Stupid Web Tricks: Chromeless windows
Takeaway: Follow these steps to remove the chrome frame from your browser windows.
Click here for our complete list of Stupid Web Tricks.By Holly Cunningham
Two types of people inhabit the world: those who cringe at the mere thought of someone wresting the remote control away from them for even a split second, and those who yell "Yippeeeeee!" and throw their hands in the air as they plunge downhill in a stolen shopping cart. It's that little bit of the unexpected, when the browser's cozy-if-constrictive rectangle with its comforting array of buttons is replaced with dang near...nothing.
Nothing can be a pretty thing when carefully applied; the intriguing artifice-of-less smacking up against the viewer's desire for a clearly marked escape route. And you can freely apply that nothing knowing that the Alt-F4 key combination offers deliverance for those less keen on your lessness.
Don't fence me in
The wonders of high-impact minimalism are on full display at Gabriel Suchowolski's Microbians, the mother of all chromeless sites and the source of the script below. Download the chromeless windows Zip archive, unzip the files, and put them in the directory from which your page will be served. Paste this code into the <head> of the page from which you want the chromeless window to launch:
<script language=javascript src="chromeless_30.js"></script>
<script language=javascript>
function openIT(theURL,W,H, wname) {
CLOSEdwn = "close_dwn.gif"
CLOSEup = "close_up.gif"
CLOSEovr = "close_ovr.gif"
MINIdwn = "mini_dwn.gif"
MINIup = "mini_up.gif"
MINIovr = "mini_ovr.gif"
NONEgrf = "none.gif"
CLOCKgrf = "clock.gif"
titHTML = "Window title" //change to your desired window title
titWIN = "window title" //your desired status bar title
winBORDERCOLOR = "#000000" //change to your desired border color
winBORDERCOLORsel = "#FFFFFF" //change to your desired selected border color
winBGCOLOR = "#FF0000" //change to your desired top bar background color
winBGCOLORsel = "#00FF00" //change to your desired top bar selected background color
mywin = openchromeless(theURL, wname, W, H, NONEgrf, CLOSEdwn, CLOSEup, CLOSEovr, MINIdwn, MINIup, MINIovr, CLOCKgrf, titHTML, titWIN, winBORDERCOLOR, winBORDERCOLORsel, winBGCOLOR, winBGCOLORsel)
}
</script>
Put the following link code in the <body> of your page to open your chromeless window:
<a href="javascript:openIT('http://the_url_of_my_chromeless_window.html', 400, 300, 'name of my chromeless window');">Text for your link here</a>
Change "Text for your link here" to whatever you want your link text to be. You will, of course, need to create a separate HTML document for your chromeless pop-up window and enter its filename or URL in the above code. You will also need to enter the size of the window, for example: 400 (width), 300 (height), and its title.
The JavaScript for this trick is distributed under the GNU General Public License, so if you don't know what that is, you should read it. Your pop-up windows will show up without chrome in Internet Explorer 4 and up, while other browsers will just get a standard pop-up.
That's it. You're footloose and lead-free in the land of minimalism. Has the void ever looked so well designed?
Holly Cunningham, a frequent contributor to CNET Builder.com, is a freelance Web designer who works primarily to keep her Chihuahua in furs.
Print/View all Posts Comments on this article
A hyper link!
SaidBakr | 05/30/04
|
Where is the hyperlink
vilas@... | 06/14/04
|
Demonstration of Chromeless windows
kwyjibear | 10/28/04
|
White Papers, Webcasts, and Downloads
- Email Security and Archiving - Clearer in the Cloud Google The time is NOW for businesses and organizations of all sizes to implement ... Download Now
- Building the Virtualized Enterprise with VMware Infrastructure VMware This paper explains how adopting a virtual infrastructure -- comprised of server, storage, and networking virtualization technologies -- can help your organization build a sustainable competitive ... Download Now
- Five Steps to Determine When to Virtualize YourServers VMware Thinking of virtualizing the servers at your company? Use this step-by-step guide to determine when's the best time to make your big move. Download Now
- The Impact of Virtualization Software on Operating Environments VMware Today's use of virtualization technology allows IT professionals to ... Download Now
- The True Costs of Virtual Server Solutions VMware Discover ways to streamline and simplify your assessment of the total acquisition costs of a server virtualization environment. Download Now
Article Categories
- Security
- Security Solutions, IT Locksmith
- Networking and Communications
- E-mail Administration NetNote, Cisco Routers and Switches
- CIO and IT Management
- Project Management, CIO Issues, Strategies that Scale
- Desktops, Laptops & OS
- Windows 2000 Professional, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, Windows XP,
- Data Management
- Oracle, SQL Server
- Servers
- Windows NT, Linux NetNote, Windows Server 2003
- Career Development
- Geek Trivia
- Software/Web Development
- Web Development Zone, Visual Basic, .NET
