Using Frames

[Laura B. Cohen]

Funny we should be starting on frames. I just finished writing a
long distributed e-mail message to my librarian colleagues,
explaining how to print, download, and e-mail a file from
within the frames environment. This can be terribly confusing
to library patrons, to say nothing of librarians. In a
library environment, we've got people who are doing much
more than browsing--they are attempting to do research,
and will want to save files for later use.

The frames fiasco has meant that I've had to create yet
another Internet teaching file on my library's home page,
add frame information to the Netscape instructional handout and 
online file, and frequently trouble shoot for patrons and staff. 

I've used frames once on my library's home page. In the left
hand frame, a list of Frequently Asked Questions about
the library. The short answers load into the right hand frame.
Using frames for this sort of thing makes sense to me. But
let's face it, we're living a time of gratuitous framing.

  -- Laura Cohen

          Laura B. Cohen
          Network Services Librarian
          University Libraries UL-140
          University at Albany   
          Albany, New York  12222          LCOHEN at CNSVAX.ALBANY.EDU