MAPPER

A Forms-Based Imagemap Program

What is an imagemap program?

When a user clicks on such an image, it is beyond the capability of the web browser, the HTML code, or even the HTTP server itself to know what location to send the user to. Instead, the server must run a program (the imagemap program) and tell it the coordinates where the user clicked. The imagemap program reads in configuration information that was specified by the person who created the clickable map, and it tells the browser where to go.

Why does MAPPER exist? Why reinvent the wheel?

True, clickable maps have been around for a long time already. Nearly all of these use NCSA's imagemap program, which is really swell except for one major flaw: only a privileged user can create or edit an clickable map, unless certain security measures are compromised. We (the makers of MAPPER) saw no need to restrict the general public at our university from using clickable maps in their home pages, and we definitely saw no need to compromise security. MAPPER was born.

NCSA's imagemap program does not have a mechanism for people outside of the given server to use imagemaps. The Mapper program was specifically designed to have this feature, plus all the features of NCSA's imagemap program. Mapper's programmers chose Perl as the programming language to allow quick development.

Who should use MAPPER?

Why, everyone!

MAPPER incorporates all of the NCSA Imagemap's features, and then a few -- including:

• MAPPER lets you keep your map configuration information right inside the HTML file your clickable map appears in. We view this as a big feature, but if you want to keep the configuration in a separate file, you can do that, too. The only caveat to this feature is that your MAP must be less than 1024 characters (due to standards outside the control of MAPPER). This shouldn't be a problem in most cases.

• The noxy attribute can point to a text menu for users with non-graphical browsers. Perhaps you can remember trying to access a clickable map with a text-only browser -- the computer gets upset at you and gives you nothing but a cryptic error message. There's no need for cryptic error messages when you could be directed instead to a location made specially for non-graphical users.

• The base attribute was especially created for users outside of the main web servers machine. Without this attribute, the imagemap author would have to repeatedly type the full URL of the intended web page. When the Mapper program parses the MAP, it parses it in the order it is situated in the file. More than one base attribute may be specified.

Here's a very general template for a document with an imagemap using the Mapper program.

<TITLE>BU : Mapper Template</TITLE>

<HR>

<FORM ACTION="http://www.bradley.edu/cgi-bin/mapper"
   METHOD=post>
<INPUT TYPE=hidden NAME=MAP VALUE="

base    http://www.bradley.edu/

noxy    noxy.html
rect    academics/      0,60 120,220
rect    students/     350,60 468,220
rect    resources/     0,221 120,340
rect    peoria/      350,220 468,340
rect    new.html     120,290 240,340
rect    search.html  240,290 340,340
default overview/

">

<INPUT TYPE=image SRC="/images/main.jpg" WIDTH=468
  HEIGHT=340 VALUE="[Text menu]">
</FORM>

<HR>

Here's a few real world examples:

Disclaimer:These are not "official" bradley pages, so we're not responsible for the content. They are, however, good examples of the use of the mapper program. Take a look at the Source of these pages

• The Alternate Bradley Homepage
• VCR Questions and Answers
• BU Theatre

Authors:

• Kevin Bourrillion
• Tom Friday
• Dave Rybolt