[WEB4LIB] Hyperlinking to a page within a frame

[Thomas Dowling]

> Hello Web4Libers:
>
> Is there a way to directly hyperlink to a particular page in a site that
> uses frames?
>
> I would like to place a hyperlink on our International website that goes
> directly to a page on our USA website.  The only problem is that our USA
> website uses frames, and I want to go directly to a page that is not the
> home page.
>
> I know that I can link directly to page via the page's name, but when I
> do this the page comes up with out the rest of the frameset.
>
> Is there any way to link directly to the page and have it appear in the
> frame?
>

One of the biggest problems with frames is that they break the "one page =
one URL" relationship.  As you've illustrated, this destroys the ability to
construct a URL that points to a specific logical page.  Perhaps you could
construct an entire frameset on your international site that contains the
exact frames you want.

I'll take the opportunity to point out that the target page in question is
responsible for making sure it can be used in a non-framed environment.
With bookmarks, search engine hits, and increasingly common "Open frame in
new window" functions, it's careless to assume a "framed" page will always
be in its frameset.

Thomas Dowling
Ohio Library and Information Network
tdowling at ohiolink.edu