Banner Ad Upload

[Lovejist]

I have just started using SMF for an online forum. Also, I recently downloaded the ad management mode. But I am concerned that the ad management mode only allows for third party ad to be displayed using the third party code (e.g.html).

I would like to know how I can upload images into the banner areas without using codes? I need this because I will need to get ads from companies that will only send me their jpg or gif images.
Could somebody please help me out. I don't know codes at all.

[Kindred]

you can use **ANY** HTML in the ad management mod...   including HTML that calls an image from your server... whcih means that you can upload your images via ftp into your advertising directory and call them just like you would any thrid party image, by using plain html img tags and links...

[Lovejist]

I just don't understand this. Could you please make it clearer. Thanks.

[kat]

If you can use any html tags, you can use the html image tags.

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<img src="http://www.somesite.com/image.gif" alt="image" height="42" width="42">

for example.

[Lovejist]

Unfortunately, I dont know.

[kat]

You don't know what?

[Lovejist]

I mean I don't know how to use html tags or image tags. All I can do is upload an image from computer directory.

[kat]

That example I gave you should be enough.

If you put the image on your site, you can just use that code, altering the sizes, the URL and filename.

It's a bit different, if you want the images to take you to a site, or something, when the image is clicked.

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<a href="http://www.siteyouwanttovisit.com"> <img src="http://www.somesite.com/image.gif"  alt="NameOfSite" width="42" height="42" border="0" /> </a>

ought to do it, I believe.

[Lovejist]

I will try that. I am just discovering that a website will host the image for it to have a url. Ordinarily images in my computer don't have url.

I guess my observation is right? If yes, what site is best in hosting images.

[kat]

Maybe your advertisers would let you host the images on their sites?

[Illori]

cant you upload the image to the same server that your forum is on?

[Lovejist]

I uploaded an image on imageshack.us and it generated this html tag: Can this be used on smf? Note it doesn't come with the image sizes.

<a target='_blank' title='ImageShack - Image And Video Hosting' href='http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/11/q3e6.jpg/'><img src='http://img11.imageshack.us/img11/2095/q3e6.jpg'; border='0'/></a><br>Uploaded with <a target='_blank' href='http://imageshack.us'>ImageShack.us</a>

[Kindred]

if you have hosting, why would you use imageshack?
Just go to your file manager in your webhosting panel.
create a directory called ads
upload your image to that directory
then use the image tag

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<a href="http://www.siteyouwanttovisit.com"> <img src="http://www.yoursite.com/ads/image.gif"  alt="NameOfSite" width="42" height="42" border="0" /> </a>


[Lovejist]

This means that I will give each image a site name eg. www.yoursite.com' when uploaded into the file?

[kat]

If your site is, say, www.mysite.com, why not create a directory, named something like "Ads", as Kindred suggested, and put them, in there?

Then, you could use something like:

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<a href="http://www.siteyouwanttovisit.com"> <img src="http://www.mysite.com/Ads/ad1.gif"  alt="NameOfSite" width="42" height="42" border="0" /> </a>


Again, as Kindred said, pretty-well.

[Lovejist]

@ kindred, Please I need to understand something. I just opened my cp and the file manager. I can create a new folder (hope this is same as directory). Am I going to use the tag you provided me as the folder's name?

[kat]

A folder is a directory. "Folder" is a Windows term and, to be honest, it's pretty silly.

Before you go too far, can I suggest that you forget that File Manager ever existed? It's HORRIBLE! You'll really appreciate an FTP client, for doing this kind of thing, coz it makes things SOOO much easier.

Have a look at this, for that:

http://wiki.simplemachines.org/smf/FTP_-_How_do_I_use_FTP

I use Total Commander, myself. But, that's not free, sadly.

Do you understand terms like "Root"? With SMF, for example, the root of the forum is where you'll find a file named "Settings.php". It's the lowest level that you can go to. As an example, the root of your computer's hard drive, if you're using Windows, is the C drive. You can have directories, all over the place. But, you can't go lower than C:.

Now, the root of your SITE, if you only have SMF installed on it, will be where settings.php is. BUT, if you have SMF installed in a directory, the root will be where that directory is, not where Settings.php is.

Does that make sense?

Now, IF SMF is in the root of your site, you can create a directory, right there, and put the images in it.

The URL for those images will be http://www.yoursite.com/Ads (Assuming you called the directory "Ads", of course).

Let's assume that you put an image, which is an ad for SMF, in that directory and the image is named "SMF.gif".

If all that's correct, the URL for an image, in that directory, would be http://www.yoursite.com/Ads/SMF.gif (On the internet case DOES matter "smf" is NOT the same as "SMF".

So, the code you'd use, to show the image and make it clickable, taking anyone that clicks it, to our homepage, you'd need this:

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<a href="http://www.simplemachines.org"> <img src="http://www.yoursite.com/Ads/SMF.gif"  alt="NameOfSite" width="42" height="42" border="0" /> </a>
 

Naturally, the width and height will depend on the size of the image.

[Lovejist]

I hope you are still there to assist me. I have downloaded Core FTP LE into my desktop. I have also created a folder 'ads' on my website's cp in the file manager section.

I cannot see how to upload the image to the folder.

[kat]

I told you, above.

FTP.

[Lovejist]

I have downloaded FTP client, core FTP Le. But i  tried connecting it to the site but it is not connecting. It is not clear to me how to create the directory using it nor how to upload the image.

[kat]

How about trying Filezilla? That's easy enough to use.

[Lovejist]

I have been able to use the Fillezilla to place banner ads on my site. I appreciate your help immensely.

However, I want to be able to place top and bottom banners side by side and several banners by the sides all showing at the same time. I wish to use small block banners each standing below and on top of the other. The side banner I placed is hanging on top of the page. Besides, I would like to pace another below it.  How do I bring it down? Please open my site at http://www.lovejist.com to see what I mean.

Thanks

[kat]

Now that we've got to the stage that we're at, these questions would be best asked in the mod's support topic. As far as I know, you can configure it to show ads in all sorts of places. Places that would make people, like me, close the page as soon as I saw it, to be honest, because they'd be too cluttered.

So, perhaps you'd like to ask, here, about how to position your ads:

http://www.simplemachines.org/community/index.php?topic=68632.0

[DarkT3rror]

How about trying Filezilla? That's easy enough to use.

the filezilla is only to transfer files from your machine to your hoster.... There's nothing compatible with that guy's request...

@Lovejist

If you want to add ad banners, just enable news and add your banners there.

Admin>Configuration>Current Theme>Show news fader on board index:  and you click the box to enable the news fader in board index. After that you just have to put the image code with the url of your chosen image upload server and your advertise is the same as you request it.

[Kindred]

DarkT3rror,

I would suggest that you try reading the entire thread rather than jumping in with a poor suggestion that really doesn't answer the actual question (or take into account the conversation that the thread has encompassed). We know exactly what FTP is used for and we have instructed Lovejist to use it correctly to fulfill he desired result.


Lovejist,

I suggest that you continue on as we have suggested and ignore what DarkT3rror has said.

[kat]

the filezilla is only to transfer files from your machine to your hoster.... There's nothing compatible with that guy's request...

Sorry. But, you obviously have no idea what you're talking about.

Filezilla can create directories, change the file attributes and all sorts of other things, too.

I suggest you get it, use it and familiarise yourself with what it can do. It's not my first choice, for an FTP client. But, for a freebie, it's extremely useful.