Lesson 9: HTML Frames

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Lesson 9:HTML Frames

Lesson 9 Objectives• Define frames and the purpose of the frameset document• Use the <frameset> and <frame> tags• Create a frameset document• Identify the purpose of the <noframes> tag• Target links from one frame to another• Specify default targets using the <base> tag• Create borderless frames, and control margins and scrolling in

frames• Identify the purpose of inline frames• Discuss the appropriate use of frames• Consider search engine optimization (SEO) issues when using

frames

The <frameset> Tag• A container tag, requires a closing

</frameset> tag• Determines the frame types and sizes on

the page• Two frame types:

– Columns – Rows

Columns Example

• This frameset was created by the following code: <frameset cols="35%,65%"> </frameset>

Rows Example

• This frameset was created by the following code: <frameset rows="180,*"> </frameset>

The <frame> Tag

• Defines the content in each frame• Placed between the <frameset> </frameset> tags• The src attribute specifies the file that will appear in

the frame• In example, the page that will appear in the top

frame is the file fl-toc.html, and the page that will appear in the lower frame is fl-second.html:<frameset rows="180,*"><frame src="fl-toc.html"/><frame src="fl-second.html"/></frameset>

The Frameset Document• Contains the the <frameset>, <frame> and

<noframes> elements• The <frameset> and <frame> tags will create

frames only if they are placed correctly into this document– In the frameset document, the <frameset> element

takes the place of the <body> element– The opening <frameset> tag follows the closing

</head> tag– The <frameset> tag must contain either the rows

attribute or the cols attribute, or both

Viewing Source with Framesets

• Click on the frame you want to view• Take the necessary steps to view the

source code• The same instructions apply to printing

from a frame

The <noframes> Tag• For user agents that cannot render frames• Displays alternative text or images

– In some ways, similar to the alt attribute for the <img> tag

• Code:<noframes><body> If you had a frames-capable browser, you would see frames here</body></noframes>

Targeting Frames with Hyperlinks• Use the name attribute to name a frame, then target

the frame name with hyperlinks• The syntax for naming a frame is as follows:

<frame src="url" name="framename"/> • The following code names a frame:

<frame src="james.html" name="authors"/> • The following code targets this frame: <a href="james.html" target= "authors"> Visit James </a>

• If a user clicks the Visit James link, the James page will open in the Authors frame

Specifying a Base Target

• A base target automatically sets a default target frame for all links in a page

• Created using the <base> tag• Code:

<base target="main" href="page.html"/>• This code will cause all linked pages to open in

the frame named “main”• The href attribute is optional

Borders, Margins and Scrolling• To create borderless frames, add the frameborder attribute to the <frame> tag– frameborder= "1" causes borders to display

(the default)– frameborder= "0" hides borders

• Example: <frame src="home.html" name="main" frameborder="0"/>

Borders, Margins and Scrolling (cont'd)

• Frame margin width and height– The marginheight attribute designates the space,

in pixels, between the top and bottom margins– The marginwidth attribute designates the space,

in pixels, between the left and right margins

Borders, Margins and Scrolling (cont'd)

• Scrolling frames– The scrolling attribute to the <frame> tag controls

whether the scrollbar appears– The scrolling attribute values:

• "yes" — enables scrolling (the default)• "no" — disables scrolling• "auto" — allows the browser to decide

• Example: <frame src= "ex.html" name= "ex" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"/>

Inline Frames

• Inserts an HTML or XHTML document inside another

• Also called "floating frames"• Created with the <iframe> tag• The browser reads the <iframe> tag from the

file, then makes a separate request to the server for the embedded file

Inline Frames (cont'd)

• Simple XHTML page with inline frame:

<h1>iFrame Example</h1><p><strong>This text is found in iframe.html </strong><p/>

<iframe src="embedded.html" scrolling= "yes">Your browser does not support frames

</iframe>

<p><strong>This text is also found in iframe.html. </strong></p>

• The next slide shows the results of this code…


• Inline frames are useful for:– Web documents in which all content will remain

static, except for one section (e.g., a weekly special) – the frequently changed section can be an inline frame, which can be quickly modified when necessary without editing the entire page

– Documents that you prefer to embed in a page instead of placing on a separate page or providing as a download (such as text or a PDF)

Appropriate Use of Frames

• Frames are useful only in specific situations• Consider the following issues:

– Function – Appeal– Development challenges– Accessibility limitations– Usability with the browser Back button

Frames andSearch Engine Optimization

• In general, using frames will lower your page's rank in a search engine

• Many search engine spiders do not follow the frame sources from the frameset page

Lesson 9 Summary Define frames and the purpose of the frameset document Use the <frameset> and <frame> tags Create a frameset document Identify the purpose of the <noframes> tag Target links from one frame to another Specify default targets using the <base> tag Create borderless frames, and control margins and scrolling in

frames Identify the purpose of inline frames Discuss the appropriate use of frames Consider search engine optimization (SEO) issues when using

frames

Lesson 9: HTML Frames

Documents

Transcript of Lesson 9: HTML Frames