Getting Started             

  1. Place the program files (TipLink.jar, TipLink.cab, ryTipLink.class and ryQWrap.class) in the directory containing the HTML document into which you want to insert the applet (or into a different directory, and add the correct CODEBASE= attribute to the applet tag given below).

  2. Add the following applet tag to your HTML document in the position you want TipLink to appear:
    <APPLET CODE="ryTipLink" ARCHIVE="TipLink.jar" WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=200>
    <param name=CabBase value="TipLink.cab">
    <param name=Copyright value="TipLink (c) 1999 Cool Focus [www.coolfocus.com]">
    <param name=Name value="UniqueName">
    <param name=Satellites value="no">
    <param name=BgColor value="000000">
    <param name=TileBgImage value="no">
    <param name=PanelColor value="000000">
    <param name=TilePanelImage value="no">
    <param name=TextColor value="FFFFFF">
    <param name=FocusTextColor value="0080FF">
    <param name=PressTextColor value="FF8000">
    <param name=SelectTextColor value="00FF00">
    <param name=Sticky value="yes">
    <param name=InitialSelect value="0">
    <param name=SelectorStyle value="panel">
    <param name=SelectorColor value="FFFFFF">
    <param name=EntryFont value="Dialog,plain,12">
    <param name=EntrySpacing value="5">
    <param name=TextSensitive value="no">
    <param name=DefaultTarget value="_top">
    <param name=Testmode value="no">
    <param name=UseHandCursor value="yes">

    <!-- Tooltip parameters -->
    <param name=TipBgColor value="000000">
    <param name=TipBorderColor value="0080FF">
    <param name=TipTextColor value="0080FF">
    <param name=TipWidth value="150">
    <param name=TipFont value="Helvetica,plain,10">

    <!-- Menu entries and tooltips -->
    <param name=Entry1 value="Home">
    <param name=URL1 value="index.htm">
    <param name=Tip1 value="Go back to our home page.">
    <param name=Entry2 value="Product Information">
    <param name=URL2 value="info.htm">
    <param name=Target2 value="right">
    <param name=Tip2 value="Information about our products, plus free downloads area.">
    </APPLET>

  3. With the exception of the final block of parameters, all the parameters above are set at their defaults. Edit the first block of parameters to set the appearance and behavior of the main applet area. You can also include the BgImage and PanelImage parameters to specify background images to be used by the applet.

  4. Edit the second block of parameters to change the appearance of the tooltips.

  5. In the final block of parameters, edit the two sets of entries included to specify your own text links, URLs and tooltip text. For any entry that should not open into the frame selected in the DefaultTarget parameter, add a Target parameter containing the target frame or window name (as in our Target2 parameter above). Add as many more Entry/URL/Target/Tip items as you need to, ensuring that the numbering of these parameters is consecutive.

  6. Set the Testmode parameter to 'yes', save the document and view the page in your browser. Move the mouse over the applet and you'll see the minimum width and height displayed in the statusbar. Bear in mind that these really are minimum dimensions. If possible, increase the applet's height to allow the tooltip for the lowest entry to appear below it rather than above. We recommend testing dimensions in a Netscape browser since this demands considerably more space for text display than Internet Explorer. Switch Testmode back to 'no'.

  7. You'll find full explanations of every parameter and its available values in The Parameters Explained.