[SWFObject] Zoomify and MSIE Flash Page Reload/Refresh Solution!

Tue Nov 14 22:43:55 PST 2006

Hello all!

Believe it or not, I have a SOLUTION to share instead of a question. 
I've posted 2-3 times over the past 5-6 months in regards to a swfObject 
display problem of "Zoomify" (www.zoomify.com) spliced imagery via a 
Flash player...particularly related to MS Internet Explorer.  Well last 
week, Mascha Keipper took pity on me and contacted me via email to see 
if we could not figure out a solution to the problem.  After a bit of 
trial-and-error, he figured it out!  An example of the solution (after 
you have called the .js file in your page <head></head> looks like this:

<script type="text/javascript">
function rand (n)
{
  return ( Math.floor ( Math.random ( ) * n + 1 ) );
}
var random_number = rand (10000);
var so = new 
SWFObject("../../images/zoom/zoomifyViewer02.swf?random_number=" + 
random_number, "portfolio", "700", "450", "6", "#A7A690");
so.addVariable("zoomifyImagePath", 
"../../images/portfolio/campus/uakron3D/");
so.addParam("wmode", "transparent");
so.addParam("menu", "false");
so.write ("flashcontent");
</script>

To see that code in action: 
http://www.mapformation.com/portfolio/campus/uakron3D.htm

The key to making everything refresh properly in MSIE is the 
introduction of a random number to the zoomify .swf file path.  MSIE 7's 
way of caching the .swf files it is displaying creates problems upon 
page reload (if the .swf is in one's cache).  The introduction of a 
random number, at least in this particular case, ensures that there will 
be zero refresh problems in MSIE 99.99% of the time.

It is a neat little trick that Mascha came up with, and for the other 
people I've talked to on this listserv who've also been wrestling with 
MSIE and Zoomify, I thought this might be able to help.

Good luck, everyone!

Derek Tonn

mapformation
220 South Burns Avenue
Springfield, MN 56087

Phone: 507-723-6662
Fax: 206-203-0411
datonn at mapformation.com
www.mapformation.com