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Knowledge Base support case for AllWebMenus, abstracted and stripped of all user’s private info.

Initial Email From: Bryan
Initial Email Subject:  Status Bar Text
Support Case Month: March 2012

On this URL, {URL REMOVED} the left-side vertical navigation is AWM. It's populated inside the page with a UL/LI tag.

My client is complaining that the status bar text doesn't appear when you mouseover a link...in most browsers anyhow. IE 9 seems to work.

Is there any way to correct this so the link appears in the status bar?

Thanks,

Bryan

Reply From: Likno Customer Support

Dear Bryan,

In order for AllWebMenus to display the highly complex menu designs, it has to use special JavaScript-based links and not the standard <a> tag links. For these, the status bar URL is also displayed using JavaScript.

Some recent browsers have introduced a new “security” feature where JavaScript code is not allowed to change the status bar text, in order to protect users from clicking links they did not want to click (e.g. from malicious cases where the actual link would take them to a different URL than the one displayed in the status bar). Unfortunately this “security” rule will block the editing of the status bar text even when the link URL is identical to the status bar text. I am afraid that this is not something we can change on our side.

Still there is a way to fix it if you think this is important. You can use the “CSS menu” feature with which the links ARE actual <a> tags and their URL will always show in the status bar. Note however that these have some other limitations and may not appear as good in older browsers (including IE8) as they require CSS3 support to appear properly (they will however be fully functional).

Regards,
Kostas
Likno Customer Support
www.likno.com
Create any type of javascript menu (CSS menu, drop-down menu, sliding menu), button, html tree, modal window, tooltip, accordion, tab, scroller, jQuery slider or design for your websites!
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Hello, we have released a new version of AllWebMenus Pro: Version 5.3 build #894.

Check out What's New

- Enhanced the "Custom Variables" feature of the "Text", "Link", "Status Bar Text" and "Tooltip" properties.

Now you can update any custom variables used by your menu within your page and immediately have their changed values reflected on the menu.

Optionally, this advanced feature can be used in combination with the "Manually trigger Main Menu or any Group on user action" positioning method, so that you show the same single menu on different page elements, using different "Link" values (or "Text", "Tooltip", etc.) on its items per each element.

For example, the following single menu (just one menu) can be used on many DVD images, where the "Link" properties of the menu items use different values per element (so that the linked page knows which DVD item calls it):

read how to do this

- Added support for the "Link & Run Other Likno Projects (from menu)" feature in "Batch Compile".

- Fixed an issue related to css styles (IE only), in particular for "td {width: 50%;} img {float: left;}".

- Fixed some FrontPage related issues.

- Fixed an issue where the "Has Submenu Image" appeared in an item, despite its group was marked as "hidden".

All features here: http://www.likno.com/allwebmenusinfo.html

Download the new version of our CSS menu builder at http://www.likno.com/download.html

1. First, what is a "Custom Variable"?

A custom variable is a javascript variable whose value you can update in your web page (through javascript) in order to alter the menu properties where they are used, based on your conditions or preferences.

The syntax of a custom variable is (whichever you prefer):

     <awm:myvar>

OR

<awm:myvar/>

 

Example:

The applicable properties where a custom variable can be used are:

ITEM PROPERTIES:

Text

Link

Status Bar Text

Tooltip

GROUP PROPERTIES:

Header Text

Header Tooltip

Footer Text

Footer Tooltip

If you click on the "Compile Properties" toolbar button and then the "Custom Variables" option you will see any custom variables detected to be "in use" by your project (read more about this functionality in the AllWebMenus Help section there).

2. OK, so how can I use "Custom Variables" to show the same single menu with differentiated values, when this menu is triggered as a "popup" by different page elements?

Read below how you can show the same single menu on different page elements, using different "Link" values on its items per element.

Let's assume that you have several images on your page that display different DVD movie posters.

Each of these images shows the same menu when clicking on it, offering 3 actions (menu items) for the particular DVD that opens it ("view it", "purchase it", "rate it", etc.):

Now, each item of that menu links to a page related to its action (e.g. the "Purchase DVD" item links to the "purchase.php" page, etc.). In order for the linked page to know which DVD opens it, there is also a parameter at the end of the URL (e.g. "?dvd_id=13").

For example, these are the menu links when "Item 13" (DVD 13) triggers the menu:

But how can you use a different link value on the same menu, depending on which image (page element) triggers its appearance?

This is how:

1. In AllWebMenus, use a custom variable at the final part of each item's "Link" property (instead of a "hard coded" value):

2. In your page, first specify the value of this custom variable (with javascript) and then manually trigger the appearance of the menu (also with javascript):

<img src="movie-poster-13.jpg" onclick="custom_dvd_id=13;awmShowGroup('menu-gr0',0,3,0,0,this);">

For each different page element (DVD image) use a different value prior to calling the same menu. For example:

<img src="movie-poster-14.jpg" onclick="custom_dvd_id=14;awmShowGroup('menu-gr0',0,3,0,0,this);">

<img src="movie-poster-15.jpg" onclick="custom_dvd_id=15;awmShowGroup('menu-gr0',0,3,0,0,this);">

<img src="movie-poster-16.jpg" onclick="custom_dvd_id=16;awmShowGroup('menu-gr0',0,3,0,0,this);">

In that way, the menu links eventually use a different value in their URL parameters depending on which page element (DVD image) opens it.

For more information on how to manually trigger a menu (on demand, as a "popup menu") please read the AllWebMenus Help topic of the "Manually trigger Main Menu or any Group on user action" positioning method.

Knowledge Base support case for AllWebMenus, abstracted and stripped of all user’s private info.

Support Case Month: March 2012
Initial Email Subject: Status Bar Text

Initial Email From: Bryan

Reply From: Likno Customer Support

Hi everyone!

We are happy  to report that we have released AllWebMenus v5.2 build #796!

The new version includes the following new features and enhancements:

• Added an option in GUI for selecting the desired preview doctype from a list.

• Fixed an issue where the status bar was not showing links (in IE7 browser).

• Fixed an issue where a horizontal status bar appeared, because of wrong position of subgroup (IE only).

• Changed the Joomla Structure input to support Unicode.

You can download the latest version at http://www.likno.com/download.html.

If you want to view all features and enhancements added on every released version (chronological), you can visit our What's New Page.