E-mail this pageFrames: Avoid Them
Frames allow multiple pages to be displayed in a single browser window, by partitioning that window so that each subsection loads a separate page.
Sound confusing? You betcha. And its even more confusing if you're a visitor to a web site.
Frames were all the rage about four years ago when almost no browsers supported them.
Now that frames are well-supported by all browsers, people are starting to run away from them in droves. Frames make printing very difficult, complicate bookmarking, and, if poorly implemented, open the site creator to litigation for having carelessly linked somebody else's materials into his/her own frameset.
Recent state-adopted accessibility guidelines also discourage the use of frames, so you won't be getting much help here, except the pointer that the templates for framesets appear under the File|New...Page menu.
Since you've got a choice, don't use frames in anything except discussion forums or online PowerPoint presentations--and use them there only because they'll be set up for you automatically and they are moderately well-suited to those environments.
Comments or questions? Please contact Dr. Peter Friesen , Instructional Technology Coordinator, Plattsburgh State University.