[UPHPU] IE z-index bug and CSS vs. table layout

[Walt Haas]

On Mon, 2007-01-22 at 21:55 -0800, cole at colejoplin.com wrote:
> Hi Everyone,
> 
> >> Firstly, I'd like to see somebody produce the same hover effect
without
> >> using tables.  http://www.utahavalanchecenter.com/media-page.php
> 
> Great example with suckerfish, Wade. I'm not opposed to using  
> javascript on this either. If all we need to do is be  
> browser-complaint, and no tables, can I pick anything I want to  
> produce the same effect? Or a better effect?
> 
> If so, I choose Flash. I can automatically update the data with xml.
I  
> can use dynamically colored symbols, like colored mountains, even
some  
> animation, where I don't even need to hover. Or I can hover with an  
> area photo (or slideshow of photos) and stats. But if you work with
me  
> here, and you can supply a daily video of an avalanche spokesperson
on  
> green screen, I could integrate it all into the Flash. You didn't  
> mention a budget. ;)
> 
> Of course, I would still insist on using css for the page layout.
What  
> a cool site, by the way. They even have advisory podcasts. I'm  
> impressed.

There is actually an avalanche web site being developed for Colorado
that uses Flash to produce the same effect with pop-ups.  The client
(Bruce Tremper, director of the Utah Avalanche Center) showed me that
page and said he liked the effect.  I liked the effect but am not
thrilled with the idea of using Flash to get it, for several reasons,
which may just show my ignorance of Flash.  First, the danger rating for
each of seven regions is pulled from the DB when the page is shown to
the site visitor.  The danger rating for any region can be changed at
any moment by an avalanche forecaster, so whatever appears must be
chosen at the time the page loads into the browser.

Second, to my knowledge (correct me if I'm wrong) Flash doesn't let you
leverage the browser controls to change font size etc.  That ability can
be important for some people.

Third, since Flash is used primarily for ads, I browse the web with
Firefox with the FlashBlock extension, which saves me from the slow
download times and distracting motion of Flash ads.  On the few
occasions that there is something that I actually want to watch in a
Flash, I click on the little symbol to watch it.  I believe this
practice is becoming popular.

Bruce does want to do a weekly narrated slide show with a series of
pictures of snow conditions and recorded discussion by a forecaster of
how each layer of the snow affects its stability.  I think Flash might
be the best way to do that, so I've been trying to talk him into the
Flash approach instead of an AVI file which would be much less portable.
The New York Times has some nice narrated slide shows they do with
Flash.  Unfortunately the budget for this is a joke.  The UAC runs on
donations and fund raisers to supplement it's small appropriation of tax
money.  A lot of what makes the UAC run is effort by backcountry skiers
like me.  I bet my life on the UAC's forecasts every time I go into the
mountains so I'm pretty highly motivated to support them :-)

I'll study the Suckerfish dropdown menus to see what I can learn from
their method.  Remember, the issue isn't making the pop-up appear and
disappear, it's the Z index position.  IE wants to hide the pop-ups
behind any image that has a position attribute.

-- Walt