Target Show/Hide Layer Action (Pro only)

Type of Action: Item Action (to use it, select an item and go to Item>Actions to choose the Action from the list). You will only see the Action in the list if the selected item is a Layer item.

What the Action can do: This Action lets you do the following:
  • It can display a different image each time a rollover is moused over or clicked (but unlike the Target Image Action, you don't need to use the target images in a stack on the page)
  • It can create a slideshow of images (used either as a stack or in different areas of your page) so that the images display in a specific order and which change after a given period
  • It can display an HTML item along with any "child" items which are embedded inside it, so that multiple items can be made to display at the same time
  • It can be made to use a fading transition when changing from one image to the next in a slideshow
  • It can be made to display HTML or graphic items (or a combination of both if used inside an HTML parent item)
The Target Show/Hide Layer Action is used to make a specified item (or group of items) display when an event is triggered. By far the most common ways it is used is to show the large version of an image when a thumbnail image is moused over or clicked, or to display a fading slideshow of images on your page.

Because layer items cannot be made to "combine" with each other, the recommended workflow for using this Action is to set up your first Target Show/Hide Layer item, apply all the necessary options in the Actions palette, then duplicate the item to create a new item so you can import new images or other content into the item and change its Target Number in the Actions palette.

It’s worth pointing out that target show/hide layers on their own don’t do anything. As their name suggests, they are simply the target of some other activity. Most often, they will be used with rollovers which trigger specific images to display when the rollover is moused over and/or clicked. They can, however, be used in other ways, such as with a Page Action called Sequence Timer which is applied to a page containing a stack of target images to make them appear in a set sequence when the page is loaded.

The Target Show/Hide Layer Action (just like all the built-in trigger/target Actions) is limited to a maximum number of 20 images per target group (though an Action with an upper limit of 60 is available on ActionsForge at <http://www.actionsforge.com/actions?q=60+targets> where you will find 60 versions of all trigger and target Actions).

To use the Action, select a layer item on your page (if the item is not a layer item, you will not see the Action in the list), then go to Item>Actions and choose Target Show/Hide Layer from the list. With the item selected on the page you can see the options in the Actions palette.




  • Initially: This popup controls whether the image is visible or not on page load. By far the most common choice here (especially if the images are used in a stack) is Hidden, which will mean that there will be no images visible on page load. If you want one of your images to be visible on page load and the rest hidden, we recommend you duplicate the image you want to be shown on page load, remove the Action from it and then send the item so it is behind the stack of images. This is because all items in the stack must be set to the same Initially value for the functionality to work.
  • Restore: This pop-up menu controls whether the stack of target images restores back to the Normal state when the mouse is moved away from the rollover when the trigger is set to MouseOver. Yes displays as default which will mean that moving the mouse away from the trigger will change the stack back to its Normal state. If you set it to No, the image will only return to its Normal state when the page is revisited or reloaded. Setting the menu to Sticky (which is by far the most common setting) retains the MouseOver or Click state until you mouseover another rollover on the page. Toggle means that mousing over and off or clicking on the rollover trigger will toggle the triggered image on and off alternately.
  • Effect: This popup controls the transition from one image to another in a slideshow (as it allows you to apply a fading transition to softly fade from one image to the next), or it lets you make a triggered item fade into and out of view (with a soft fading transition when displays or disappears). Click and hold on the popup and choose Fade to see a new option appear (called Duration). Enter a value to control the length of the fading transition, with a higher value giving a longer duration to the fade transition.
  • Target Group: When using a trigger, you can set different groups of targets to be triggered when a different trigger is activated. Target Groups have color names (such as Indigo and Cobalt). Indigo is the default target group.
  • Target #.: This popup tells the trigger Action which target number has been assigned for this particular item. For the functionality to work correctly, you need to set the corresponding MouseOver or Click Number used by the trigger Action so the correct Target Show/Hide Image item is displayed.