Loading Notice

How to provide a 'please wait' notice while JmolApplet is loading

Please, feel free to share here your tricks for showing a "please, wait" kind of notice so that users get some feedback that the JmolApplet is loading.

While Java and Jmol are loading

.

Trick nr. 1

jmolApplet("100%", "script pre.txt; load file.pdb; script post.txt")

pre.txt

zap;
set echo middle center;
font echo 18 sanserif bold;
color echo navy;
echo Molecule loading||It will take a few seconds,|depending on molecule complexity|and your connection speed||Please wait...;
delay 0.1;

post.txt

wireframe off;
spacefill off;
set hoverDelay 0.1;
set echo middle center;
font echo 14 sanserif bold;
color echo background [xA6CAF0];
color echo navy;
echo Molecule loaded||Click here to turn off this warning|and then use the available controls|to select parts of the molecule|and change its visualization;
set echo middle script "set echo off";

simpler post.txt

set echo middle center;
font echo 16 sanserif bold;
color echo navy;
echo Use the available controls|to select a molecule|and change its visualization;

Trick nr. 2

While Jmol is busy (e.g. loading a file or calculating an isosurface), the display is not updated. Therefore, it is important that if you put a "please wait" message using echo, you follow it with a refresh command; that way, the message will be shown and stay there until Jmol finishes its task (often, you will need to remove the message then).

Example:

echo "Molecule is loading";
refresh;
load myMolecule.xyz;
echo;

Example:

echo "Calculating surface..."; 
refresh;
isosurface mySurface molecular;
echo;

Contributors

Ted, AngelHerraez, Ceroni