Plug-Ins
Plug-ins are platform-specific components for pages. Originally designed for Netscape Navigator 2.0, they are supported in Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0 and higher as well. If you have a plug-in that you want to insert on the page, in the FrontPage Editor, on the Insert menu, point to Advanced and then click Plug-In. Enter a reference to the plug-in data file you want to use, and set the optional size and alignment parameters. When you press OK, a placeholder graphic will be inserted for the plug-in. You preview a plug-in in the FrontPage Editor’s Preview tab (if you have Microsoft Internet Explorer, version 3.0 or higher, installed) or by choosing Preview in Browser on the FrontPage Editor’s File menu.
Scripting
Scripting is a type of programming language that you can use to write custom code for your Web page. This is an advanced FrontPage feature that requires knowledge of programming. Scripting is useful for custom Web-based solutions development. It provides a full object model for the Web browser and the objects on the current page. This makes it easy to write code that manipulates elements on the page without knowing the details of the HTML or how the objects are implemented.
FrontPage provides a range of scripting features that are compatible with JavaScript and Visual Basic Script. In the FrontPage Editor, you insert a script into your page on the Insert menu by pointing to Advanced and then clicking Script. The Script command lets you easily insert scripting code inline on your page. You pick the scripting language you want, type in the script code, and click OK. The script will appear on your page as a small icon. You can double-click this icon at any time to edit the script.
You can also use the Script Wizard to create script code that is specifically designed to handle events that occur on objects (such as ActiveX controls) on your page. The Script Wizard includes an online Help system.
As a simple example, you can insert a push button using the FrontPage Editor’s Push Button command, on the Forms toolbar. In the Push Button Properties dialog box, click Normal and click OK. Right click on the button and choose Script Wizard. This launches the FrontPage Script Wizard. Click from the list to select the button object. Click to select the OnClick event. Now switch to code-writing mode and type in the statement MsgBox "Thanks for clicking!"
To test the script, choose the Preview in Browser command on the FrontPage Editor’s File menu. Click on the button to view the message.
