Width & Height
The width and height of the applet are set in the HTML code you add to the web page. Be sure to change the dimensions in the <object> and the <embed> tags.

The applet must be wide enough to display your longest text item with your chosen font. The height must be tall enough to display your chosen font. To avoid the trial-and-error of finding the best size, set the Testmode parameter to 'yes' and click anywhere inside the applet: the minimum width and height will be shown in a tooltip message. You can then edit the HTML code and set Testmode back to 'no'.

Parameters
The parameters below should be added to your datafile in the form NAME=VALUE (for instance, BgColor=FF0000). Each parameter should be on a separate line. You can leave blank lines in the list to organize the parameters into groups if you want to. The parameter names are not case-sensitive, and neither are the values, so BgColor=FF0000 is the same as bgcolor=ff0000. You can add the parameters to your file in any order. Most parameters have a default value which we show in bold text below: if you don't include the parameter in your datafile, the default value will be used automatically.

AnimationSpeed
A number which sets the speed of Messenger's animation in milliseconds. The default value is 5. This parameters works as a delay, so lower numbers result in faster animation.

BgColor
Sets the background color of the applet. The default value is FFFFFF (white). (Note that Messenger can only change the background color after it has loaded. To have the same background color shown before the browser starts loading the applet, change the BgColor setting in the HTML code too.)

DefaultTarget
Every item can link to a separate URL, and it can open it into a separate frame or window: we provide numbered Target parameters for that. However, you probably want most (or maybe all) the links to open into one particular frame. Enter the frame name in this parameter, and every item without its own Target parameter will open the link into this 'default' frame. You can use the HTML names _self, _top, _parent, _blank or _new. If you leave this parameter out of your datafile, links will open into _self (the frame or window containing the applet).

FocusUnderline
This value can be either yes or no (the default is 'yes'), and its sets whether or not an item should show an HTML-style underline when the mouse moves over it.

Font
Sets the name, size and style of font to use for the text, with each part separated by commas. The default is Sans,8,plain.

• Name: You can include any number of font names, separated by pipe symbols (|), and the applet will use the first font available on the user's system. To ensure compatibility, finish with one of these generic names: Sans, Serif or Typewriter.
  
• Size: The size of the font in points.
  
• Style: The style can be plain, bold, italic or bold-italic.

Hold
Sets the number of seconds that each text item should remain on the screen before the next is shown. The default is 2 seconds.

Name
Specifies a name for this instance of the applet. This is only necessary if you are using the applet in conjunction with our free Satellite add-on, and it's explained in the documentation for Satellite, available from the Cool Focus web site. If you are not using Satellite with this applet, it's best not to include this parameter in your datafile (although nothing bad will happen if you do).

PauseOnEnter
Another yes or no parameter, with a default of 'yes'. This sets whether or not animation should pause when the mouse is over the applet.

ShadowOpacity
If the ShowShadow parameter is set to 'yes', this sets the opacity of the text's drop-shadow using a percentage (1-100) figure. The default is 25. A value of 1 is almost fully transparent; a value of 100 if fully opaque.

ShadowXOffset
If the ShowShadow parameter is set to 'yes', this sets the 'x' (horizontal) offset of the text's drop-shadow in pixels. The default is 2.

ShadowYOffset
If the ShowShadow parameter is set to 'yes', this sets the 'y' (vertical) offset of the text's drop-shadow in pixels. The default is 2.

ShowShadow
A yes or no value, depending on whether you want to show a drop-shadow for text or not. The default is no. If you choose 'yes', you can use the three parameters above to determine the offset and opacity of the shadow.

ShowVersion
A yes or no value. This parameter is included in all Cool Focus Flash applets, and its default is no. If set to 'yes', the version number of the applet (and other details) will be shown when the applet starts. This is included only for troubleshooting purposes, to help you determine which version of an applet you're using. It should be set to 'no' (or removed from your datafile) before you publish your page.

Note: If the applet is not registered, this information will always be shown when the applet starts, regardless of the ShowVersion parameter's setting.

SoundClick
Specifies the absolute or relative URL of an MP3 audio file to play when the mouse is clicked on a linking item. If you don't want to play a sound for this event, just leave this parameter out of your datafile.

SoundRelease
Specifies the absolute or relative URL of an MP3 audio file to play when the mouse is released after clicking a linking item. If you don't want to play a sound for this event, just leave this parameter out of your datafile.

Testmode
A yes or no value, with a default of 'no'. This parameter is included in most Cool Focus Flash applets, and is used to help you determine the best width and height for the applet. (Because of this, it's best to use this parameter when you've got everything in the applet the way you want it.) Set this parameter to 'yes', then view the applet in your browser and click anywhere inside the applet. You'll see the minimum width and height displayed in a tooltip message, and you can copy these values into the page's HTML code. When you're done, remember to set the Testmode parameter back to 'no' or delete it from your datafile.

Note: If you've specified a list of font names in the applet's font parameters, it's a good idea to check that the applet will be big enough whichever of those fonts is used: with Testmode set to 'yes', move each font name to the beginning of the list and refresh the page to see if Testmode reports that larger dimensions are needed.

TextColor
Sets the default color for all text items displayed by Messenger. Any item that doesn't have its own numbered TextColor parameter will use this color. The default for this parameter is 000000 (black).

TextFocusColor
Sets the default focus-color for all text items, the color of the text when the mouse moves over it. Any item that doesn't have its own numbered TextFocusColor parameter will use this color. The default for this parameter is 0000FF (blue).

TextPressColor
Sets the color of all text items when clicked. The default is C0C0C0 (light gray).

Items
The parameters below are the most important ones: they set the text items to be displayed by Messenger, and the URLs each item should link to. You must include at least one Item parameter or Messenger will display nothing at all!

The parameters all have numbers after their names, and the numbers you use must be consecutive, starting from 1. If you want to show 10 items, but you forget to include an Item7 parameter, Messenger will stop looking for any more, and will only find items 1 to 6.

Item1, Item2, ..., Item_n
These parameters specify the text you want Messenger to display. The items will displayed in numerical order, starting from 1, and you can include as many items as you like.

URL1, URL2, ..., URL_n
The optional URL to which the text-item with the same number should link when clicked. If you don't want the item to act as a link, don't include a URL parameter for it. To make items behave like links in all respects except linking somewhere (which can be useful for testing), use a dollar sign ($, or when encoded, %24) as the first character of the URL.

Target1, Target2, ..., Target_n
The name of the frame or window into which the URL with the same number should open. If you don't include this parameter, the frame name set in the DefaultTarget parameter will be used.

TextColor1, TextColor2, ..., TextColor_n
Specifies an individual color to use for the text-item with the same number. If you don't include a TextColor parameter for an item, the color set in the default TextColor parameter will be used.

TextFocusColor1, TextFocusColor2, ..., TextFocusColor_n
Specifies an individual focus-color to use when the mouse moves over the text-item with the same number. If you don't include a TextFocusColor parameter for an item, the color set in the default TextFocusColor parameter will be used.