Hit Me FP

Steve Easton (FrontPage MVP) has just launched another utility for FrontPage users called Hit Me FP.  It's a custome Hit Counter Image Utility that runs from your desktop.  Visit http://www.95isalive.com/fixes/HitMeFP.htm for more details.

 

Clean up your FrontPageTempDir and *.web files

From Kathleen Anderson's Blog:

"Steve Easton, a FrontPage MVP, has created a new tool called FPCleaner that will delete the temporary files that may get left behind when you exit FrontPage. It will also delete the *.web files (the cached copies of your site that can occasionally get corrupted and cause problems).  I've been using it for a while now and gotten into the habit of running it just before I start FrontPage - in fact, it has a button to launch FP when you're through cleaning up.“

Creating an RSS Feed on your FrontPage Web Site

Recently I saw a question asking how to create an RSS Feed on a FrontPage web site so I thought it might be useful to post the response I gave here.

Most of the blogs are using ASP.NET.  If that's what you're doing  there's an article at http://aspnet.4guysfromrolla.com/articles/021804-1.aspx that gives you the code for how to do this on your site.

If you aren't using ASP.NET check out this article:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/office/default.aspx?pull=/library/en-us/odc_fp2003_ta/html/odc_fpbldgxmlwebs.asp

or this article .....

http://blogs.msdn.com/lisawoll/archive/2004/11/19/266972.aspx

and these sites  ........

http://www.webreference.com/xml/column13/
http://www.webreference.com/authoring/languages/xml/rss/
http://www.xml.com/pub/a/2002/12/18/dive-into-xml.html
http://www.mnot.net/rss/tutorial/

How do you create content that is usable on a cell phone?

How do you create content that is usable on a cell phone? The answer is by using Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) and Wireless Markup Language (WML).

In this article, we explain what these technologies are and how the Microsoft FrontPage Web site creation and management tool can make deploying new, wireless accessible content easy.
http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=3661614

Pump Up Your Web Site with Coding Tools

FrontPage 2003 coding tools can help you to generate clean, efficient code, while also giving you more control over the code.

This article will introduce you to the FrontPage 2003 coding tools and show you how you can use them to code faster and more accurately.
http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=3661613

New and Improved: FrontPage Resources for Developers

Interested in Web development? Visit the FrontPage developer portal for information on the latest Web technologies, including XML, XSLT, ASP, ASP.NET, and Microsoft SharePoint products and services.

http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=3661611

Microsoft Alerts on Microsoft Security

The Microsoft Security Web site now offers Microsoft® Alerts. This service lets you receive important messages through MSN® Messenger, Windows® Messenger, your e-mail program, or your mobile device. You choose how and when you receive alerts during the easy setup process.

February Security Bulletins

With the increase of identify theft, viruses, syware and adware, it's more importanrt than ever to keep you computer up-to-date with the lastes Microsoft Security Patches.  The security updates for February 2005 include several high-priority updates for Microsoft Windows that also affect Microsoft SharePoint, Microsoft Internet Explorer, and Microsoft Media Player technologies. If you have any of the software listed on this page installed on your computer, you should install the updates from Windows Update. 

Another way to stay up to date is to turn on the Windows Update feature on your computer.  To do this:

1. Right-click on My Computer and choose Properties.
2. Click on the Automatic Updates tab.
3. Click the radio button that says Automatic and then click Ok.

Now you will be sure to always get the latest updates once they become available.

FrontPage Add-ins Worth Getting

Are you looking for components that can make your web sites more attractive, more engaging, and easier to navigate? If so you might want to take a look at J-Bots or some of the other FrontPage add-ins from WebsUnlimited They're fast and easy to use, and require no programming skills. Simply fill in dialog boxes, click the Generate button, and JavaScript code will automatically create the function you desire.

J-Bots components make FrontPage web sites more customized by adding Javascript-enabled features—but you don’t have to write code or cut and paste. Simply fill in dialog boxes, click Generate, and the Javascript is created for you. With the components in this trial, add features like Drop Down Jump Menu and Mouseover Image, add interest with Global Clock or Text Color Fade, greet your visitors by name with Cookie components, and much more.  I've been using J-Bots and Meta Tag Maker (also from WebsUnlimited) for years now and they've always made it easier to get things done without the hassle of having to hand code scripts yourself.

In addition to J-Bots, Jimco also has a wide variety of useful add-ins for FrontPage that can help make your life easier or simply enhance or include features that the developers forgot.

Replace lost Office product keys

Every so often we get a request for help from someone who has lost their product key.  To obtain a new product key for your Office program in the United States, call 1-800-936-5700 and speak to a Microsoft customer service representative.  For more information visit the Microsoft Office Online Web site.

 

Server Performance Advisor V1.0

Microsoft has a new download available called Server Performance Advisor V1.0 that will help you diagnose problems with your Windows Web Server.

“Service Performance Advisor is a server performance diagnostic tool developed to diagnose root causes of performance problems in a Microsoft® Windows Server™ 2003 operating system, particularly performance problems for Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0 and the Active Directory® directory service. Server Performance Advisor measures the performance and use of resources by your computer to report on the parts that are stressed under workload.“

I uploaded my web pages but why are the changes not showing on my Web site?

You must clear your browser's cache first (Temporary Internet Pages).

Internet Explorer
To clear the cache:

1. Open Internet Explorer

2. Click on Tools and Select Internet Options.

3. Next, click on the Delete Files button to eliminate the cached Internet files

4. To make sure all Temporary Internet Files are removed from your system check
   the Delete all offline content box

5. Click OK to delete and OK once more to exit Internet Options

Netscape Navigator
To clear the cache:

1. Open the Edit menu and click Preferences

2. Under the Advanced category, click Cache. (If no options are visible in this category, click to expand the list)

3. Click on Clear Memory Cache then click on Clear Disk Cache.

HTTP Error 404 Submitting Form w/Save Results Form Handler

When you click the Submit button on a form, the following error message appears in the Web browser:

404 Not Found. The requested URL /nortbots/_derived/nortbots.htm was not found on this server. NOTE: The error may be different depending on which type of server your Web resides.

Cause

When you set up a form on a disk-based web to send results to a file or e-mail address, FrontPage configures the form so that the Nortbots.htm page will be displayed in the Web browser. When you submit the form from the disk-based web, the following information appears in the Web browser:

FrontPage Run-Time Component Page. You have submitted a form or followed a link to a page that requires a Web server and the FrontPage Server Extensions to function properly.

This form or other FrontPage components will work correctly if you publish this Web to a Web server that has the FrontPage Server Extensions installed.

Click the <Back> arrow to return to the previous page.

When you publish the Web to a Web server, FrontPage does not publish Nortbots.htm. FrontPage also does not configure the form to work with the FrontPage Server Extensions.

NOTE: This behavior also may occur if you are using the Discussion Form Handler or the Registration Form Handler.

---

To work around this behavior use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Remove the Reference to Nortbots.htm

1. In FrontPage Explorer, open your Web on the server.
2. Double-click the page that contains the form. The page will open in FrontPage Editor.
3. Click inside the form area. NOTE: The dashed line indicates the boundary of the form.
4. Click the HTML tab at the bottom of the FrontPage Editor window. You will see HTML code similar to the following:

      <form method="POST" name="myform"
      onSubmit="location.href='_derived/nortbots.htm';return false;"
      action=\"--WEBBOT-SELF--\">

5. Remove the entire line of code that begins with the "onSubmit" statement. Your code will now look similar to the following:

      <form method="POST" name="myform"
      action=\"--WEBBOT-SELF--\">

6. On the File menu, click Save.

Method 2: Re-create the Form

1. In FrontPage Explorer, open your "live" Web on the server.
2. Double-click the page that contains the form. The page will open in FrontPage Editor.
3. Select a form field and then press DELETE. Repeat this step until you have deleted all form fields.
4. Press DELETE to delete the form (indicated by the dashed line boundary).
5. On the Insert menu, point to Form Field, and click the form field option you want to add to your form. Repeat this step until you have recreated your form.
6. On the File menu, click Save.

Using FrontPage 2003 and Visual Studio .NET Together

Read an excerpt from Microsoft Office FrontPage 2003 Inside Out where Jim Buyens explains how programmers using Visual Studio.NET and designers using FrontPage 2003 can work on the same physical copy of a Web site and how they can take the best advantage of each program. 

Using Newsgroups to Get Answers

Got a tough problem? Become a newsgroupie

By Colin Wilcox

“If you have a problem with a slide deck, spreadsheet, or database that you can't solve, chances are you can find an answer on a newsgroup. This article explains how to connect to newsgroups using either Microsoft Internet Explorer or Microsoft Outlook® Express. It also provides tips for getting the best results from newsgroups.”

For More Information take a look at How to get the best answer to your questions in the Microsoft® FrontPage® Newsgroups

How to Create a Custom Hit Counter

To create a custom image for the FrontPage hit counter, follow these steps:

1. Open any image editing program that is capable of saving files as .GIF images, such as Microsoft Image composer.
   
   Note: The hit counter works only with .GIF images.
   
2. Create an image that is 200 pixels wide and 40 pixels high.
   
3. Evenly place text for the numbers 0 through 9 from left to right.
   
   If your image editor program has the ability to place a grid on the
   image, you may want to use this feature to better align the text. In this example, the graphic for each number is 20 pixels wide.
   
   The numbers should be lined up as follows:
   
   0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
   
4. After you are satisfied with the look and alignment of your image, save the image as a .GIF image. For the file name, use "Counter.gif" (without the quotation marks).

After you create the image, import the image into your FrontPage Web. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Open your Web in FrontPage.
   
2. In Folders view, make sure that your images folder is the open folder. If it is not, click the folder in the All Folders pane to open it.
   
3. On the File menu, click Import.
   
4. In the "Import" dialog box, click Add File.
   
5. In the "Add File to Import List" dialog box, locate the Counter.gif file on your hard disk, select the file, and click Open.
   
6. In the "Import File to FrontPage Web" dialog box, click OK.

The file has been imported to your Web; however, you must add a counter to your page.

To add the counter to your page, follow these steps:

1. In Page view, open the page you want to use the counter on.
   
2. Click your page to place the insertion point in the location in which you want the hit counter to appear.
   
3. On the Insert menu, click Component, and click Hit Counter.
   
4. In the Hit Counter Properties dialog box, click Custom Image.
   
5. In the Custom Image text box, type "images/counter.gif" (without the quotation marks).
   
6. Save the page.
   
7. To test the counter, click File, and click Preview In Browser.

NOTE: You may have to edit the image in your image editing program several times to get the placement and look of the numbers correct. The size of the image does not matter to the hit counter, but it is a good idea to create images that have widths that are divisible by 10.

Example: 100 pixels, 200 pixels, 300 pixels.

How do I remove an Add-in in Frontpage?

1. On the Tools menu in FrontPage 2000/2002, click Add-ins.
2. Select the add-in you would like to uninstall.
3. Click Remove.
4. Click OK.

If it was added to the toolbar:

1. On the Tools menu, click Customize.
2. With the Customize dialog box displayed, click the  Add-ins menu item
3. Drag the add-in menu item off of the menu.

You can find great add-ons for FrontPage at the FrontPage Add-in Center.

Using non-standard fonts

One of the minor drawbacks of FrontPage is that it allows you to select any font, that is registered on your PC, to design your web pages. I say this is a drawback because many web designers aren't aware that you can't use any font you'd like and have your site appear the way you designed it on all PCs.

Why? Because when a browser renders a web site it can only use fonts that are installed on that PC. So if you used a non-standard font on your page (ex: Garamond Extra Bold), and the font you specify is unavailable, the text will appear in the default font which is set by the user's browser.

There are only a few fonts that you can rely on the majority of people having installed on their PCs. Times New Roman, Arial and Courier are on most computers though some Macs will not have them. Other commonly available ones are Verdana and Tahoma.

Tip: When specifying a font you can select more than one so that you can control what the browser chooses. For example, you could use <FONT FACE = "Verdana, Arial, Times"> and the browser will render the first font in your list that's available on the user's PC before it chooses their default font.

So what if you really want to use a particular font?  There a a few things you can do.  One way is to make the text into an image.  The downside of this is that images can slow the loading of your site.  Another way is to "embed" the font into your page.

To embed fonts in your page you can download the Web Embedding Fonts Tool (WEFT), which lets you create "font objects" that are linked to your Web pages.

You can read more about fonts and typography on Microsoft's web site.

Adjusting your site for different Screen Resolutions

Have you ever spent hours trying to get your site to look just right and then viewed it on another PC at a different screen resolution?  If I design a site, I want to be sure that it stays the way I wanted it to look no matter what screen resolution the visitor is using.  How do you accomplish this?

Tables. 

Tables can be a web designer's best friend when it comes to achieving the perfect look. If you just want to make sure your site fits in all browsers you can set up a table set to 100% width and then put your content inside of it.  This will insure that it expands and grows to the width of the user's browser no matter what screen resolution they have.

If you want to be sure that your site stays the same in all screen resolutions then you would use tables and cells locked at a specific number of pixels to keep things from distorting.  

A few years ago it was good practice to always design for the most commonly used screen resolution - 640x480 but these days, most PCs come pre-set up for screen resolutions of 800x600 or higher.  One tip when using tables set to a specific number of pixels is to remeber to take into account that you don't have the full height and width of the browser to take advantage of. You have to account for the scroll bars, menu bars, tool bars etc.  For example, at 640x480 you may want to set your table to a width of 595.

An alternate way of doing this is to set up different pages and use a screen redirect script to redirect your users depending on their browser settings.

Creating Custom Scroll Bars

Internet Explorer 5 added a new ability for web designers to take advantage of.  That was the ability to customize and add colors to their scroll bars.  This is done using Cascading Style Sheets (CSS).

And example would look like this:

<HEAD>
<style type="text/css">
body {
scrollbar-arrow-color: #6C000E;
scrollbar-base-color: #1D50AC;
scrollbar-dark-shadow-color: #1D50AC;
scrollbar-track-color: #2559AF;
scrollbar-face-color: #FFCC66;
scrollbar-shadow-color: #000000;
scrollbar-highlight-color: #D9D9D9;
scrollbar-3d-light-color: #FFCC66;
}
</style>
</head>

You can enter the colors using regular names (such as green, black, red etc) or HEX values (such as# D9D9D9, #000000, etc).  Also, you do NOT need to use all of the lines above.

If you're not familiar enough with creating stylesheets you can go to EchoEcho.Com and use the custom scroll bar generator to create the code you need to put into your page's <HEAD> section.

This only works in Internet Explorer 5+  but it will not affect the look of your site in earlier versions or other browser such as Netscape.