Moodle

Frames and embedded objects used inconsistently

Details

  • Type: Bug Bug
  • Status: Closed Closed
  • Priority: Major Major
  • Resolution: Duplicate
  • Affects Version/s: 1.8, 1.8.1
  • Fix Version/s: None
  • Component/s: Resource
  • Labels:
    None
  • Affected Branches:
    MOODLE_18_STABLE

Description

When you display a resource with "keep navigation visible" you get very inconsistent results. PDFs are now displayed as an embedded object which causes all sorts of bother (for example it doesn't work at all on Firefox on a Mac and users complain that the image is much smaller than it used to be). Web resources and Word documents seem to be displayed in frames as before.

This seems like a strangely arbitrary design decision! I am aware that the problem has been brought up before and the answer was that it could not be done because XHTML does not allow it, but I find that hard to accept - what's the difference between Word and PDF in this respect?

Issue Links

This issue has a clone:
MDL-20320 PDFs are not displaying according to settings Blocker Closed
This issue has a non-specific relationship to:
MDL-9659 PDF files no more displayed correctly Minor Closed

Activity

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Howard Miller added a comment -

Link is much the same problem, but specifically about PDFs. I'm more questioning the inconsistency of approach.

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Howard Miller added a comment - Link is much the same problem, but specifically about PDFs. I'm more questioning the inconsistency of approach.
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Howard Miller added a comment -

Another interesting aspect to this. On IE (6 or 7) if PDFs are not hosted in the same domain IE kicks up about it, you get the following message:

"This page is accessing info that is not under its control. This poses a security risk. Do you want to continue?"

This seems to be partly a result of the object embed as it didn't happen using frames as far as I can tell.

Show
Howard Miller added a comment - Another interesting aspect to this. On IE (6 or 7) if PDFs are not hosted in the same domain IE kicks up about it, you get the following message: "This page is accessing info that is not under its control. This poses a security risk. Do you want to continue?" This seems to be partly a result of the object embed as it didn't happen using frames as far as I can tell.
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Daniele Cordella added a comment -

Ciao Howard
I asked to embed PDF because they were showed using frameset and this breaks accessibility.
You are not the first rising questions about this change.
I personally don't care if the file is or is not embedded. What I feel is necessary is to avoid frameset. They are not allowed at all by accessibility requisites.
In my opinion should be added to the resource page option the radio button:
-> embed the resource if possible (I know a way to embed swf or pdf but not a way to embed zip or word)
-> simply link the file in a <a> tag

I know there are a lot of resources still showed using frameset, and the user shoud be allowed to choose the way to present them into the course.

Show
Daniele Cordella added a comment - Ciao Howard I asked to embed PDF because they were showed using frameset and this breaks accessibility. You are not the first rising questions about this change. I personally don't care if the file is or is not embedded. What I feel is necessary is to avoid frameset. They are not allowed at all by accessibility requisites. In my opinion should be added to the resource page option the radio button: -> embed the resource if possible (I know a way to embed swf or pdf but not a way to embed zip or word) -> simply link the file in a <a> tag I know there are a lot of resources still showed using frameset, and the user shoud be allowed to choose the way to present them into the course.
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Howard Miller added a comment -

I do more or less agree with you on the frameset issue, but this seems to be one of those situations where the problem needs fixing properly for all resource types.

I am no expert on Accessibility, but one or two articles I have read seem to recommend doing it both ways - a frameset and a noframes section. How hard would this be?

Show
Howard Miller added a comment - I do more or less agree with you on the frameset issue, but this seems to be one of those situations where the problem needs fixing properly for all resource types. I am no expert on Accessibility, but one or two articles I have read seem to recommend doing it both ways - a frameset and a noframes section. How hard would this be?
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Jon Witts added a comment -

I have noticed that the embedding of PDFs does not produce consistent display results. You can see screen grabs to detail the issues in this forum thread: http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=132906 but to summarise: with embedded = TRUE in resource.class.php for PDF resources, all types are displayed exactly the same, no matter whether show navigation is selected or not.

If we are to move away from frames altogether (a good thing in my mind!), we need to make sure that the options offered in setting up a resource still work. The current situation does not meet that.

With embedded = FALSE, PDF resources display as described; including display navigation without a frame.

Would it not be better to move towards an upgrade path that replaced all resources set to display the navigation with a frame to dispalying the navigation without a frame?

Show
Jon Witts added a comment - I have noticed that the embedding of PDFs does not produce consistent display results. You can see screen grabs to detail the issues in this forum thread: http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=132906 but to summarise: with embedded = TRUE in resource.class.php for PDF resources, all types are displayed exactly the same, no matter whether show navigation is selected or not. If we are to move away from frames altogether (a good thing in my mind!), we need to make sure that the options offered in setting up a resource still work. The current situation does not meet that. With embedded = FALSE, PDF resources display as described; including display navigation without a frame. Would it not be better to move towards an upgrade path that replaced all resources set to display the navigation with a frame to dispalying the navigation without a frame?
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Martin Dougiamas added a comment -

Sorry I just discovered this after I created the very specific MDL-20320, going to take this there

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Martin Dougiamas added a comment - Sorry I just discovered this after I created the very specific MDL-20320, going to take this there

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Dates

  • Created:
    Updated:
    Resolved:
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