I need to include a simple contact form in either the sidebar or footer of an existing website so it appears on every page.
This is not a WordPress site, I have seen there are several plugins for WordPress. I need a different solution. I am thinking a php include would be my best option. However, I am very new to php. Can someone out there point me in the right direction? Any advice would be much appreciated.
I have searched all day and have yet to find a good solution.
You can try writing something like:
<?php include("form.php"); ?>
right into the html. If you're new to php, you just need to be sure php is enabled on your server [talk to web host] if not sure.
The form.php file is actually just a file withe .php on the end of filename rather than .html
In the file, it will just have your html for the form. I don't know if this is the most-legit way to do it, but it's functional. [I'm learning php myself]
Related
So, I'm trying to make a website, but the problem is I can't find the most effective way to keep the header on every single page. My header is HTML code, and it is the most important source of navigation on the website. The tabs navigate using links to other HTML files (all located locally on my computer) and so every single new page is another separate HTML file. Here are the many different methods I used that all fell short in one way or another:
The most basic way: Copying the header code to EVERY HTML page on the website. I am currently using this method, and it is probably the most ineffective and stupid method ever. The downside (which is pretty obvious) is that not only is it tedious but every time I make a change to the header (like maybe add different menus, add another tab, change the image, etc.) I have to copy the new header code to everything else. That is ridiculous!!
I tried using the w3schools method of implementing a separate HTML file (with only the HTML code) onto the page HTML files. So, I have this 1 HTML file for the header that every page uses so I make a change in that one file and it automatically applies to everything else. However, it didn't let me organize the numerous HTML files effectively because unlike referencing a stylesheet like some file named 'style.css', it doesn't let me put the HTML sheet in a folder that doesn't share the same parent folder as the referencing HTML page files. Hopefully that made sense, but basically, I couldn't get a folder that separated the HTML menu tab files ("pages") and the HTML content files ("posts") without the w3school code failing. Here's the link: https://www.w3schools.com/howto/howto_html_include.asp
I've seen other options on Stackoverflow, like getting around the "can't implement HTML files" by using js files with html code in a document.write(), but this to me is very hard to use because of all my progress so far. Also, I am very uncomfortable with the idea of using document.write because it is probably still very different from a true html file. Seriously, why is there no HTML implementing system that stylesheets and scripts have??? (script src="b.js" script and link rel="stylesheet" href="css/style.css" type="text/css")
Using jQuery. I understand this the least (being an amateur programmer) but I've heard it isn't consistent either. It doesn't seem to work on a local file, and that sounds like a nightmare. Though, if there are good suggestions, having a jquery file tag along seems not the best solution but still a plausible solution.
So, I'm in great trouble. How do other websites do this? Do they use different files??? Do they use PHP files?? Am I going to have to scrap all my hard header HTML work and styling because PHP is another language?? Do I have to use Angular.js??? This is so complicated!
Hopefully, this question made some sense. Please ask if you have questions. Thanks in advance.
UPDATE
After checking numerous other posts on Stackoverflow suggesting PHP, I got my HTML files and then renamed it from "index.html" to "index.php", and holy macro it actually still behaved like an HTML file even if it wasn't!! Now I need to find a way to put:
include("header.php");
into my page PHP files that are actually in HTML code to reference a separate PHP file that has my header. How do I do that? Does it belong in like script tags or something? How do I add PHP code in a PHP file written in HTML code? Thanks for the answers to my previous question, I'm so sorry I should've read the answers on Stackoverflow more thoroughly first.
So I know it's been awhile since I asked the question and probably nobody cares anymore, but I just want to post an update after finding a solution to my question about using php code and how it all works.
First, I learned that in order for this to work, all my files had to be in php format. So I pulled up my folder of my local HTML files and literally just renamed it from something like "index.html" to "index.php". Then, without changing the HTML code, I opened it up in my browser and it was like nothing happened, except it was better! Now it can not only read HTML and style and script codes, but also php codes as well! I added:
<?php
include("header.php");
?>
to the top of my index.php file, for example, and then converted the rest of the files into php format like I did for this. I copied over my header html and css code and saved it in a separate php file in the same folder, and - there was no header. I was confused. What?? Why is it not doing anything? The header.php itself is working, why is the include function not??
Then, I learned that this php include code can't be executed on my local drive, so it doesn't work on my local drive but works when it is public and on a real website hosting service. I then installed XAMPP, which is a commonly used PHP development environment that is an Apache distribution and is totally free. It runs a sort of local hosting service that will support this php code and cause it to execute the way I intended it to. I'm sorry I'm not good at explaining how this works, as I just find it and use it. Anyways, XAMPP did make the php code included above actually do its job and I finally got the header-system I always wanted. Happily ever after, right?
Nope. Now that fundamental stuff is gone, I have to face other problems like formatting (a real pain in the a** considering how I have to find css problems in tons and tons of overlapping code), creating an entire personal search system (having to figure out how to make a php file actually use my brand new MySQL database, which is also run by XAMPP), and lots of other things. But, that sounds like a great adventure that I am willing and definitely eager to go through. Now, finally I am done blabbing for the day...I wonder how many hours of other people's time I just wasted.
Oh yeah..I forgot to mention, happy Fourth of July! (and happy birthday to the beloved Captain America)
Using JavaScript and jQuery is a very easy way to accomplish this. First, just build a sample JavaScript file. Inside, make functions that are run on page load. For example,
function buildPage() {
var html = ' ';
//Build the html through the function
//In the end...
$('html-id').empty().append(html);
}
This way each time the html is built you can just empty(clear whatever is in the id 'html-id') and then add your specific html. For example,
<html>
<head>Put header here!</head>
<body>
<div>Put tabs with onclick events here</div>
<div id="html-id"></div>
</body>
</html>
Each time a different tab is clicked, the buildPage() function should be called in order to build the page accordingly. No multiple html headers needed!
Write something like that
<html>
<head>
<title>First page</title>
</head>
<body>
<?php include ("header.php"); ?>
<!-- rest of your code -->
?php include ("footer.php"); ?>
</body>
</html>
It's recommended to do with that way. Wordpress is working like that too. Include files to main php file.
**Notice all your files have to be .php
Maybe this can help:
Include another HTML file in a HTML file
You can make one header.html and include it in all other html files of your website.
is there some other way to edit or change some text or pictures on my website using it's interface or not from the HTML file, cause my client is wondering on how can day update the "Events" Box(they don't know how to use HTML) i'm really new at this and open to any suggestions, thank you
It depends on what you are using. if you are using a CMS based program that would be possible.
you cannot edit a page without opening its files right of the browser without any external help.
It seems that you want to edit the content of your website. Yes, its possible without opening any file using your CMS Dashboard. If the content is static then you have to open the php/html file.
So I have made a PirateBox, but I wish to make edits to the HTML file - to give more functionality and a new look to the webpage. I am confident that I can edit it - but I can't find it. I have looked online and on this site for answers, to no avail.
An additional inquiry: Do I need to re-flash the router / firmware once I edit the HTML file? This question really isn't too much of a concern at this point, though.
Thanks to all that can help me out!
So I found a great guide to personalize the PirateBox - including the HTML file. Here is the page.
To quote the page:
Change the index.html page
I don’t really like the index.html page as it does not show the files available, more over the english language is not adapted of every one, so I prefer a frame organization mixing files, local text and chat area.
The index.html file can be changed by replacing it: create a new one and copy it to the following place: /opt/piratebox/www/index.html
It also includes a guide to change the SSID and the Chat settings.
I have this theme http://themes.two2twelve.com/site/fluidapp/light/ installed on my website running wordpress. I converted the template to a wordpress theme by following the steps here: http://thethemefoundry.com/blog/html-wordpress/ and its all working fine.
However, I have now been given the crazy task to integrate a "Back button" function in it.
What they want is to have some sort of Back button functionality (or the browser one) so when they open Team and they press Back - they go back to Home. The template is basically one-paged, you can see so in the source code.
One way I can see this happening is if I make every page a different .php file, upload them to my theme folder and then just hyperlink them. like www.yoursite.com/team.php
Another possible way (I think) would be to create a page.php template file and then post the pages using wordpress. Question: How do I tell wordpress to use page.php as the page template file?
Can you think of another way to integrate this functionality? Thanks a lot in advance.
If it always is going to return the user to the startpage you could just use the home_url(); function.
Back
If you got more advance structure and you want the button to just redirect the user back one page, you should use javascript.
Back
page.php is the default template for wordpress pages. So if no other is selected in admin, page.php will be used.
If you're using javascript to load the new content, you could use javascript pushState()and popState() to log the stuff to new url's, and it gets added to the browser history. Here's an example.
I am new to HTML. I have an html page named "main.html" and i want to include another html page called "menu.html" in it. My main.html page doesn't include frames and it is designed using div tags. My site is hosted on linux based server The site I have to redesign is Java questions.
You want to look at Server Side Includes (SSI). This tutorial by Apache should get you up and running if that site is running on Apache.
There are plenty of Server Side ways of doing this, but all except SSI require the use of a language other than HTML.
If you're using IIS, you can check out Microsoft's writeup on Server Side Includes.
Check out server side includes.
You should use server-side includes.
i.e. in jsp you can use: <c:import url="/include/navigation.jsp" />, in php <?php include("/sidebar.php");?> and so on.
This is the good way to do what you need: include a navigation menu, or other parts common to all pages, without rewriting it in each page.
You can also do the same in other ways (with some javascript i.e.) but I doubt that you want to build a site called Java Questions without any server side language.
I think that PHP is the easiest way to do this. Most of the time you can just change your main.html file to main.php then add this php code where you want the menu bar:
<?php include('menu.html'); ?>
And that's it! You have to make sure that php is installed on your sever. Also this will ONLY work on a server. So if you are testing on your computer and using something like dreamweaver (or even a browser), you won't see anything until it's online.
You can make an ajax call in javascript if you want to avoid using the server.
In JQuery you would do:
<div id="putStuffHere">
</div>
<script>
$('#putStuffHere').load('myStuff.html');
</script>