HTML::Tooltip::Javascript - Provides a perl interface for easy use of Walter Zorn's javascript tooltip library (versions prior to 4.0). See http://www.walterzorn.com/tooltip_old/tooltip_e.htm
use HTML::Tooltip::Javascript; my $tt = HTML::Tooltip::Javascript->new( javascript_dir => '/javascript/', options => \%default_options, ); # In HTML output ... my $tip1 = $tt->tooltip("Tip", \%options); print qq(<a href="/example/" $tip1>Example</a>); # Output the script tag that refers to the Javascript tooltip # library. It's essential that this is printed after all other # tooltip related output. print $tt->at_end; # ... end HTML here
This perl module provides an easy interface to Walter Zorn's GPLed Javascript tooltip library (versions prior to 4.0). For further information on the Javascript library see http://www.walterzorn.com.
On a web page, a tooltip is a box of text and/or images that pops up when the mouse hovers over an image, link, some text or an area of the page (div tag). Walter Zorn's library allows great control over these boxes including changing colors, borders, fonts, images, delay (how fast the box pops up), alignment, shadows and more.
This perl module makes the Javascript tooltip library simple to use from a CGI aspect, allowing you to set defaults so that all your tooltips appear the same, and keeping the amount of code you have to write to a minimum.
For those who don't like reading doco, here's a working example. Make sure you've copied wz_tooltip.js into a web enabled directory.
#!/usr/bin/perl use strict; use warnings; use CGI; use CGI::Carp qw(fatalsToBrowser); # Comment this out in production use HTML::Tooltip::Javascript; my $q = CGI->new(); my $tt = HTML::Tooltip::Javascript->new( # Relative url path to where wz_tooltip.js is javascript_dir => '/javascript/', options => { bgcolor => '#EEEEEE', default_tip => 'Tip not defined', delay => 0, title => 'Tooltip', }, ); my $tip1 = $tt->tooltip("Walter Zorn's page", {fontsize => '30px'}); my $tip2 = $tt->tooltip("CPAN"); my $tip3 = $tt->tooltip(); print $q->header; print $q->start_html; print <<"EOT"; <a href="http://www.walterzorn.com" $tip1>Walter Zorn</a><BR> <a href="http://search.cpan.org" $tip2>CPAN</a><BR> <a href="http://www.perlmeme.org" $tip3>Perlmeme</a><BR> EOT print $tt->at_end; print $q->end_html;
my $tt = HTML::Tooltip::Javascript->new( javascript_dir => '/javascript/', options => \%default_options, );
This method create a new HTML::Tooltip::Javascript object. The parameters are optional.
This defines the relative url to the wz_tooltip.js file. For example, if you have put the wz_tooltip.js file in a 'javascript' directory under your document root, then you would use:
javascript_dir => '/javascript/'
The default is /.
The hash of options defines the options available in Walter Zorn's library, but with more user-friendly names. It also allows the definition of default text for the tooltip box. The options available are:
option javascript option ------- ------------------ above T_ABOVE bgcolor T_BGCOLOR bgimg T_BGIMG borderwidth T_BORDERWIDTH bordercolor T_BORDERCOLOR default_tip (none) delay T_DELAY fix T_FIX fontcolor T_FONTCOLOR fontface T_FONTFACE fontsize T_FONTSIZE fontweight T_FONTWEIGHT function (none) left T_LEFT above T_ABOVE offsetx T_OFFSETX offsety T_OFFSETY padding T_PADDING shadowcolor T_SHADOWCOLOR shadowwidth T_SHADOWWIDTH static T_STATIC sticky T_STICKY title T_TITLE titlecolor T_TITLECOLOR width T_WIDTH
When defined in new, the options will be applied to each tooltip, unless the call to tooltip() specifically redefines that option.
The default_tip is the text that will be used if no text is provided in the call to tooltip().
The function option is used if the text you pass in as the tip is actually a call to a javascript function. The javascript function must return text to output in the tooltip.
my $tip1 = $tt->tooltip("Tip", \%options);
This method returns the HTML to be inserted into the HTML element for which the tooltip is to be displayed.
For example, to output a tooltip for a link:
my $tip1 = $tt->tooltip("Example Tip", {fontcolor => 'blue'}); print qq(<a href="/example/" $tip1>Example</a>);
This would output a link with text 'Example', and when the mouse pointer hovers over the link, a popup box with the words 'Example Tip' in blue would appear.
Any options passed into to the tooltip() method will overwrite the values provided in the new method. However, options provided in the new method will be inherited unless specifically undefined in the tooltip method.
print $tt->at_end;
This method outputs the html to include Walter Zorn's script. It must be output after all tooltip related output. We recommend printing the output of this method at the end of the html, just before the close BODY tag (hence the name at_end()).
Walter Zorn's site states that the library supports the following browsers:
Linux: Konqueror 3, Browsers with Gecko-Engine (Mozilla/Firefox, Netscape 6, Galeon), Netscape 4 and 6, Opera 5 and 6.
Windows: Netscape 4, Gecko Browsers, IE 4, 5.0, 5.5 and 6.0, Opera 5,6,7.
Other: The equivalent browsers on other Operating Systems should also work as expected.
These explanations are based on Walter Zorn's own documentation at http://www.walterzorn.com, except for 'default_tip' and 'function' which are perl only options.
Places the tooltip above the mousepointer. Value: true. Additionally applying the offsety command allows to set the vertical distance from the mousepointer.
Background color of the tooltip.
Background image.
Width of tooltip border. May be 0 to hide the border.
Border color.
Used in the new() method only. Provides default text to be used in a tooltip when no other text is defined.
Tooltip shows up after the specified timeout (milliseconds). A behavior similar to that of OS based tooltips.
Fixes the tooltip to the co-ordinates specified within the square brackets. Useful, for example, if combined with the sticky command.
Font color.
Font face / family.
Font size + unit. Unit inevitably required.
Font weight. Available values: 'normal' or 'bold'.
Used to indicate that the text is actually a call to a javascript function.
Tooltip positioned on the left side of the mousepointer. Value: true. A suggested use is also setting above to true when using this option.
Horizontal offset from mouse-pointer. To center the tooltip below (or above) the mousepointer, apply the value -tooltipwidth/2. In wz_tooltip.js itself, width is preset to 300.
Vertical offset from mouse-pointer.
Inner spacing, i.e. the spacing between border and content, for instance text or image(s).
Creates shadow with the specified color. Value in single quotes. Shadow width (strength) will be automatically processed to 3 (pixels) if no global shadow width setting can be found in in wz_tooltip.js, and the concerned html tag doesn't contain a shadowwidth command.
Creates shadow with the specified width (strength). Shadow color will be automatically processed to '#cccccc' (light grey) if neither a global setting in wz_tooltip.js nor a shadowcolor command can be found.
Like OS-based tooltips, the tooltip doesn't follow the movements of the mouse-pointer. Value: true
The tooltip stays fixed on it's initial position until another tooltip is activated, or the user clicks on the document. Value: true
Title. Text in single quotes. Background color is automatically the same as the border color.
Color of title text. Preset in wz_tooltip.js is '#ffffff' (white).
Width of tooltip.
Nothing would be possible in the open source world without people like Walter Zorn providing elegent, stable, well documented and available code, like the Javascript tooltip library. Thanks Walter!
See http://www.walterzorn.com/tooltip/tooltip_e.htm and http://www.perlmeme.org/tutorials/html_tooltip_javascript_talk.html
You cannot use Javascript to dynamically change the contents of the tooltip. What you put in the HTML is what you get in the tooltip. This is a feature of the underlying Javascript library and not the Perl module.
Becky Alcorn, Simon Taylor. Unisolve Pty Ltd <simon@unisolve.com.au>
Copyright (C) 2004,2006 by Unisolve Pty Ltd
This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself, either Perl version 5.6.0 or, at your option, any later version of Perl 5 you may have available.
3 POD Errors
The following errors were encountered while parsing the POD:
You forgot a '=back' before '=head2'
'=item' outside of any '=over'
You forgot a '=back' before '=head1'
To install HTML::Tooltip::Javascript, copy and paste the appropriate command in to your terminal.
cpanm
cpanm HTML::Tooltip::Javascript
CPAN shell
perl -MCPAN -e shell install HTML::Tooltip::Javascript
For more information on module installation, please visit the detailed CPAN module installation guide.