posted 02-21-1999 01:06 AM            

Couple points to keep in mind:

1. You and whomever is viewing the forum most have the requisite font loaded on their computer for both of you to see the same thing. I don't have a clue if your machine has the same fonts as I'm gonna use, but I'll try not to pick any not likely to be too uncommon. ;->

2. The HTML 'psuedo code' beneath each sample must be modified. Don't be scared off by this, its a simple typing job. Just replace the parantheses symbols ( ) with the 'lesser than' and 'greater than' symbols found on your key board. Also - replace the name with your own handle - keep all spacing and characters intact.

Swipe and cut the 'psuedo-code' from this message, bring up Window's NotePad (or any other editor) and paste. Then do the parantheses swap. Save your work. Using your browser's, Open of Open Page option, you can then load the file you saved and see what it will look like on-line. Then copy your new sig into your messages (feel free to append here or use The Play Room to test). If these instructions aren't clear or sufficient, let me know and I'll say more.

Frank DeKova
(FONT FACE="AGaramond" SIZE="+2" COLOR="Maroon")Frank DeKova(/FONT)

Mr. Flattail
(FONT FACE="Fillmore" SIZE="+2" COLOR="Navy")Mr. Flattail(/FONT)

Petrus Artedi
(FONT FACE="Moderne" SIZE="+2" COLOR="Purple")(i)Petrus Artedi(/i)(/FONT)

George Tirebiter
(FONT FACE="Bookman Old Style" SIZE="+2" COLOR="Green")George Tirebiter(/FONT)

Ida Lewis
(FONT FACE="Denmark" SIZE="+2" COLOR="Teal")Ida Lewis(/FONT)

Eric Noltkamper
(FONT FACE="Haettenschweiler" SIZE="+2" COLOR="Red")Eric Noltkamper(/FONT)

Valentina Tereshkova
(FONT FACE="Tekton" SIZE="+2" COLOR="Olive")Valentina Tereshkova(/FONT)

Man Ray
(FONT FACE="Fajita ICG Picante" SIZE="+2" COLOR="Fuchsia")Man Ray(/FONT)

Gottfried Leibniz
(FONT FACE="Goudy" SIZE="+2" COLOR="Black")Gottfried Leibniz(/FONT)

Andre Breton
(FONT FACE="Park Avenue" SIZE="+3" COLOR="Maroon")Andre Breton(/FONT)

Special bonus: Identify who all these people are and I'll custom design your personal signature in the font of your choice.

Stuck in Text Mode,
__
/im[This message has been edited by JTimothyA (edited 10-23-99).]

posted 02-21-1999 11:55 AM            

Ida Lewis, keeper of the Lime Rock lighthouse, Newport RI

Mr. Flatail, close buddy of SeAnDiEgO

Valentina Tereshkova, tennis star?

Man Ray, photographer of the 30's 40's

That's it for me.

------------------
0 :>) St. John of the Internet

posted 02-21-1999 11:58 AM            

Rod gave me some HTML code to make those "Edited By" messages blend into the background - by setting the color to match the background. Note that there are two different background colors used here on alternating messages.

But Tim, Isn't there some tag I can use to make that "Edited By..." be truly hidden? like "META" or "MOTHER" or something?!?!? Of course I can't post a closing tag... and maybe I can't post it close to the beginning of the 'edited by' message. Oh never mind.

posted 02-21-1999 01:47 PM            

To hide the 'Edited By' insertion, I simply place (font color="#f7f7f7") as the final text in the message for light background, use 'color="#DBDBDB"' for the darker. Substitute angle brackets for parens. Do *not* include the closing tag: (/font).

If anyone wants to see what's going on HTML wise w/ any message thread, place your mouse on the thread and click the RMB (right mouse button). Then select 'View Source'. This will reveal the HTML code used to create the entire page. You may have to hunt a bit to find the exact spot you're looking for, but hunting is something us lighthousers know well. (g)

Fwiw, this message has the 'Edited By...' insert, but is hidden using the example given above.

Here's what the above paragraph would look like it as I typed it - if it was the last in the messge:

Fwiw, this message has the 'Edited By...' insert, but is hidden using the example given above. (font color="#DBDBDB")[This message has been edited by JTimothyA (edited 10-23-99).]

posted 02-21-1999 01:53 PM            

If you also preface it with (font size=1 color="******") then the size is reduced also, which helps in hiding it, so as not to have a large gap below the signature (like below)

posted 02-21-1999 03:18 PM            

In the following examples, replace the ( ) with appropriate angle brackets.

Hi Rod,

Actually its *not* the 'SIZE' tag that is causing there to be less white space. I suspect its a typo you may have introduced, or a clever way to trick the Forum Software's HTML parser. (Being generous we'll assume the latter ). With correct HTML you can set the size tag to "-3" or "+3" and the space between your sig and the close of the message doesn't get any smaller or larger!

Here's what's going on. After the final HTML you insert, the Forum Software's HTML parser inserts a (p) tag then it inserts the 'Editied by...' text. The (p) is the HTML code for 'new paragraph' which causes some lines to be skipped before the 'Edited by...' text is displayed. (or whited out by use of the color instruction we've been discussing). This paragraph tag comes *after* the size tag and thus says, skip to a new paragraph before displaying the next text. Therefore, regardless of the size you set for the next line of HTML, it will only display *after* the new paragraph is started.

To be syntactically correct, all HTML tags are demarked by opening and closing angle brackets. Thats what tells the browser's HTML parser where the HTML instruction begins and ends, thus allowing it to distinquish the HTML code from the text you type and want displayed.

Rod's HTML leaves off a final closing angle bracket. The final line of HTML code he inserts looks like this:

(font color="f7f7f7" size="1"

To be correct, it should read:

(font color="f7f7f7" size="1")

Here's where the trick comes in...

The Forum Software does it's thing and inserts the paragraph (p) tag after the closing HTML the user inserts. The HTML parser always tries to match an opening angle bracket with a closing angle bracket. Outer brackets take precedence over inner brackets in this matching process.

When Rod leaves off the closing angle bracket in his final instruction, the Forum Software still does its thing, the resulting HTML looks like this:

(font color="f7f7f7" size="1"(P)[This message edited by...](/FONT)

-example shows the HTML inserted by the parser in bold; it also inserts the 'Edited by...' text.

When the browser parses this HTML string, it starts looking for matching angle brackets. Stuff that's inside angle brackets which is invalid HTML, the browser ignores.

It matches the leftmost opening bracket '(' with the closing bracket immediately to the right of the 'p)' tag and sees these as a matching pair. Therefore it does not see angle brackets around the 'p' itself and thus concludes this is not a valid HTML instruction and ignores it! Ignoring the (p) means there is no paragraph instruction, and thus no jumping to a new line with white space in between.

Here's what the parser sees, with matching brackets colorized:

(font color="f7f7f7" size="1"(P)[This message edited by...](/FONT)

You can see how the '(P' get ignored.

A full explanation is actually more complicated than this (can you believe it), but if you've followed this far, you get the gist of it. Note my message before this one, the one that starts 'Good John -...'; it has no 'SIZE' instruction, but by leaving off the final bracket, it tricks the Forum Software and voila - no extra white space.

Personally, I need all the margin I can get. (vbg).

>>but all that 'hiding' shows up if you drag your mouse across the area or print the post...<<

Of course John - you know we can't hide anything from you. rofl!

Rgds,
__
/im[This message has been edited by JTimothyA (edited 10-23-99).]

posted 02-21-1999 05:09 PM            

Actually, one time I noticed I accidentally missed copying the last ">", and it moved the "edited" message up into the signature line. I liked it, so I kept the signature tag like that for all posts.

(Your explanation sounds like I knew what I was doing, so don't tell anyone it started with a mistake)

posted 02-22-1999 12:05 AM            

Frank DeKova was an eminent Native American of the Hakowee (sp?) tribe, and a friend of Corporal Agarn, U.S. Army.

Petrus Artedi was a good friend and co-taxonomist of Carolus Linnaeus. Interesting bit of serendipity here for you, Tim: There is also a species of whitefish (as in Whitefish Bay) named Coregonus artedii.

(I'm not lying about any of this!)

Gottfried Leibniz was a co-inventor (along with Isaac Newton, different place, about a decade apart) of the calculus. It is for him that the Leibniz notation (the form d/dx) is named.

Don't ask me how I know this. I haven't a clue. Nor did I have a clue as to who the remaining characters are until I did a Yahoo search. I invite the reader to do this for himself.

posted 02-22-1999 12:30 AM            

That's the ticket. (But reading all those Blue Books can be a real pita.)

Have fun with fonts, learn something new, *and* be mildly amused. What a Forum!

posted 03-19-1999 05:32 PM            

Digger

posted 03-19-1999 06:34 PM            

DIGGER
(Underground And Still Digging)

posted 04-27-1999 12:00 AM            

If you know how to cut and paste, just cut out the above, and paste where you want your signature. Then (here's the important part) replace the both left paranthese '(' with a left angle bracket '<' and both of the ) with a >.

You can also save your signature (already formatted as HTML with the angle brackets) in a file, then paste it where ever you want your sig.

Here are some alternatives:

Mombo


Mombo


Mombo


Mombo

In case anyone is wondering, the fonts for the above are:
Litterbox ICG
Wonton ICG
Impact
Prestige Elite

posted 04-27-1999 09:43 PM            

Voila! Thanks, Tim!

posted 09-28-1999 11:09 PM            

1. Make a signature in HTML, indicate when posting to use your 'signature'. Then, since signatures cannot use HTML, you can click on the edit icon and save it. That converts your signature from being a separate entity into one that is part of the message which does allow HTML.

2. Keep a copy of the HTML that makes up your signature in another program -- such as NOTEPAD. When you're working on your response, open the text file, select it, copy it and paste it in at the bottom of the message.

posted 09-29-1999 10:36 PM            

Jim Chesher

posted 04-15-2000 01:39 PM           

Tim - Keeping the flame lit

By George, I think I've got it!!!

posted 04-15-2000 04:45 PM            

Weasel58

posted 04-16-2000 08:47 AM           

Petrus Artedi: Father of Ichthyology
George Tirebiter: USC Trojan's mascot
Ida Lewis: 14 year old Lime Rock Light keeper
Eric Noltkamper: Polka Artist
Valentina Tereshkove: Female Soviet cosmonaut
Man Ray: Avant guard painter/photographer
Gottfried Leibniz: German philospher
Andre Breton: French novelist, essayist and
poet - father of surrealism.

Any of it right? LOL

posted 04-16-2000 08:58 AM           

Frank DeKova: Video filmographer)
Mr. Flattail: Chisholm Trailblazer's mascot (a beaver)

posted 04-16-2000 01:19 PM            

Not sure about his life as a videographer (!?), but Frank DeKova played Chief Wild Eagle of the (Where the) Heckowe tribe on the tv show F Troop. He also was a popular bit player on the Untouchables - 'Tough Tony' Lamberto, and had a bit part in a few episodes of one of my childhood TV favorites - Rin Tin Tin.

Valentina Tereshkova was not only a female cosmonaut - she was the first women in space and a national hero in the USSR. Manually driving Vostok 6 she orbited the Earth - parachuting out of the capsule at re-entry!

Georgie Tirebiter as a USC mascot! Thats a hoot. Wouldn't surprise me, but dig a little deeper til you get to More Science High. Just remember - if the world was flat, all the Chinese would fall off.

posted 02-13-2002 10:54 AM            

but goodie !

[This message has been edited by bright eyes (edited 02-13-2002).]

posted 03-15-2002 07:43 PM            

About the best I can do!