| When you create a frameset, get in the habit of naming each frame. The name you assign to a frame is not the filename or title of the document that corresponds with the frame, nor is it the title of the frame itself. A frame name serves to identify the framed area of the document for your reference and is generally used for scripting purposes. Naming your frames is important when you create links to display pages within a framed area. It is also important to name your frames for accessibility, especially when the frame title is not supported by technology used to view the page. In the previous exercise, you worked with the predefined framesets. Each frame was already given a default name. In this exercise, you will change the frame names to indicate the functions that they serve. | | 1. | Select the top-left frame by clicking the top-left frame in the Frames panel.
Tip If the Frames panel is not open, choose Window > Frames. Selecting the top-left frame in the Frames panel is not the same as placing the insertion point inside the top-left frame by clicking in the Document window. Selecting the frame makes the properties for that frame available to you in the Property inspector. Clicking in the frame in the Document window makes the standard text properties appear for that frame's document. If the insertion point is in the top-left frame, it is the active frame; however, you can't make changes to the frame properties. To affect the properties of the frame itself, it needs to be selected.
Tip You can also use Shift+Option-click (Macintosh) or Alt-click (Windows) in the top frame in the Document window to select the frame.  The Frames panel shows a thin black border around the top left frame with the name topFrame shown in the center. The Property inspector displays frame properties for topFrame.
| 2. | In the Frame name text field in the Property inspector, type titleNav to replace the default name topFrame. Press Return (Macintosh) or Enter (Windows) to apply the name change.
 The Frames panel displays the word titleNav in the top frame. You can always refer to the Frames panel for the name of a particular frame. Frame names are often used to target links to load in specific frames. You learned about targeting links in Lesson 3.
Note When naming frames, don't use spaces, hyphens, periods, or special characters in the frame name; and don't begin the name with an underscore. Using any of these characters can cause problems with code or scripting. Also, most coding languages are case sensitive, so make sure you maintain consistency with your frame names. | | | 3. | Verify that No is selected in the Scroll menu and that the No Resize box is checked in the Property inspector.
The scroll option, which defines when scroll bars appear, applies to both vertical and horizontal scroll bars. The Auto setting displays scroll bars whenever there is not enough room in the frame to display the content of the page. The Default option is the browser default setting, which is usually Auto. Be careful how you set this option: if it is set to No and the frame is not large enough to display all the contents, the user cannot scroll to see the rest of the content; if it is set to Yes and the contents fit within the frame, scroll bars that are dimmed still take up space on the page, even though it isn't possible to scroll.
No Resize locks the size of the frame when viewed in the browser. If this option is unchecked, users can drag the frame borders in their browser window. Regardless of whether this option is checked or unchecked, it does not affect your ability to resize frames within Dreamweaver.
Don't forget that visitors to your Website have a wide range of monitor sizes and resolutions. With frames, it is particularly important when designing sites on large, high-resolution screens to account for smaller screens. Frames-based pages might encounter problems on screens that are larger or smaller than those that they were designed for. Small screens, for instance, might cause your pages to suffer problems such as too much scrolling, which can make it extremely difficult for users. By testing your pages in a variety of environments, you can be sure to accommodate the widest possible range of sizes and resolutions. Be aware that such size issues can also lead to printing problems. You might want to provide alternatives, such as printer-friendly pages, if you use frames in your site.
Note Printer-friendly pages are 530 pixels wide (printable width) and use a bare minimum of graphics. Navigation should also be minimal, such as text links at the bottom of the page. A background color of white and the use of black text is best for readability against the white background of paper. Serif fonts are good choices for pages intended primarily for printing; likewise, keep your text at a size that can be read easily, such as 12 points. | 4. | Select the lower-left frame and name it content. Scroll should be set to Auto, and the No resize box should be checked.
In the Property inspector, notice that the Borders menu has Default selected. The predefined framesets that you used to create the page layout are automatically set to have no frame borders. When the Default setting is selected for the Borders option of an individual frame, that frame uses the setting of the parent frameset. If another setting (Yes or No) is selected, the frame overrides the setting of the parent frameset.
The Frames panel displays the name content in the lower-left frame.
 | | | 5. | Select the right frame and name it moreContent. Scroll should be set to No, and the No Resize box should be checked.
In the Property inspector, notice that the text fields for Margin Width and Margin Height are blank. This is the default for the predefined framesets you used to lay out your page. Margin Width sets the left and right margins of the frame in pixels. Margin Height sets the top and bottom margins of the frame in pixels. Leaving them blank uses the browser default, which might vary in size depending on the browser version and type.
The Frames panel displays the name moreContent in the right frame.
| 6. | Choose File > Save Frameset.
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When you change Frame properties, you are actually modifying the frameset community.html. Frame and frameset properties are both defined within the frameset. Leave the community.html file open to use in the next exercise. |
