Re: best way to load large background graphic

>I have a large map which I have to use for a background graphic.  We
>don't want the map graphic to tile.
>
>1.  How can I prevent the large map from tiling as a background?
>
>2.  What is the best way to optimize the graphic so it won't take
>forever to load?
>
>Thanks,
>
>Lonna


Lonna,

I don't think you can prevent the map from tiling. But you can 
increase its physical dimensions so that it's too large to tile on 
most monitors. For example, if the map is 800 pixels x 500 pixels, 
you could increase the canvas size (e.g., in Photoshop) to 1300 by 
1100), adding the extra canvas on the right and the bottom. The map 
would then be unlikely to tile, since most monitors have resolutions 
less than those dimensions. I'm assuming here that the page's content 
is of comparable size to the background map. If you create a long 
page that scrolls, you may need to increase the canvas dimension even 
more.

An alternative may be (?) to use javascript so that the background 
floats and moves as the user scrolls down the page.

One way to minimize the file size would be to convert the graphic to 
GIF format and decrease the number of colors to a minimum. You may 
also want to reduce the opacity of the background so it doesn't 
interfere with the page's content.

The extra canvas space added shouldn't affect file size much since it 
would be a flat area of one color that compresses easily.

Of course, if the same background is used on multiple pages, it only 
needs to load in the first time.

You probably also want to specify a background color which will 
appear before the background loads.


Jeff

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