web/js question for you websperts!

[jujubees]

So I'm working on my department's site. There are lots of services, subdivisions, etc., in my dept so the head honcho wants it all available from the front page.

At this point, we've got flyout menu's, but sometimes they're SOOO long that he wants scrollbars on the suckers. I've never seen that and have no idea where to start. Any ideas?

Thanks in advance for any help!

[Jihforce]

Originally posted by jujubees
So I'm working on my department's site. There are lots of services, subdivisions, etc., in my dept so the head honcho wants it all available from the front page.

At this point, we've got flyout menu's, but sometimes they're SOOO long that he wants scrollbars on the suckers. I've never seen that and have no idea where to start. Any ideas?

Thanks in advance for any help!

By flyout menus you mean "popups" right?
It would help if I could see a screenshot of what you currently have.

[BrewMaster]

Sounds like your boss needs a good kick in the face. I hate it when people demand unnecessary things from IT and Web mamagement teams. The site is just going to be cluttered and he'll blame it on you even though it was his stupid-ass idea.

People, man. People... They kill me.

[penguintrix]

Originally posted by jujubees
So I'm working on my department's site. There are lots of services, subdivisions, etc., in my dept so the head honcho wants it all available from the front page.

At this point, we've got flyout menu's, but sometimes they're SOOO long that he wants scrollbars on the suckers. I've never seen that and have no idea where to start. Any ideas?

Thanks in advance for any help!

Is the site viewable from the internet or is it an intranet only?
There might be some ways around it.

[jujubees]

DF, I wish I actually had any input on this, but I don't. So funky flyouts it is.

Brew, my boss is actually pretty cool, and he won't blow his top if this doesn't work out (it still SUCKS tho).

penguin, the site *is* viewable on the net, but ummm ...

Anyhow, here's a screenshot of the menu:

[Jihforce]

Originally posted by BrewMaster
Sounds like your boss needs a good kick in the face. I hate it when people demand unnecessary things from IT and Web mamagement teams. The site is just going to be cluttered and he'll blame it on you even though it was his stupid-ass idea.

People, man. People... They kill me.

That's why people like me have jobs. We make sure the UI is designed well and incorporates what clients want and its easy to use. Nothing against you web developers out there...but I find it amusing how someone can call themselves a web designer without any formal design experience.

[Jihforce]

Originally posted by jujubees

Anyhow, here's a screenshot of the menu:

I noticed that a lot of the links can fall under a general category. Like accounting/billing, emails, etc...What you can do is have a general header (like emails) then when a user clicks/rollsover, have a dropdown menu with all the features under that category. That way the user doesn't have to load a new page just to access a certain feature.

Hope this link helps...
http://javascript.internet.com/gener...down-menu.html

[jujubees]

Originally posted by Jihforce
I noticed that a lot of the links can fall under a general category. Like accounting/billing, emails, etc...What you can do is have a general header (like emails) then when a user clicks/rollsover, have a dropdown menu with all the features under that category. That way the user doesn't have to load a new page just to access a certain feature.

I wish I could, but sadly, that's how he wants the menu to be. My job isn't to redesign it for usability, but to just toss some scrollbars on the right so that the menu doesn't take up the whole page. I guess the "creative freedom" that I was promised only involved choosing colors.

[Jihforce]

Originally posted by jujubees
I wish I could, but sadly, that's how he wants the menu to be. My job isn't to redesign it for usability, but to just toss some scrollbars on the right so that the menu doesn't take up the whole page. I guess the "creative freedom" that I was promised only involved choosing colors.

Dag nabbit! That sucks! hmmm try this link.

http://developer.netscape.com/docs/e...ml/scrollable/

don't know if it will work for sure, but its worth a try. I'll post some more if I find anything.

[jujubees]

Allow me to throw a few more roadblocks in your way.

I also have to make this cross-browser compliant. As far as I know, DHTML was never standardized so Netscape & ie each used proprietary coding. This particular one works for NS but not ie.

I got a request for a peek at the code so here it is:

<script language="JavaScript">
<!--
function LoadMenus() {
  if (window.menu_0) return;
  window.menu_0 = new Menu("root",287,17,"Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif",10,"#000000","#ffffff","#ffcc66","#000084");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Account Services and Billing Issues","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Billing - New Number","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Billing - Change to Information","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Corporate and Operational Systems Accounts","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Corporate &amp; Operational Systems Information","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Directory Corrections","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Production Control","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Records Management","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Sybase Accounts","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("Technical Acquisition Support","location='new.html'");
  menu_0.addMenuItem("U-wide Records &amp; Information Practices Policies","location='new.html'");
   menu_0.hideOnMouseOut=true;
} // LoadMenus()

//-->
</script>
<script language="JavaScript1.2" src="menu.js"></script>

with this in the body:

<a href="#" onMouseOut="startTimeout();"  onMouseOver="window.showMenu(window.menu_0,190,44);">
<img src="1_r2_c1.gif" width="190" height="15" border="0"></a>

[hapoo]

use a javascript function to check what browser the viewer is running and have it display the correct menu system.

[sho.gun]

Hey Jujubees, try this code: Code

It's cross browser compatible and it even works for NS6.

[jujubees]

Thanks for all of your suggestions, guys!

I went back and showed them an example of a menu that was tooooooo long, and they agreed it was too garish so they consolidated the menu's, making them fit on an average screen. Yay!

Something tells me, though, that the rest of this redesign is going to be an uphill battle ...