Comparisons between invocation tags
Tag overview
- Zone tag - A zone is a way of grouping banners into a collection and displaying them in a certain area on your website. When viewing a zone's properties, click 'Invocation tag' to grab the tag.
- Single page call - A method of having just one call to the ad-server grab multiple banners for a page. In the Websites & Zones -> Website properties -> Invocation code tab you can begin by setting various options for the invocation code. For further information see the Single page call section in the 2.6 User Guide.
- Direct selection - This is a way to select banners directly while bypassing websites & zones. You can use custom selection strings to select banners based on keywords, sizes, etc. For more information see the Direct selection tutorial.
Tag formats
Apart from single page call, every tag type has multiple formats: IMG, JavaScript, iFrame, XML-RPC and Local Mode. You can use the table below to determine which are most useful for your website(s):
| Remote invocation |
Remote invocation for JavaScript |
Remote invocation for Frames |
Remote invocation using XML-RPC |
Local mode | |
| Available by default |
no |
yes |
no |
no |
yes |
| Basic Requirements |
|||||
| Requires cookies |
yes |
no1) | no1) | no |
no |
| Requires JavaScript |
no |
yes |
no |
no |
no |
| Requires iframes/layers2) | no |
no |
yes |
no |
no |
| Requires PHP powered website |
no |
no |
no |
yes |
yes |
| Banner capabilities |
|||||
| Display regular banners |
yes |
yes3) | yes |
yes |
yes |
| Display Flash or HTML banners |
no |
yes3) | yes4) |
yes |
yes |
| Append popups/interstitials5) |
no |
yes3) | yes4) |
yes |
yes |
| Block based on previous banners |
no |
yes |
no |
yes |
yes |
| Block based on previous campaigns |
no |
yes |
no |
yes |
yes |
1. Remote Invocation for JavaScript does not require cookies to be enabled, but in case JavaScript is disabled it turns into a regular Remote Invocation code which does require cookies. The same thing applies to Remote Invocation for Frames when the browser does not support iframes or layers.
2. Remote Invocation for Frames requires that the browser supports iframes. If you want to support Netscape 4 (which does not support iframes) you need to manually enable the layers compatibility mode during the generation of the invocation code.
3. Remote Invocation for JavaScript consists of two different codes. If JavaScript is enabled in the browser this feature is supported. If JavaScript is disabled the invocation code will turn into a regular remote invocation code, which does not support this feature.
4. Remote Invocation for Iframes consists of two different codes. If iframes and/or layer are supported by the browser this feature is supported. If iframes and layers are not supported the invocation code will turn into a regular remote invocation code, which does not support this feature.
5. This feature allows you to append a popup or interstitial banner to a regular banner. For example, if a banner or zone which uses this feature is displayed it will automatically display the appended banner.
Notes
* IMG tags: Good for quick, simple delivery of IMG banners only. (N.B. The cookieless variant of the IMG tag is for use with email zone types only)
* JavaScript tags: Use for easy delivery of all banner types on any type of Javascript-enabled device or website. JavaScript tags can also block delivery based on other banners on page (i.e. do not show same banner/campaign again on same page).
* iFrame tag: This tag provides the easy delivery of all banner types, but doesn't allow blocking. The iFrame tag defers loading so that the website can load quickly while banners load in the background. This tag also allows for 'refresh' - the tag refreshes every X seconds so a new banner is called without user moving pages. The iFrame tag can also be used to allow banner refreshes on Ajax pages where new page impressions aren't being made, which is discussed further here
* XML-RPC tag: This is an advanced tag which allows for delivery using the XML-RPC method (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XML-RPC). A PHP library and layerfile is included with OpenX. (N.B. The publishing website's server must have PEAR and the openads-xmlrpc.inc file installed locally.)
* Local Mode tag: This is an advanced tag which allows a PHP-enabled website to include the OpenX files directly for delivery of banners. The publishing website and OpenX must be on the same server and TLD (top level domain).