tokens and frames???

[cmartin]

Hello-

I have my site working fairly well with a custom built login system and tokens. However, due partly to a desire to a hide my URL, I am trying to go to frames. However, I am not sure how to make this work with tokens. I need to pass my tokens to my leftframe (navigation menu). How do I do that?

Thanks-

Courtney

[Anatoli]

IMHO, use frames as single page. Frames are good for security but horrible to program.

You can gain extra security by using "forced frames". I am usually using frameset with 2 pages. Top page is single pixel page and everything below is my standard page.

[cmartin]

For sure I know that you (Anatoli) are a fan of forced frames. Actually spent yesterday researching how to implement such a set-up. And i could leave it all on single page, but I would like to have a navigation menu. There must be a way to pass tokens to multiple htm files in the framseet, no?

[Anatoli]

IMHO you can pass token in link which will refresh response page. You are always getting somewhere by submitting action on previous page.

It is not so easy in frames. In fact I didn't like that.

You can use JavaScript in many ways to achieve that.

And you will not really get much back. And frames, which are showing scroll bars in browser are very ugly.

Do you like the Forced frames?

[Leb i Sol]

hmmm this sounds Very familiar

u can always use "target" with your form and pass tokens arround to any frame:

------------------------

<form action="FMPro" method="post" name="my_little_form" target="mainFrame">

<input type="hidden" name="-DB" value="my_little_DB.fp5">

<input type="hidden" name="-Format" value="myBIGpage.html">

<input type="hidden" name="-Token.0" value="[FMP-CurrentToken:0]">

-------------------------

or the same by use of link rather than form...

[Leb i Sol]

"And frames, which are showing scroll bars in browser are very ugly"

I Have to dissagree...

this can be easily adjusted by "NO scroll"....and "most" newer browsers can mask these scrollers and actually give some nice look to a page!

...here come the wrath of Anatoli!

[Anatoli]

It can be adjusted by "NO scroll" but then you cannot scroll.

In any case, AFAIK none of the really BIG computer companies uses frames. When I was doing websites for Sun, 3-Com and some other companies, frames were forbidden in Site Design Manuals.

Usually framed site looks amateurish. I don't remember any nice designs with them but one or two.

[Leb i Sol]

..I know I am with you on that one...I don't use them if I can help it...but it is possible to do some background bleding and user will never know that we are talking frames.

-The reason Sun or any of those giants asked u guys for no frames was...."back in a day" when browsers were not that great of handeling frame-based pages and also complicated things with dyn. pages.....BUT thigns have changed since....

lates nice page I saw was:

http://pixologic.com

.....and it works great for their "image-album-type" browsing click on "Gallery"

I don't see anythign amateurish on this page...I would rather face a frame than a 100 miles long of a signle page (eg. those "up to date - news" pages) that at the bottom of it looses any indentity and makes a printing hell

I knew I was going to get your voice on this one ....jsut wanted to give some hopes to "frame" people

[Anatoli]

That is nice *and* amateurish.

The graphic is nice, the HTML implementation is not so nice and it looses frame functionality in search engines.

Go to page Press.

Copy text: Macweek.com awarded ZBrush Best of Show

Search for that in Google

Open that page

No navigation, no frameset just plain and not complete page

The same will happen, if visitor will "open in new window".

That is the main reason, why everybody spits on frames. That is enough. Not the "back in a day". Until their HTML developer will repair that, I am sorry, it is very amateurish work.

That same effect as left navigation can be handled on normal HTML page and bit of DHTML.

Or use some simple JS, which will force single HTML page e.g. from search engine back to appropriate frameset.

[Leb i Sol]

I know...I know...but you have to give them some + for the visual presentation of it all.

"Or use some simple JS, which will force single HTML page"

if there is a solution....why bash frames?

Don't get me wrong, I tend not to use them as well due to my working habbits....but I just never really heard a 100% valid answer to "Why not use them?"....just like u said 2-3 lines of JS and the problem is fixed!sooooo I am not convinced.....******* it boy educate me!

Anyhow, bottom line of my thought is...NO FRAMES unless we talk some "fun" designs....even then I will smoke a few cigarettes and pull some hair out before saying "yes"

[Anatoli]

Sure, graphic is nice; I can't do that in million years.

For frameset inspiration check http://www.didi.cz/test/

Try click on pages and then open the pages in new window.

[Leb i Sol]

speaking of graphics...I am surprised that there is no Photoshop section in these forums. It is nice to have the DB running in the back but why not decorate with some nice interface? FM was originally from Mac community and I belive Photoshop as well...or people here are really not that interested into graphics design!?

...I woudn't mind to contribute to a (hint) such a forum!

[Anatoli]

Even more useful will be JavaScript section.

With graphic my biggest problem was, that every site has to look differently. In that I cannot compete to good graphic studio.

I am pretty skilled in PhotoShop to avoid need for good graphic. Also, without fancy graphic my sites are usually running blazingly fast on 28k modems.

[Leb i Sol]

JS...yes most definetly!

I have seen some sites from Very skilled programmers but yet their sites look so so so bad. I mean they look like my little cousin made those images and just randomly placed them arround...is it so hard to at least allign things. Now, I am not talking about making Flash powered sites that almost look like TV adds but common...if you have a 4 and only 4 links on your site would it hurt to put a nice jpg or gif insted of text "click here".....at least tables..cells of diffrent color...anything!

just an example:

not knowing the company would you pick this company:

1-http://www.blueclaw-db.com/

over this company that seem more up to date:

2-http://www.drdev.net

I didn't even bother browsing the site 1 because of its look

but that's just me!

[Leb i Sol]

...can you tell that I am bittered programmer and happy "visualist"

[Anatoli]

In site 1 I'll be more worried about suffering through more dazzling effects like those moving links on homepage. Wow! How they did that?

Do they really think, that someone from this planet will find that appealing? ROFL

Site 2 is sure nice and clean.

[Leb i Sol]

1-...I know...its just amasing that some people expect to gain business from "that thing"...but what can you do...write some more tutorials and hope someone reads them!