Rollover
Images, Behaviors, and using Flash Animations
There
are steps you can take to make your pages more interactive
to those who read your Web page. Behaviors are pre-written
events available for your use in a Web page, written in JavaScript
code. Although the programming of JavaScript for events in
a Web page is quite complicated, Dreamweaver 4 gives you the
tools to create one of the most popular behaviors: the rollover.
The rollover
is generally defined as an image that changes to another image
when it is touched by the mouse. The rollover is most effective
when used on navigation buttons that hyperlink to other pages.
NOTE: Dreamweaver 4 can also create this effect by use of
creating Flash text and Flash buttons, which will also be
discussed in this page.
Using
a Rollover Image
Take a
look at the following example:

To the
left of the "Welcome to Compass" paragraph, we will
insert a rollover image. To do this you can choose the Insert|Interactive
Images|Rollover Image menu or click on the Insert Rollover
Image button on the Objects toolbar. 

You should
choose an image name for the original image, which makes it
easier to edit if necessary. You then indicate the original
image and the rollover image. For maximum effect, you should
have a URL to which you can hyperlink. Here is the result:

<Click
here for a video demonstration. (2 MB)>
Creating
Flash Text
Similar
in nature to creating a Rollover Image, you can use the Insert
Flash Text button
to create a piece of formatted text that can change color
when touched by the mouse. It creates a small Macromedia Flash
animation that you can use to hyperlink to another Web page.

You choose
the font and font size for the text you want. You then choose
two different colors: the original color of the text and the
rollover color. You can also link to another Web page and
choose a background color. <Click
here to see a video demonstration of the Flash Text in action.
(899 KB)>
Creating
Flash Buttons
Dreamweaver
also has a Insert Flash Button option
where you can choose from a gallery of buttons that are Flash
animations.

Similar
to Insert Flash Text, you choose the style of button you wish
and determine the text for the button. Again, you can link
it to another Web page. <Click
here to see a demo of the Flash button in action. (700
K)>
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