Web Connection User's Guide
Use the Layer part to create an HTML Layer tag. A layer is a self
contained unit of HTML content that can be positioned within the
browser.
Layers are only supported in Netscape. For cross-browser layering,
use the Division part.
To add a Layer part, select the Web Connection Category (
), then the Layer part (
). You can also add the part using the Add Part dialog and specifying
the class name, AbtHtmlLayer.
The Layer part has the following properties:
- above
- Use the above property to specify the name of another layer
that you want to be above the current layer. The referring layer must
have been defined before you can specify whether it is above or below the
current layer, and the referring layer must have a partName.
The above property is mutually exclusive with the
below and zIndex properties.
- backgroundColor
- Use the backgroundColor property to set the background color for the
layer.
- backgroundImage
- Use the backgroundImage property to specify the image you want
to use at run time for the background, or wallpaper, of the page. You
can specify any image file that is supported by the Web browser used at run
time, provided the image is in a location accessible to the browser.
This property is equivalent to the background
attribute of the HTML body element.
- below
- Use the below property to specify the part name of another
layer that you want to be below the current layer. The referring layer
must have been defined before you can specify whether it is above or below the
current layer, and the referring layer must have a partName.
The below property is mutually exclusive with the
above and zIndex properties.
- class
- Use the class property to label the layer with a predefined
class specified in a document or external style sheet. This allows you
to create a class of layers that all use the same style sheet, for
example.
- clip
- Use the clip property to hide portions of the layer. The
value of the clip property is an array of two or four
numbers. These numbers define pixel offsets into the layer defining the
area to clip. These offsets correspond to the left, top, right, and
bottom edges of teh clip area. If you specify only two numbers, they
correspond to the right and bottom edges of the visible area.
The area outside of the visible area of the layer is made transparent, so
whatever is beneath the current layer is displayed.
- eventHandlers
- Use the eventHandlers property to define any event handlers for
this part. Event handlers provide the ability to detect and react to
events that occur while an HtmlPage is loaded in a Web browser. An
example of an event handler is mouse over, where you can specify
when the mouse moves over an HTML element, something happens, usually a
JavaScript is executed..
- extraAttributes
- Use the extraAttributes property to specify any additional HTML
attributes that you want included in the HTML tagging generated by the
part. You can use this property to include HTML attributes that are not
directly supported by VisualAge.
- inline
- Use the inline property to specify whether or not the layer
should be rendered using the <ilayer> HTML tag. The <ilayer> tag
renders content directly in the containing text flow. The top and left
attributes are offset from the current inline position. This is
different than the <layer> tag which offsets from the document's
upper-left display corner. The default value is
false.
- left
- Use the left property to specify an absolute position in the
browser for this layer. The value of the left property is a
number that specifies the number of pixels that the layer is offset from the
left edge of the browser.
- partName
- In the Part name field, type the name you want to use to
describe the part. For non-visual parts, this text appears under the
icon for the part on the free-form surface.
The name of the part can consist of alphanumeric characters, and must be
unique from all other parts on the layout surface.
This field is optional. If you do not specify a part name, VisualAge
generates a unique name based on the class name of the part.
- style
- Use the style property to create an inline style for all of the
contents included in this layer.
- top
- Use the top property to specify an absolute position in the
browser for this layer. The value of the top property is a
number that specifies the number of pixels that the layer is offset from the
top edge of the browser.
- url
- Use the url property to specify the location on a server of a
file where the content of the layer is stored. Use this property if the
content is long and maintained outside of VisualAge on a server. When
you specify a URL location for the file containing content for a layer, the
Web browser will call and execute the content when rendering the HTML.
- visibility
- Use the visibility property if you want to hide a layer
initially. The valid values for the visibility property are
Show which forces the layer to be seen, Hide which hides
the layer from view, and Inherit which specifies to inherit the
visibility of the parent object. If you are not nesting layers, the
parent object is the main document, which is always visible. If you are
nesting layers, the parent is the previous layer.
A layer that is hidden does not block layers below it from being
shown. If you hide a layer, the layer is transparent, so the content
below the layer will be visible.
- width
- Use the width property to explicitly specify the width of the
layer. If you do not explicitly specify a width for a layer, the
browser renders it from the location specified in the left property
to the right edge of the browser. The browser formats the content of
the layer to fit the width and automatically adjusts the height of the layer
to fit the contents of the layer.
The value of the width property is specified in pixels.
The browser adjusts the height of the layer based on the contents of the
layer.
- zIndex
- Use the zIndex property to order multiple levels of
layers. The value of the zIndex property is the index value
for this layer. Higher zIndex values are placed above lower
zIndex values.
The zIndex property is mutually exclusive with the
above and below properties.
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