NOTE:
You must be connected to the Internet to download software, send email, or access program site.

Webmaster Tips,
Tricks and Strategies

AUTOMATING DOWNLOADS WITH ZIP FILES

If you want to send a document to another person via http download, you can easily do this by giving your file a non-html extension. For example, if you have a Word Document brochure you wish to give your visitors access to, instead of coding the hyperlink to a ".doc" file, you can zip this file and then your HREF tag will automatically start downloading the file.

Just about everyone these days has the ability to extract zip files, so this is a great tool for letting people download files from your site that would normally appear in html format. For example, images, text files and certain Microsoft application files will display in the visitor's browser, which will be exactly what you don't want if downloading is your goal.

Using zip files will give your visitors a quick method of retreiving and storing files from your site. Of course, using this method means you can add many files to a single zip. You can even zip up your entire site (great for tutorials and other "how-to" sites) and let your visitors browse off-line without incurring charges or tying up their phone lines.

Have you ever seen a button or text link on a site that lets visitors automatically bookmark a site? It's a simple procedure if you have the right tools, so let's get started. First off, for anyone who doesn't know, bookmarks or favorites are sites that have been stored by the user for quick retrieval. Bookmarks are usually made by selecting that option on your browser. But you can automate this process and (hopefully) incite your visitors to bookmark your site with a simple mouse-click. Here's how it can be done.

We use the following JavaScript to peform these actions. The first variable (bookmarkurl) is the URL to the site, while the second variable (bookmarktitle) is the actual pre-coded entry that the browser will display.

Place this script in the HEAD Section of your Page:

<script language="JavaScript1.2">
<!-- Start
var bookmarkurl="http://www.bravenet.com/"
var bookmarktitle="Bravenet.com - Free Tools for Webmasters"
function addbookmark(){if
(document.all)window.external.AddFavorite(bookmarkurl,bookmarktitle)}
// End -->
</script>

Now we call the script to actually place the link. This second part of our script should be placed exactly where you want the link to display:

<script language="JavaScript">

if (document.all)document.write('&nbsp;Bookmark Now!')

</script>

NOTE: The above script works only in Internet Explorer. If you want Netscape users to bookmark, you'll have to do something a little differently. Here's a solution provided by a Bravenet Member (thanks Yousuf!). This script places a text message in place of the bookmark link for Netscape users. This is a tidy script you can place in one spot, where you want the link (or message) to appear.

<SCRIPT language="JavaScript">
<!-- Begin
<!-- Script By Yousuf Imtiaz-->
if (document.all) { // Only true for MSIE
var url="http://www.bravenet.com";
var title="Bravenet.com - Free Tools for Webmasters";
document.write('Bookmark Now!');
}
else {
document.write("Bookmark Now! (CTRL+D)");
}
// End -->
</SCRIPT>

QUOTATION

"It's like magic. When you live by yourself,
all your annoying habits are gone!"
-- Merrill Markoe