[thelist] Google Adsense, Flash, dhtml menus, Iframes, Oh my!

[Micky Hulse]

Hi John, thanks for all the great info and pro advice!

John Dowdell wrote:
> Most browsers are pretty good these days at offering plugins transparent 
> backgrounds or interlayering with HTML elements via the WMODE parameter, 
> but it's hard to trigger that if you can't access the HTML yourself, I 
> agree.

For sure... rather frustrating in this one instance.

> (Inside an IFRAME adds another layer of browser dependencies... a few 
> years ago there was one browser which would balk at WMODE if the plugin 
> was in an IFRAME, but I haven't heard people complaining about that 
> symptom for two, three years now... probably fixed across the range of 
> browsers by this point.)

Definitely. I am glad things are more consistent these days. :D

This is actually the first time in a long time I have had problems with 
this type of thing.

> I wouldn't be surprised if Google AdSense prevented people from hiding 
> their ads, as a scamming defense. But whatever the reason, if you don't 
> have access to that chunk of HTML, then it's hard to request that your 
> HTML layer atop their framed SWF... I can't readily think of a way to 
> achieve it, sorry.

Yeah, good points. I think the only option I found that *might* work is 
using an iFrame shim... but not sure if that technique works on another 
iFrame element (i.e. iFrame shim for menu dropdowns, so they can be atop 
of the adsense iFrame.)

Here are a few links that explain the shim technique (very hackish):

<http://dotnetjunkies.com/WebLog/jking/archive/2003/07/21/488.aspx>
<http://dotnetjunkies.com/WebLog/jking/archive/2003/10/30/2975.aspx>
Example page for above link:
<http://www.ambiguism.com/sandbox/iframeshim.html>

> (Maybe the page can display GIF/TEXT ads instead, which are rendered 
> entirely by the browser's drawing engine...?)

Ah, good idea! This is not for me, so I do not have the Google Adsense 
account, but does Google allow for you to choose the types of ads 
(flash, gif, static, animated...) to be displayed?

Thanks again John, you have been very helpful. :)

P.S.

My friend has told me that he has other ads that are in same situation, 
but he has control of this iFrame... the iFrame tag has this attribute 
applied:

allowtransparency="true"

And that seems to make the menu dropdowns display atop of the Flash... 
Hmmm, I wonder if putting the Flash movie inside an iFrame makes it so 
you do not need to apply a wmode? Lol. I may do some testing here... not 
sure which browsers my friend has tested this in.

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