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.

SlideBar must be tall enough to display all your first-level Labels. Because the second-level Items slide out horizontally, the width must be enough to display the bar with the widest collection of items. 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 choice of normal or fast to set the speed of slide and fade animation. The default, of course, is normal.

BgColor
Sets the background color of the applet. The default value is FFFFFF (white). (Note that SlideBar 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.)

BgImage
The absolute or relative URL of an optional JPEG of SWF image used to tile the background of the applet.

BorderColor
If ShowBorders is set to 'yes', this parameter sets the color of the borders around the Labels and Items. The default is to match your chosen BgColor, which creates a space around each item.

DefaultTarget
Every label and 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).

ItemExtraWidth
A number (with a default of 0) which specifies an amount in pixels to add to the width of 2nd-level Items. The text is always centered, so if you enter an odd number, it will be rounded up to an even number.

ItemFillColor
Sets the fill color of 2nd-level Items, with a default of FF8000 (orange). This color will be used for the top of the item if you specify an ItemFillGradientColor.

ItemFillFocusColor
Sets the fill color of 2nd-level Items when the mouse moves over them, with a default of CC5800 (dark orange). This color will be used for the top of the item if you specify an ItemFillFocusGradientColor.

ItemFillGradientColor
This optional parameter sets a gradient color for 2nd-level Items. If this parameter is not included, items will use a solid ItemFillColor. If you do specify a color for this parameter, it will be used as the bottom color of the item.

ItemFillFocusGradientColor
This optional parameter sets a gradient color for 2nd-level Items when the mouse passes over them. If this parameter is not included, items will use a solid ItemFillFocusColor. If you do specify a color for this parameter, it will be used as the bottom color of the item when focused.

ItemFont
Sets the name, size and style of font to use for the 2nd-level Items, 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.

ItemTextColor
Sets the basic text color of a 2nd-level Item. The default is 000000 (black).

ItemTextFocusColor
Sets the text color of a 2nd-level Item when the mouse moves over it. The default is FFFFFF (white).

LabelAlign
A value of left, center or right to set the text-alignment of 1st-level Labels. The default is right.

LabelExtraHeight
A number (with a default of 0) which specifies an amount in pixels to add to the height of 1st-level Labels.

LabelExtraWidth
A number (with a default of 0) which specifies an amount in pixels to add to the width of 1st-level Labels.

LabelFillColor
Sets the fill color of 1st-level Labels, with a default of FF8000 (orange). This color will be used for the top of the label if you specify a LabelFillGradientColor.

LabelFillFocusColor
Sets the fill color of 1st-level Labels when the mouse moves over them, with a default of CC5800 (dark orange). This color will be used for the top of the label if you specify a LabelFillFocusGradientColor.

LabelFillGradientColor
This optional parameter sets a gradient color for 1st-level Labels. If this parameter is not included, labels will use a solid LabelFillColor. If you do specify a color for this parameter, it will be used as the bottom color of the label.

LabelFillFocusGradientColor
This optional parameter sets a gradient color for 1st-level Labels when the mouse passes over them. If this parameter is not included, labels will use a solid LabelFillFocusColor. If you do specify a color for this parameter, it will be used as the bottom color of the label when focused.

LabelFont
Sets the name, size and style of font to use for the 1st-level Labels, with each part separated by commas. The default is Sans,8,plain. This parameter should be constructed in the same way as ItemFont.

LabelTextColor
Sets the basic text color of a 1st-level Label. The default is 000000 (black).

LabelTextFocusColor
Sets the text color of a 1st-level Label when the mouse moves over it. The default is FFFFFF (white).

Location
A choice of left or right (with a default of left) which specifies whether the menu should be aligned to the left or right of the applet area. If you choose 'left', the 1st-level labels will be placed at the left of the applet, and the items will slide out to the right. If you choose 'right', the labels will be placed at the right of the applet, with items sliding out to the left.

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).

ShowBorders
A yes or no value which specifies whether borders should be drawn around each label and item. The default is yes. (The color of the borders is set by the BorderColor parameter.)

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 label or 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 label or item. If you don't want to play a sound for this event, just leave this parameter out of your datafile.

SoundItemHover
The absolute or relative URL of an MP3 audio file to play when the mouse hovers over a 2nd-level item. If you don't want to play a sound for this event, just leave this parameter out of your datafile.

SoundLabelHover
The absolute or relative URL of an MP3 audio file to play when the mouse hovers over a 1st-level label. 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.

Transparent
A yes or no parameter, with a default of no. If set to 'yes', the area of the applet where the 2nd-level Items appear will be made transparent in compatible browsers, showing the HTML content (such as a page background) behind the applet.

Labels
The four parameters below place 1st-level 'labels' into the menu. These are buttons which are arranged in a column at the left or right side of the applet (depending upon your Location setting). Moving over a label can cause a row of 2nd-level Items to scroll into view horizontally, or can act as a link, or both. You must include at least one Label parameter, or SlideBar will display nothing at all!

The parameters all have numbers after their names, and the numbers must be consecutive, starting from 1. If you want to show 5 labels, but you forget to include a Label4 parameter, SlideBar will stop looking for any more, and will only find labels 1 to 3.

Label1, Label2, ..., Label_n
These parameters specify the text you want SlideBar to display for each label. The labels will be displayed in numerical order, starting from 1, and you can include as many labels as you like.

URL1, URL2, ..., URL_n
The optional URL to which the Label 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.

Message1, Message2, ..., Message_n
An optional text message which will be displayed in the browser's status bar (in compatible browsers) when the mouse moves over the Label with the same number.

Items
These parameters create rows of 2nd-level items for each Label, which slide into view when the mouse moves over the label. They are all prefixed with a number and a hyphen. The number refers to the Label you are adding this item to: 1-Item1 is the first item added to Label1. 1-Item2 is the second item for Label1 and so on. To add items to Label3, you would use 3-Item1, 3-Item2, and so on.

The URL, Target and Message parameters for the item should be numbered exactly the same way as the Item parameter they work with.

1-Item1, 1-Item2, ..., 1-Item_n
These parameters specify the text you want SlideBar to display for each item. The items will be displayed in numerical order, starting from 1, and you can include as many items for each label as you like.

1-URL1, 1-URL2, ..., 1-URL_n
The optional URL to which the Item with the same numeric prefix and suffix should link when clicked. 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.

1-Target1, 1-Target2, ..., 1-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.

1-Message1, 1-Message2, ..., 1-Message_n
An optional text message which will be displayed in the browser's status bar (in compatible browsers) when the mouse moves over the Item with the same numeric prefix and suffix.