Drop down Menu with Submenu, icons...

CSS / Javascript / POP-UP... What is Best?

[Wooolf]

Hello there,

As a new webmaster I am seeking to add a top "drop down menu" to my site.

a) I found quit a few Free to use ones, most in JavaScript, some using CSS: What is best?

But anyway none of them contained ALL the top features I would like:
-1- Unlimited submenus
-2- Icons insert in the menus (XP look & feel)
-3- Display on top of an iframe
-4- Remembers links already visited by one user

b) Is it easy to add feature -4- to an existing menu?

c) I also found some "POP-UP on Picture mouseover Menus".. Would those be stopped by an ANTI POP-UP Software?

Any help on these questions would be really appreciated,
Best wishes to all,
Wooolf

[grahamstewart]

Slightly off topic but if you are going to use this style of navigation then please make sure that you supply normal text-based links somewhere on the page as well.

Otherwise you risk making your site unusable to:

the estimated 10% of the population that surf with JavaScript deactivated

those using accessibility tools such as screen readers

and search engine bots!

[SuzyUK]

Pure CSS dropdown menus are not available in IE due to their lack of supprort of :hover on any element except <a>.

Hybrid JavaScript and CSS menus seem to be the most lightweight flexible solution. However as grahamstewart pointed out if a user has JS disabled then it could be a problem.

Eric Meyer explains his CSS Javascript Hybrid Menu [devedge.netscape.com] and the pros and cons of support issues which fairly well cover the javascript turned off thing also his menu shouldn't cause SE spiders bots any problems indexing either.

I would say in answer to your other questions that all those things are possible using the CSS part of the hybrid so it depends on your knowledge of Javascript and CSS which menu you feel more comfortable implementing and tweaking.

Suzy

[Wooolf]

Thanks a lot to both of you,

That menu was to be a major part of my site so I must say you kind of scared me a bit there :o(

Anyway, you gave me a good link and I am going to study it a bit...

Thanks again,

PS: Any idea weither the POP UP MENU could be stopped by Anti pop up softwares?

[grahamstewart]

Unlikely as most menus use divs (with Javascript or CSS to toggle the visibility). Pop-up killers tend to kill windows not divs.

[Purple Martin]

-3- Display on top of an iframe
The only thing that will display on top of an iframe is another iframe. You cannot get a menu (however you make it) to display on top of an iframe. This is because an iframe is a whole window object in it's own right: stuff in your document's window can't go in front of the iframe window that is in front of your document.

-4- Remembers links already visited by one user
You could use JavaScript to set a cookie to do this.

The rest can all be done with JavaScript.

[Wooolf]

Hi there,

Thanks a lot for your unbeleivebly fast answers.
Honestly I wasn't expecting so much so fast. _ :o)

I guess I'll have to rethink my site a little bit for now, following your advices...

a big thanks again to all of you!

Wooolf