ImageViewer v1.4

    This is the configuration details for ImageViewer version 1.4.  It was written by Branton Boehm (email) in July of 2000.  It's purpose is to allow a large number of pictures to be viewed on one page without loading all the pictures at once on an HTML page and without having to load a new page for each picture.  The size of the class file is smaller than most pictures (6.58KB) meaning you won't have to wait forever just for the applet to load.

Sections:

1. Param Tags
2. Configuration
3. Sample Configuration File
4. Common Errors
5. Updates
6. Questions & Suggestions
7. Special Thanks

Param Tags:

There are seven param tags, with only one being required.  They are:

    config
    bgcolor
    fontcolor
    loadspeed
    next
    last
    menu

"config" is the one required param tag.  The value is the file name of the configuration text file--where all the picture file names and captions are located.  It MUST be a relative path name to the ImageViewer.class file.

Obviously, "bgcolor" and "fontcolor" control the background and font colors.  They must be in hexadecimal format ("00FA3B", for example).  Make sure you do not include a '#' as is common in web pages.

This version now supports background loading of images once the applet starts.  "loadspeed" can have four values:

The faster the speed, the more system resources are used.  Normal speed usually works fine but you can adjust it to your preference.  If the "loadspeed" tag is omitted, the value is set to 0.

"next", "last", and "menu" set the text to be displayed on the buttons and the label for the menu.

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Configuration:

A problem with past versions (1.2 and earlier) of ImageViewer were all the <PARAM> tags.  There were two for each group specified and two for each picture in each group.  If you wanted a large number of pictures, your HTML page got pretty messy.  Also, each picture had to be numbered sequentially.  So if you wanted to add a picture to the first group, you had to renumber every picture (and caption) following it.  This is fixed by putting all of the group names, file names, and captions in a separate text file.  If you want to add a new picture or group, you simply insert it in the text file where you want it.  The text file is described below:

GROUPS:

For each group in the pull-down menu, a "GROUP" must be declared in the text file.  An example follows:

GROUP Family Pictures

Simply put a space after "GROUP" and type the name to appear in the menu following it.  The name can be any length, but if it is too long it will run off the edge of the menu.

PICTURES:

To add a picture to a group, a file name and optional caption follow the "GROUP" declaration.  An example follows:

picnic.jpg|Fun at the park

The relative path to the picture (from the ImageViewer.class file) begins the line.  If you wish to include a caption, it is followed by that cool little vertical line character.  If you can't find it on your keyboard, look at the backslash and it is probably the shift of that.  The caption then follows.  Again, this can be any length but can run off the edge of the applet window.

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Sample File:

Here is an example file.  You should, of course, replace the group names, file names, and captions with your own.

config.txt

GROUP Family Picnic
food.jpg|I think Mom cooked enough!
ants.jpg|What's a picnic without ants?
frisbee.jpg|A little fun after the food.
grandparents.jpg

GROUP Christmas
nativity.jpg|The birth of Jesus remembered
dinnertable.jpg|Everyone made it home this year
babies.jpg|The kids and their presents...

GROUP Graduation
wholeclass.jpg
valedictorian.jpg
salutatorian.jpg
brian.jpg

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Common Errors:

There are some errors that are easy to make and happen fairly frequently:

• The "config" param tag must give the relative path to the text file from the ImageViewer.class file.
• In the "bgcolor" and "fontcolor" param tags, there cannot be a '#' preceding the hexadecimal colors.

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Update History:

ImageViewer 1.4 (released 7/7/00):

• Problems with the background loading have been resolved.  Also, the page designer has the option of adjusting the speed or even turning it off.
• Labels on the buttons and label at the bottom of the window can now be customized by the page designer.
• Lots of improvements in code.  You won't see this but I feel a lot better about the applet now:)

ImageViewer1.3 (released 6/30/00):

• All pictures are loaded in the background after the applet starts.  This allows for much faster browsing of the images because the user does not have to wait for each to load when the "next" button is pushed.
• The configuration file is much more flexible
  • Blank lines are acceptable, making the file much easier to read
  • When a caption is not used, the '|' character is not required
  • "GROUP" need not be capitalized (though it is recommended)