TIP 182: Showing and Hiding Layers

A striking but easily accomplished effect created by GoLive Actions is the ability to show or hide layers. For example, you may have a text link on a page that when clicked reveals a hidden layer with additional information in it. In this tip, we show you step-by-step how to set this up. Complete the following steps to use the ShowHide Action:

1.	Open a blank page and type Hello. Select it and enter the pound sign (#) into the URL field of the Inspector to create a null link.
2.	Drag a layer onto the page and in the Layer tab of the Inspector palette name it greeting (Figure 182a). Type Hello to you, too! inside the layer. In the Inspector palette, turn off the Visible check box. The layer will now be hidden. Figure 182a. Name the layer and make it invisible in the Inspector palette.
3.	Select the linked word Hello. In the Actions palette, choose Mouse Click for the Event, click New to create a new Action, and then select Multimedia > ShowHide from the Action pull-down menu.
4.	Select greeting from the Layer pull-down menu and select Show from the Mode pull-down menu (Figure 182b). Figure 182b. Choose a ShowHide Action and designate the layer you want to show or hide.

Alternate Endings

If you want the layer to show when you hover your mouse pointer over the link instead of when you click, just attach the ShowHide Action to the Mouse Enter event. Then you can also set up a separate ShowHide Action for the Mouse Exit event that hides the layer.

Now click Preview at the top of the page and click the word Hello. The hidden layer should appear, showing you the response. It's that easy. You may also choose Toggle as the mode, which would allow the layer to be shown and then hidden with each subsequent click of the link.