web experts. how do i do this?

[Hmongkeysauce]

heres the deal:
lets say i have two cells, A and B, side by side. cell A has a few links in them. cell B is an empty space. when a user click on a link in cell A, a picture and text shows up in cell B. when the user click on another link in cell A, different information shows up in cell B, replacing the old stuff. i know i can be done using frames, but i dont want to use frames. i did this once, years ago, so totally forgot how it is done. is this javascript/php/dhtml? any help or advice of where to search would be great. thanks.

 

[troytime]

how many different combinations are there?

if there's not a ton, you can load all of the cell b content in cell b as hidden
then the links in cell a will call a javascript function to make the specified part of cell b visible

if there's an infinite number of cell B items, you'll want to use some some ajaxy

javascript is your answer (which is the language behind dhtml and ajax)

if i had more time, i'd write up some example code for you
but to aid you in your learning (and help you with your searching)
getElementById is your friend 😉

 

[PhatoseAlpha]

javascript. Should pretty much be able to use something like this:

<td>
<a href="javascript:SetLinkBToSay1()">Set B to Say 1</a></td>
<td><span id="SpanB"></span></td>


....

<script>
function SetLinkBToSay1()
{
var X=document.getElementById("SpanB");
X.innerHTML = "I now say 1. <i>Imagine That!</t>";
}
</script>

 

[TeamZero]

There are a infinite number of ways to do this with just about any language other than HTML. It's all preference as to how you want to accomplish it, and as previously mentioned, the easiest method is probably Javascript.

 

[Onund]

Originally posted by: TeamZero
There are a infinite number of ways to do this with just about any language other than HTML. It's all preference as to how you want to accomplish it, and as previously mentioned, the easiest method is probably Javascript.

Sure you could do this with just pure HTML. It's possible to fake the dynamic content by making multiple pages from the same template. One page for each link with cell B showing the relevant info.

Not a pretty or easily maintained solution but it'll get 'er done. 🙂

 

[IronWing]

I based an entire website around this technique which uses no scripts at all:
http://meyerweb.com/eric/css/edge/popups/demo.html
Mouse over the leftside menu.


Also, snoop around http://www.dynamicdrive.com/ and see if something suits.


This one uses CSS and javascript:
http://www.mineralarts.com/artwork/tsunamiart.html
Once the page finishes loading, mouse over the turtle shell. View the source to get the script.

 

[Red Squirrel]

You could use iframes and link targets, though I'm not sure if those work with iframes, I have not used those in a long time. I think they are also frowned upon nowdays.

 

[George P Burdell]

You could do this with CSS only, but some browsers may not render correctly. So a combination of CSS and Javascript will do the trick.