HTML code of each page.

For this reason you have to use "Files->Export" in CoolPage, to export your pages to a local directory (let's say to the directory c:\SiteRoot).

Your pages are now saved in HTML format inside that directory:

Step 2: Compile your menu

From inside AllWebMenus, click on "Tools->Compile Menu", in order to compile your menu and link it to your HTML pages:

This opens the "Compile Menu As" dialog. Select a location under your C:\SiteRoot folder to save your compiled menu:

Once you follow this step, all the necessary AllWebMenus files will be automatically saved inside the C:\SiteRoot folder:

Step 3: Link your menu to your web pages

In the next AllWebMenus window, select the button that allows you to link the menu to your web pages.

The next window in AllWebMenus allows you to select the web pages that you wish to contain your menu. You can select many pages at once and link to as many pages as you wish. Keep in mind that CoolPage sometimes creates two different sets of pages, one set of which is only used by Netscape 4 browsers. You will need to include all the CoolPage produced pages so that your menu can appear properly in all browsers.

This process creates the necessary javascript code that runs your menu and adds it inside the selected HTML files.

Step 4. Publish your updated web pages and your compiled menu files

The next step requires you to publish your pages to your web server. This should be done separately from CoolPage and you should not publish your site by using the CoolPage Publish feature:

...as this will simply ignore all the additions that have been done with AllWebMenus. You will need to use a simple FTP client to upload the documents to your web server.

Remember to upload all the AllWebMenus files at the exact same position as they are created inside your local site structure (i.e. inside the C:\SiteRoot folder).

In other words, your local and remote site should appear as follows:

Enjoy your Cool Menus online!