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Goodies to Go ™
February 7, 2006 — Newsletter # 375
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Featured this week:
* Goodies Thoughts – Copyright 2006
* Q & A Goodies
* News Goodies
* Feedback Goodies
* Windows Tech Goodie of the Week
* And Remember This…
* Q & A Goodies
* News Goodies
* Feedback Goodies
* Windows Tech Goodie of the Week
* And Remember This…
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Copyright 2006
Here at Goodies we get questions all the time concerning copyright. Typical
are: "A site has a great picture on it, but they also have a copyright
notice. Is it OK for me to use the picture on my site, as long as I don’t
make money?" and "Even though it’s copyright, can I use it just for (family
and friends | the kids in my class | the members of my club)?"
are: "A site has a great picture on it, but they also have a copyright
notice. Is it OK for me to use the picture on my site, as long as I don’t
make money?" and "Even though it’s copyright, can I use it just for (family
and friends | the kids in my class | the members of my club)?"
Here in the US it is illegal for a person who is not an attorney (lawyer) to
offer legal advice. These questions are matters of law and so it is not for
us to say what is legal and what is not. We can (and I do), however,
express our personal opinions on the matter.
offer legal advice. These questions are matters of law and so it is not for
us to say what is legal and what is not. We can (and I do), however,
express our personal opinions on the matter.
First, let me say that if you want legal advice you should consult a lawyer,
and next, let me say (to the questioners, not to my readers here!) "are you
nuts?" The clue is in the word "copyright". It means the right to copy.
It doesn’t mean "the right to copy and use under some circumstances but not
others". It means that if someone claims a copyright, they reserve the
right to make a copy of the work to themselves alone. If you really want a
copy, you must contact the owner of the rights to make that copy and ask
them for permission, which they might either give, deny or sell you, with or
without some limitations.
and next, let me say (to the questioners, not to my readers here!) "are you
nuts?" The clue is in the word "copyright". It means the right to copy.
It doesn’t mean "the right to copy and use under some circumstances but not
others". It means that if someone claims a copyright, they reserve the
right to make a copy of the work to themselves alone. If you really want a
copy, you must contact the owner of the rights to make that copy and ask
them for permission, which they might either give, deny or sell you, with or
without some limitations.
Copyright law was established and internationally accepted to provide those
who create things, such as, among others, painters, musicians, sculptors,
programmers, film makers, designers and writers (that was WRITERS — people
who write stuff; like newsletters and so on) with some protection for their
work so that when they spend their time doing what they do and providing
something others can enjoy, they can reap the rewards themselves rather than
have those rewards go elsewhere.
who create things, such as, among others, painters, musicians, sculptors,
programmers, film makers, designers and writers (that was WRITERS — people
who write stuff; like newsletters and so on) with some protection for their
work so that when they spend their time doing what they do and providing
something others can enjoy, they can reap the rewards themselves rather than
have those rewards go elsewhere.
"Ah yes," say the technically savviest among us, "but when you view a
copyrighted web page, you are in fact making a copy of it on your own
computer before you see it." My answer? ….. "You are perfectly correct,
my techno-nit picker friend. You sound like a lawyer."
copyrighted web page, you are in fact making a copy of it on your own
computer before you see it." My answer? ….. "You are perfectly correct,
my techno-nit picker friend. You sound like a lawyer."
Here’s the deal. If you’re trying to find a way around a copyright, you are
probably violating the law. Why not simply ask for permission? On the web,
this is particularly easy, since you can find contact info for almost any
domain name. If you get permission, great; if you have to buy it, your
conscience will be clear; if you are denied then you will have the
satisfaction of knowing that you did the right thing and committed no crime.
probably violating the law. Why not simply ask for permission? On the web,
this is particularly easy, since you can find contact info for almost any
domain name. If you get permission, great; if you have to buy it, your
conscience will be clear; if you are denied then you will have the
satisfaction of knowing that you did the right thing and committed no crime.
Good for you!
Thanks for reading!
– Vince Barnes
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Q & A Goodies
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Questions are taken from submissions to our Community
Mentors. You can ask a Mentor a question by going to
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/mentors/
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Questions are taken from submissions to our Community
Mentors. You can ask a Mentor a question by going to
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/mentors/
Q. I have a domain name that I keep my website posted at. But I also use
folders on my site that I do not link to from anywhere in my site. These are
just folders for me that I can create pages of reference material that I can
look up on the go. I would like to be able to give the address for these
pages to certain people but for the most part want to keep them private. Is
there any way that I can keep them from showing up in search engines, or
some code that would render them invisible to search bots. I don’t want to
password protect the pages I just want to make it harder for people to
stumble onto them without knowing the link.
A. You can tell the search engine robots which folders should and should not
be indexed by them. It is called The Robots Exclusion Protocol. When a robot
visits a web page it first looks for a file named ROBOTS.TXT. This file
contain the information about which parts of the site should nojt be visited
by the robot.
The Robots META tag lets you tell the robots if a document should be indexed
or not:
<.META NAME="ROBOTS" CONTENT="NOINDEX, NOFOLLOW">
Only a few robots support this way.
HTML Author’s Guide to the Robots META tag:
http://www.robotstxt.org/wc/meta-user.html
The Web Robots Pages:
http://www.robotstxt.org/wc/robots.html
be indexed by them. It is called The Robots Exclusion Protocol. When a robot
visits a web page it first looks for a file named ROBOTS.TXT. This file
contain the information about which parts of the site should nojt be visited
by the robot.
The Robots META tag lets you tell the robots if a document should be indexed
or not:
<.META NAME="ROBOTS" CONTENT="NOINDEX, NOFOLLOW">
Only a few robots support this way.
HTML Author’s Guide to the Robots META tag:
http://www.robotstxt.org/wc/meta-user.html
The Web Robots Pages:
http://www.robotstxt.org/wc/robots.html
Q. I am trying to find a way to post my students’ grades to my webpage,
while insuring individual privacy. I have learned from the tutorials how to
include a password to keep the grades private. As far as I can tell, I
should be able to make an individual web page for each student and have the
password link to that page, showing them their grades. I have 70 students
and do not look forward to editing 70 pages each time I have to update
grades. Is it possible to store the grade information in one place and have
each individual page find and display the info for the appropriate student?
A. You may have already been told that using JavaScript and HTML alone is
not a very secure method of protecting HTML documents from being seen by
others. I would recommend that you investigate using a Server Side language
such as Perl or PHP. You can use both to access a flat file or file stored
in a database such as MYSQL and then build your HTML document with the
students grades. I know it’s not the answer you were looking for, but with javascript you can not read files or write to files. You would have to
store the students data in a JavaScript array and then build the pages from
that which would compromise your data.
not a very secure method of protecting HTML documents from being seen by
others. I would recommend that you investigate using a Server Side language
such as Perl or PHP. You can use both to access a flat file or file stored
in a database such as MYSQL and then build your HTML document with the
students grades. I know it’s not the answer you were looking for, but with javascript you can not read files or write to files. You would have to
store the students data in a JavaScript array and then build the pages from
that which would compromise your data.
Q. Used this bit of code:
var num=1
img1 = new Image ()
img1.src =
img2 = new Image ()
img2.src = "images/noahnick.jpg"
img3 = new Image ()
img3.src = "images/kevinnick.jpg"
img4 = new Image ()
img4.src = "images/mikekevin.jpg"
img5 = new Image ()
img5.src = "images/noahkevin2.jpg"
function slideshowUp()
{
num=num+1
if (num==6)
{num=1}
document.mypic.src=eval("img"+num+".src")
}
function slideshowBack()
{
num=num-1
if (num==0)
{num=5}
document.mypic.src=eval("img"+num+".src")
}
slide show opens – goes thru each image, after the last slide it looks
for an image that isn’t there instead of looping to image #1. Same
problem in reverse Any suggestions?
A. Try setting the initial value of the variable num to zero instead of 1.
In your function you add 1 to it as the first step. Also in your function slideshowUp when num has a value of 6 set it to zero instead of 1. In your
function slideshowBack try setting num to a value of
6 when it reaches 0 so that when you subtract 1 again it will be set to 5.
In your function you add 1 to it as the first step. Also in your function slideshowUp when num has a value of 6 set it to zero instead of 1. In your
function slideshowBack try setting num to a value of
6 when it reaches 0 so that when you subtract 1 again it will be set to 5.
Q. I am sometimes having a problem with software programs that download
themselves without invitation. this seems to occur most frequently if I am
looking for a piece of music that I can incorporate into my web page. e.g.
for photo albums. The most difficult was a programme called gator or
something similar. It made such a fuss with my firewall software that I
ended up having to re format my hard disk. No uninstall prgram came with
this invasive software. The program was like a large virus. It was
everywhere. Needless to say, I try to be very careful about what I search
for, but I wonder if there is some software that I can obtain to prevent
trash like this from invading my computer. Just so you know, I have
received help from the mentor community in the past and have always found it
to be all the right stuff.
A. I am not sure if this is what you meed but it may help:
http://security.kolla.de/
This is a free application that will allow you to monitor and stop
applications from loading onto your computer. It will also search for any on
your machine and delete them.
[See also the lead piece in this newsletter in the archive:
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/introduction/newsletter_archive/goodiestogo/article.php/3476721
– Ed.]
http://security.kolla.de/
This is a free application that will allow you to monitor and stop
applications from loading onto your computer. It will also search for any on
your machine and delete them.
[See also the lead piece in this newsletter in the archive:
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/introduction/newsletter_archive/goodiestogo/article.php/3476721
– Ed.]
Q. I need a well designed homepage that will attract people. Can you give
me some good ideas?
A. Make a flow chart of the information you want to give your visitors and
list topics in order of importance such as what you offer, contact, ect.
You want a homepage that gives the most important information in a heading
to catch the readers eye and then directs them to details. This details can
be located on another page that the home page links to. Design the home
page so the user does not have to scroll to see the main content. The page
should load fast so keep the large graphic images down. There are ways you
can break up the squareness of a page so everything is just not in square
blocks. You can creat a banner or a side bar with a graphics program such as
Adobe Image Ready or Paintshop Pro. Optimize it for the web. the whole site
should have easy navigation and a familiar theme such as the same navagation
on all pages, company logo etc.. Put your navigation links where they can be
easily seen, on the side or top of the page. Your page should have a
discriptive title that reflects words used in the heading and first
paragraph on the page.
[See also
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/introduction/intro/ – Ed.]
list topics in order of importance such as what you offer, contact, ect.
You want a homepage that gives the most important information in a heading
to catch the readers eye and then directs them to details. This details can
be located on another page that the home page links to. Design the home
page so the user does not have to scroll to see the main content. The page
should load fast so keep the large graphic images down. There are ways you
can break up the squareness of a page so everything is just not in square
blocks. You can creat a banner or a side bar with a graphics program such as
Adobe Image Ready or Paintshop Pro. Optimize it for the web. the whole site
should have easy navigation and a familiar theme such as the same navagation
on all pages, company logo etc.. Put your navigation links where they can be
easily seen, on the side or top of the page. Your page should have a
discriptive title that reflects words used in the heading and first
paragraph on the page.
[See also
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/introduction/intro/ – Ed.]
Q. Is there a way of centering a picture or text in the middle of the page,
compared to <center> which puts it only on top?
A. Below is the code needed to center text on the page. If you are using a
nested table or have other cells in a table and you want it in the middle
you can add this to the cell tag:
"vAlign=middle". That sets the verticle alignment to the middle of that
cell.
<.html>
<.head>
<.title>Centered<./title>
<./head>
<.body>
<.div align="center">
<.center>
<.table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"
height="100%">
<.tr>
<.td width="100%" align="center">
<.center>This is centered on the page.<./td>
<./tr>
<./table>
<./center>
<./div>
<./body>
<./html>
[There’s more about alignment here:
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/tutorials/getting_started/article.php/3479311
– Ed.]
nested table or have other cells in a table and you want it in the middle
you can add this to the cell tag:
"vAlign=middle". That sets the verticle alignment to the middle of that
cell.
<.html>
<.head>
<.title>Centered<./title>
<./head>
<.body>
<.div align="center">
<.center>
<.table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"
height="100%">
<.tr>
<.td width="100%" align="center">
<.center>This is centered on the page.<./td>
<./tr>
<./table>
<./center>
<./div>
<./body>
<./html>
[There’s more about alignment here:
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/tutorials/getting_started/article.php/3479311
– Ed.]
Discussion Goodies
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Have you seen the discussion forums on the HTML Goodies website? It’s a
great place to get help from others who, just like you, are developing web
pages. Many different topics appear in the forum, and a new one will appear
if you create it! Here’s a sample of recent topics:
great place to get help from others who, just like you, are developing web
pages. Many different topics appear in the forum, and a new one will appear
if you create it! Here’s a sample of recent topics:
Form to text file:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94130
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94130
layer background div:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94303
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94303
Fixed image with multiple parts that the color can change on:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94023
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94023
className change multiple function:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94188
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94188
How to create .html file using PHP?:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94302
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94302
News Goodies
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Google, Skype Fund Global Wi-Fi Network
[February 7, 2006] ISPs invest $21.7M in Spanish plan for a million Wi-Fi
hotspots worldwide.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3583386
[February 7, 2006] ISPs invest $21.7M in Spanish plan for a million Wi-Fi
hotspots worldwide.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3583386
HP Storage Buy Finds One in a Million
[February 7, 2006] The systems vendor looks to reign in files from the sea
of information in corporate databases.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/storage/article.php/3583401
Office Upgrades to Have Big Impact
[February 7, 2006] Thanks to a court settlement, 22 percent of 600,000 PCs
surveyed in North America must be upgraded.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3583281
Freescale Climbs Aboard Power.org
[February 7, 2006] Freescale joins forces with IBM in planning direction of
Power architecture.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/ent-news/article.php/3583246
Linux Desktops Get a Graphics Boost
[February 7, 2006] Novell donates new code that takes Linux graphics beyond
any other OS, or so they say.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/3583191
The New Chip-erati
[February 6, 2006] Are RFID implants geek-chic or a tool of the military
industrial complex?
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/wireless/article.php/3582971
House Has Eyes on Black Market Data Sites
[February 6, 2006] Energy and Commerce Committee demands to know source of
phone records for sale on Internet.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/security/article.php/3583086
AOL, Yahoo to Charge For E-mail
[February 6, 2006] AOL and Yahoo are set to start charging e-mailers to send
messages to targets
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/xSP/article.php/3583051
Mixed Reactions to Fee-Based E-mail
[February 6, 2006] Plans will ‘change the economics of e-mail’ argues one
marketer.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/ec-news/article.php/3583131
AMD’s Free Virtualization License
[February 6, 2006] The chip maker sees desktops as well as server
applications for virtualization.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/ent-news/article.php/3583176
Feedback Goodies
***********************************
Did you ever wish your newsletter was an easy two way communications
medium? Ploof! It now is!
If you would like to comment on the newsletter or expand/improve on
something you have seen in here, you can now send your input to:
medium? Ploof! It now is!
If you would like to comment on the newsletter or expand/improve on
something you have seen in here, you can now send your input to:
mailto:[email protected]
We already receive a lot of email every day. This address helps us sort out
those relating specifically to this newsletter from all the rest. When you
send email to this address it may wind up being included in this section of
the newsletter, to be shared with your fellow readers. Please don’t send
your questions to this address. They should be sent to our mentors: see
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/mentors/
those relating specifically to this newsletter from all the rest. When you
send email to this address it may wind up being included in this section of
the newsletter, to be shared with your fellow readers. Please don’t send
your questions to this address. They should be sent to our mentors: see
https://www.htmlgoodies.com/mentors/
Thanks for all your feedback!
Windows Tech Goodie of the Week
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Using Excel as a Data Source ASP.NET Sample Code
This sample shows you how to use an Excel (.XLS) file as a data source for
an ASP.NET web page. While you need to be careful when using Excel with
multiple users, there are times when using Excel as a data source can
actually come in quite handy.
an ASP.NET web page. While you need to be careful when using Excel with
multiple users, there are times when using Excel as a data source can
actually come in quite handy.
*** AND ***
Examining ASP.NET 2.0’s Site Navigation – Part 4
This article is the forth in a series of articles on ASP.NET 2.0’s site
navigation functionality. It delves into creating a custom site map
provider, specifically one that bases the site map on the website’s
physical, file system structure.
navigation functionality. It delves into creating a custom site map
provider, specifically one that bases the site map on the website’s
physical, file system structure.
*** AND ***
A Quick Tour of Visual Studio 2005
This article will give you a quick look at Microsoft’s latest development
environment and highlight some of the new features you can expect once you
do finally get it installed.
environment and highlight some of the new features you can expect once you
do finally get it installed.
And Remember This …
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1964 The Beatles Arrived in The U.S.
The "Fab Four" from Liverpool, England, with their trademark haircuts landed
at New York’s John F. Kennedy airport on this day in 1964, to bring "Beatlemania"
to the United States. Six days previously, their song "I Wanna Hold Your
Hand" had become their first US No. 1 hit. Thousands of fans gave them a
screaming welcome to America. A couple of days late, they made their first
appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show, again, to a screaming audience. At the
time Ringo Starr was aged 23, John Lennon 23, Paul McCartney 21 and George
Harrison was the baby at 20. Over the next six years the Beatles became a
driving force in changes to western society, the effects of which are still
powerfully felt today. The Lennon-McCartney song writing team was
acknowledged world wide for their genius. The Beatles disbanded in 1970
having created 18 albums (including the world’s first theme album, "Sgt.
Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band") and in the U.S., ten No.1 singles.
at New York’s John F. Kennedy airport on this day in 1964, to bring "Beatlemania"
to the United States. Six days previously, their song "I Wanna Hold Your
Hand" had become their first US No. 1 hit. Thousands of fans gave them a
screaming welcome to America. A couple of days late, they made their first
appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show, again, to a screaming audience. At the
time Ringo Starr was aged 23, John Lennon 23, Paul McCartney 21 and George
Harrison was the baby at 20. Over the next six years the Beatles became a
driving force in changes to western society, the effects of which are still
powerfully felt today. The Lennon-McCartney song writing team was
acknowledged world wide for their genius. The Beatles disbanded in 1970
having created 18 albums (including the world’s first theme album, "Sgt.
Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band") and in the U.S., ten No.1 singles.
Today was also the day that in: 1812 Lord Byron made his maiden
speech in House of Lords; 1839 Henry Clay declared in the Senate "I
had rather be right than president"; 1900 Labour Party was formed in
England; 1905 Oklahoma admitted to statehood; 1947 Arabs &
Jews rejected a British proposal to split Palestine; 1959 Castro
proclaimed the new Cuban constitution; 1964 Cassius Clay became a
Muslim & adopts the name Muhammad Ali; 1969 Al-Fatah-leader Yasser
Arafat became president of PLO; 1979 Pink Floyd premiered their live
version of "The Wall" in Los Angeles; 1994 Howard Stern stopped a
would-be jumper on the George Washington Bridge
speech in House of Lords; 1839 Henry Clay declared in the Senate "I
had rather be right than president"; 1900 Labour Party was formed in
England; 1905 Oklahoma admitted to statehood; 1947 Arabs &
Jews rejected a British proposal to split Palestine; 1959 Castro
proclaimed the new Cuban constitution; 1964 Cassius Clay became a
Muslim & adopts the name Muhammad Ali; 1969 Al-Fatah-leader Yasser
Arafat became president of PLO; 1979 Pink Floyd premiered their live
version of "The Wall" in Los Angeles; 1994 Howard Stern stopped a
would-be jumper on the George Washington Bridge
Born today were: in 1478 English lawyer/Lord Chancellor of
England/saint Sir Thomas More; 1693 Empress of Russia Anna Ivanova
Romanova; 1804 pioneering manufacturer of agricultural equipment John
Deere; 1812 English novelist Charles Dickens; 1906 Last
Emperor of China, Henry P’u-i; 1917 English actor/comedian Dick
Emery; 1924 English actress Hattie Jacques; 1945 actor Pete
Postlethwaite; 1948 musician Jimmy Greenspoon; 1949 musician
Alan Lancaster; 1962 country singer Garth Brooks; 1965 actor
Jason Gedrick; 1966 comedian Chris Rock; 1985 actress
[Alber]Tina Marie Majorino
