In this self-study lab exercise I would like you to add a Java applets
to a new Web page of your own design. You can post this new Web page to
your publishing area and link it from your cartography projects page.
The basic steps for the exercise are listed here, but you will also
have to read the documentation that comes with the applet.
Mastering Java programming takes considerable time and study. However, inserting pre-programmed Java applets into Web pages is quite easy and is something you will master in this exercise. Many free applets are available in the Web and some of these will provide useful, useable functions for your Web pages--like graphic animation.
If questions arise as you work on this exercise, please ask your TA or other members of the class. You have the HTML editing and authoring skills needed to complete this exercise in. However, if the documentation is hard for you to understand, ask for assistance. In your extra time, experiment with the applets by varying their parameters or inserting other applets into your page.
2. Look at the applet I would like you insert into your new Web page. It is available from buddysoft.net. When you go to this URL you can demo the viewer. You will also find a "download" link which will allow you to download a free trial version of the viewer.
3. Before you download these files, create some new folders. I
want to add a new folder "java_applet" where I will download the
Java applet. And, within this folder I will also create an
"images"
folder where I will store the jpgs that the viewer will display.
4. From http://www.5zed.com/download-now.jsp?id=396, download the compressed file "Slide_Show.zip" to your local disk, the default should be the Desktop. Double-click on "Slide_Show.zip", which will initiate the WinZip program. Chose the extract option, and extract the named "BuddySoft_Slide_Show" into your "java_applet" folder. This folder will have all the files you will need as well as the instructions on how to install the applet. Here is what my disk management looks like before I begin the exercise:
Read the manual.htm page carefully. These are the instructions and the page also contains the HTML code that you will need to copy-and-paste into your Web page to get the applet to work. The three steps in these instructions have been integrated into this tutorial, so please follow the steps outlined here.
5. Download the jpgs for the applet here: http://www.colorado.edu/geography/foote/geog4043/assign/applet/download/animationframes.zip If you extract the files during the download, be sure to extract them into the new "images" folder you have created. If you download the zip file, put it in the "images" folder and extract the jpgs using WinZIP. File management should look like this:
6. In Dreamweaver, create a new HTML file. This is the page where
the applet will appear. I would recommend giving
it a name such as "mapviewer.html" and saving it in the /java_applet
folder. Add a title to this page like: "United States Population
History: Periods
When Counties Were Named, 1634-1983" Also, as usual, put your name and
the date at the bottom of the page.
7. Copy and paste slide_show.jar from the
"BuddySoft_Slide_Show" folder into your java_applet folder. This file
was originally extracted into the "BuddySoft_Slide_Show" folder.
File management should look like this:
8. With the mapviewer.html file still open in Dreamweaver, change to
"CODE view" by clicking the tab at the top of the viewing window. You
must
now copy some HTML code from manual.htm file into mapviewer.html.
Follow the instructions in step two of the documentation. Notice that
the HTML codes <applet> </applet> designate the location of
a Java applet in a Web file.
9. Step three of the manual.htm instructions will ask you to copy
and paste "sample_config.txt" into your new image folder. Do this step
now and rename this text file something like "county_config". Don't put
.txt at the end when you name it. Windows does this automatically, so
if you do it, the file will be labeled "county_config.txt.txt" and
won't work.
A. After you have followed the instructions in manual.htm and steps 7 & 8 from this tutorial, your mapviewer.html file will look something like this in CODE view:
Also notice where the files slide_show.jar and county_config.txt have been saved.
B. Because I am supplying you with some jpg maps, your county_config.txt file (what was originally the sample_config_file.txt) should appear as follows:
img1.src = frame1634.jpg====
.
10. Once the applet code is added to the file, and the config file
changed to suit the images we will display, save these files, then
preview the mapviewer.html file. You will have to change the "height"
and "width" properties of the applet to fit the dimensions of the jpgs
that you are trying to display in the slideshow.
11. Once your mapviewer.html is working, move it to the
server with SSH. What files will you have to move to the server?
Be sure to keep the files in their correct
locations.
12. Check that this page now runs on the server. Once it does, make a link to it from your projects page (edit the projects page and then move it back to the server.)
13. Neat! Show your friends!
14. If you would like, remove substitute your own gifs or jpgs
for
the maps. Customize the HTML code so the viewer will display your
images..
Once you have found a useful applet, follow the documentation to add it to the page you created in Part I.
Finished early? Experiment with other applets or work on your final project.