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Title: |
Information about browsers, browser versions, and HTML level supported by Help-U-Plan's online Gantt Chart creation process |
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Description: |
Explanation of highly interactive applications, like Help-U-Plan's online Gantt Chart creation, and possible problems with specific browsers |
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Tags: |
Browsers, IE, Netscape, Netscape Navigator, Mozilla, AOL, Opera, Firefox, cookies |
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Discussion - Browser and Server
Help-U-Plan is a highly interactive application between your browser and our server. Both must work correctly and dependably for you to get what you want.
Browsers are very complex pieces of software. But, like your car, it is not necessary that you know how it works. It is necessary that you know how to work it.
The most popular browsers are produced by manufacturers who compete with one another on features. This situation conflicts with user needs for consistent and predictable performance. It also makes the task for applications like Help-U-Plan more difficult.
Help-U-Plan produces, modifies, and stores a user's plan in the form of a Gantt Chart. To perform this process successfully, both the server and the browser must work correctly and predictably.
Please NOTE: Help-U-Plan's server is OrcsWeb, located in North Carolina, USA (www.orcsweb.com). They have been in the web hosting business since 1996, and specialize in supporting Microsoft-based applications like Help-U-Plan. Their historical record is of being 'up' 99.997% of the time. That means being 'down' about 16 minutes per year, on average. So if you are experiencing something weird, think first of your browser behavior, and your internet connection. Odds are the problem is there. It could also be Help-U-Plan's programming. It is not perfect, though that is our goal.
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Notes on Usability
Three things are of note concerning the Help-U-Plan Workspace:
1) This Workspace uses frames.
Frames mean the separation of your browser window into separate sub-windows. We believe this makes the Workspace much more intuitive to use; much more like Outlook or Quickbooks. Because only the content of individual frames change, you never feel lost or out of control while using the Workspace. You constantly have in front of you information helpful to making the Chart look the way you want. The use of frames in browsers is supported by the W3C international standard for HTML 4.0 and later.
2) The Workspace uses the 'Post' method of transmitting data.
This is a more secure method than the more common 'Get' method (where you see characters appended to your destination URL address). The preferred 'Post' method of data transmission was not supported by early browsers such as Netscape 4.7 and earlier.
3) Methods for delivering the Chart to your browser.
Up until 4/17/2007, the Workspace wrote the newest version of your Chart to the server's hard drive.
This process creates a distinct ID for each version of your Chart, and forces the browser to download this fresh, unique copy, instead of pulling the graphic from a local cache on your computer. This process was apparently not supported by the Firefox browser.
As of 4/17/2007, we installed a process for delivering the fresh graphic/chart directly to the browser, instead of writing it to the server's hard drive. Firefox does support this method for delivering the chart. All aspects of chart creation and storage, including viewing 'snapshots' of previous charts (for collaborative users) are now supported by all the different versions of the Firefox browser.
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What can go wrong? To Top
1) Browser pulls from cache (on your computer).
When you are in the Help-U-Plan Workspace, make sure you have a fresh copy of your Gantt Chart from the server. If your submitted change does not appear in your new Gantt Chart, make your browser 'refresh' or 'reload' (View --> Refresh or Reload on your Menu). Browsers like to pull information from a local 'cache', rather than from the server. We have given programming instructions that the Workspace page is not to be cached. By and large, these non-caching instructions work.
Note: To tell if you have the most current verison of your Gantt Chart, look at the date/time stamp in the lower left corner of the Chart.
Another method of forcing a page 're-load' is to go to another page on the site, and then return to the Workspace. With most browsers this forces a complete reload of the information. With Netscape you may have to force a reload by going to View --> Reload.; A note of hope; you will not lose data in the Workspace by going to other pages on the site.
Hint: If your browser should insist on pulling an old Gantt Chart from cache, you can force a change in browser behavior by changing its settings. For example in Internet Explorer 6.028, go to menu selections 'Tools' --> 'Internet Options' --> 'General' --> 'Temporary Internet Files' --> 'Settings'. Under 'Check for newer version of stored pages', select 'Every visit to the page'. Other browsers offer a similar sequence to change these cache/no cache settings.
Warning! If the above setting is set to 'Never', the Workspace will not work correctly. In this case, your browser will always pull your old Chart from cache (a temporary folder on your computer) rather than asking for the fresh version from the server.
2) Browser 'freezes up' or gets lost.
This is software. Many things can happen. You may have to close your browser, and start over (re-boot your browser). You may have to re-boot your computer. Try to save your work before doing this. Many times saving your work is not possible, as you will have lost control over the browser. Most of the time, you will find that your work is still in the Help-U-Plan Workspace, and that the server recognizes you after re-booting, and then re-establishing your internet connection.
3) Browser won't print the Gantt Chart.
One browser we have found which does not want to print the Gantt Chart is Netscape V 6.01 (on the Help-U-Plan development machine, using Windows Professional 2000, and HP Deskjet 990). In this event, one would have to save the Gantt Chart (a .gif file) locally, and then view it via a different piece of graphics-capable software. Please ensure that you can print the Gantt Chart before doing too much work.
4) Internet connection is lost.
Should you lose your internet connection, it will appear that the 'round-trip' between your browser and the server is taking too long. Finally, the browser will return an error, indicating that the server could not be found, or some simila;r message. You simply have to re-instate your internet connection, and take up where you left off.
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About Cookies To Top
You may be asked by your browser to authorize the use of 'cookies' (info stored on your computer).
There are 2 levels of cookies:
1. Temporary cookies.
2. Permanent cookies.
Help-U-Plan makes extensive use of temporary cookies, that exist as long as you are in a 'session' with the Help-U-Plan appication. They are deleted from your computer's memory when you shut the browser down. We must be able to store these temporary cookies on your computer while you are working on a plan. This enables our server to identify you, so plan changes are correctly assigned. These temporary cookies are typically permitted by browsers (default setting) because they are so useful to users of the internet.
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Support Overview
As noted above, browsers are complex pieces of software. There are variations in manufacturer, version, and operating system they must run on.
We believe Help-U-Plan will work consistently and correctly with most of the major browsers although the application was developed principally using Internet Explorer Version 6 (Microsoft). We do expect the following browsers to work under all common operating systems:
1. Internet Explorer - V 5.0 +
2. Netscape Navigator - V 6.2 +
3. Mozilla - V 1.1 +
4. AOL - V 6.0 +
5. Opera - V 6.05 +
6. Firefox - V 1.0 +
We invite your remarks about experiences with different browsers using the Help-U-Plan Workspace, so we can make this information available to other users. We also welcome suggestions for desired changes and features, so Help-U-Plan can continue to be the simplest possible way to for you to create and modify your Gantt Charts.
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Technical Aspects
Help-U-Plan uses all Microsoft technologies on the server. Primarily, this means the use of 'Active Server Pages' made functional through Microsoft's Internet Information Server software. We also execute VBScript, and run COM objects on the server to support changes in the user's plan data, and production of the Gantt Chart graphic. Most of this capability for handling data was not available several years ago. The technology is still evolving as Active Server Pages have proven to be such a popular and valuable method for handling user data.
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Internet Explorer (Microsoft)
Help-U-Plan was developed using Internet Explorer, principally Version 6. We believe all versions of IE from 5 on, will work well with Help-U-Plan, though not all have been tried. Browser information concerning the Microsoft browser can be found (with effort) at http://support.microsoft.com.
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Netscape Navigator (Netscape) To Top
Known Problems: If you are using Netscape Navigator 4.7 and earlier and try to make data changes in the Workspace, you will get an error message concerning 'Post' and 'cache expired'. We do not understand why this happens, as NN 4.7 reportedly supported the 'Post' method for transporting form data, and the Help-U-Plan application uses this 'Post' method. Later versions of Netscape Navigator do not have this specific problem.
NN 6.01 will not print from Help-U-Plan's development server (Windows 2000 Professional OS, and HP Deskjet 990 printer). NN 6.2 does print from this same setup. Information about the Netscape browser can be found at www.sillydog.org , and at www.netscape.com.
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Mozilla
No problems are known for the Help-U-Plan application with Mozilla. Mozilla was begun by Netscape in 1998 to succeed NN 4 versions, and originally was intended to be platform-independent (aimed at Windows, Unix, and Macintosh). It was developed to be an 'open source' browser (let programmers know the code), and thereby permit developers to modify it for individual application use. It was released for public use in 2002 as Version 1.0. Information about the Mozilla browser can be found at www.mozilla.org.
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AOL
No problems are known for the Help-U-Plan application via America On-Line (AOL). AOL presently uses (at last notice) its own version of Internet Explorer. Consequently, by accessing Help-U-Plan via AOL, you will be using a quite recent version of IE. Since AOL is an Internet Service Provider, you must sign up for their service to use their browser.
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Opera To Top
No problems are known for the Help-U-Plan application with Opera. Opera is intended and claims to be a 'fast' browser. You can gain more visual space (eliminate browser menus and tool bars) in the Help-U-Plan application by 'toggling' the F11 key while using Opera. Information about the Opera browser can be found at www.opera.com.
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Firefox
Up until 4/17/2007, our Workspace process was not supported by the Firefox browser. This was apparently because we wrote the newest version of your Chart to the server's hard drive.
This process created a distinct ID for each version of your Chart, and forced the browser to download this fresh, unique copy, instead of pulling the graphic from a local cache on your computer. browser.
As of 4/17/2007, we installed a process for delivering the fresh graphic/chart directly to the browser, instead of writing it to the server's hard drive. Firefox does support this method for delivering the chart. All aspects of chart creation and storage, including viewing 'snapshots' of previous charts (for collaborative users) are now supported by the different versions of the Firefox browser.
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© 2001-2008 Help-U-Plan Program. All rights reserved.