# %TOPIC% **A "twisty" is an interface toggle control to show and hide content.** TwistyPlugin gives you several options to control the appearance of a twisty: - use link text or buttons - position an icon left or right - remember the state at the next visit of the page - start the Twisty open or closed - start the Twisty open or closed for the first visit - use a span or div for the content - set a class for the content span or div Twisty has a fallback mechanism in case JavaScript is not available: all content is displayed and the control buttons are hidden.
On this page:
## Usage examples ### Triad A Twisty consists of 3 elements: 1. Show button 2. Hide button 3. Collapsing content ('Toggle') The typical TwistyPlugin triad will look like this (pseudo code): %TWISTYSHOW{}% %TWISTYHIDE{}% (there may be other things between buttons and content) %TWISTYTOGGLE{}% my content %ENDTWISTYTOGGLE% ### Shorthand The Twisty triad is conveniently packed into shorthand `%TWISTY{some parameters}% Collapsing content %ENDTWISTY%`: %TWISTY{}% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% Will generate: [](#)[](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
You may have noticed that no parameters are passed to `%TWISTY{}%` but the show and hide links _do_ have text! The default values are fetched from plugin settings `TWISTYSHOWLINK` and `TWISTYHIDELINK`, see [[Plugin Settings|Main/WebHome#PluginSettings]] below. ### Twisty with icons We will use `mode="div"` to put the collapsing content below the button (the default mode is `"span"`). %TWISTY{ mode="div" showlink="Show..." hidelink="Hide" showimgleft="%ICONURLPATH{toggleopen-small}%" hideimgleft="%ICONURLPATH{toggleclose-small}%" }% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% It will look like this: [![](http://www.dementia.org/twiki//view/Main/WebHome/toggleopen-small.gif)Show...](#)[![](http://www.dementia.org/twiki//view/Main/WebHome/toggleclose-small.gif)Hide](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
To put icons at the right side, write %TWISTY{ mode="div" showlink="Show " hidelink="Hide " showimgright="%ICONURLPATH{toggleopen-small}%" hideimgright="%ICONURLPATH{toggleclose-small}%" }% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% [Show ![](http://www.dementia.org/twiki//view/Main/WebHome/toggleopen-small.gif)](#)[Hide ![](http://www.dementia.org/twiki//view/Main/WebHome/toggleclose-small.gif)](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
### Make it remember To store the last state in a TWIKIPREF cookie, add the parameter `remember="on"`.%BR% To test this, reload the page after toggling. %TWISTY{ showlink="Show..." hidelink="Hide" remember="on" }% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% [Show...](#)[Hide](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
If a Twisty state has been stored in a TWIKIPREF cookie before, it can be cleared by using `remember="off"`: %TWISTY{ showlink="Show..." hidelink="Hide" remember="off" }% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% [Show...](#)[Hide](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
**NOTE:** Twisty ids are generated automatically. If you need control over exactly _which_ Twisty should be remembered, add the parameter `id`: %TWISTY{ id="currentCustomerList" showlink="Show..." hidelink="Hide" remember="on" }% my customer list %ENDTWISTY% Note that `id` sets a sitewide cookie. To create a unique id, add topic or web variables: id="%WEB%_%TOPIC%_currentCustomerList" ### Make it obey To let the Twisty start with its content folded open, add parameter `start="show"`. %TWISTY{ showlink="Show..." hidelink="Hide" start="show" }% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% [Show...](#)[Hide](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
Likewise use `start="hide"` to start with hidden content. %TWISTY{ showlink="Show..." hidelink="Hide start="hide" }% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% [Show...](#)[Hide start=](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
### Make it obey only the first time To let the Twisty start with its content folded open the first time the visitor sees the Twisty, add the parameter `firststart="show"`. If `remember="on"` is used, subsequential visits to the page will display the Twisty according the cookie setting. %TWISTY{ showlink="Show..." hidelink="Hide" firststart="show" }% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% [Show...](#)[Hide](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
### Other use: hide interface parts in case of no JavaScript You can use Twisty to show interface elements that should only be visible with JavaScript enabled. For instance the textbox control buttons in the edit screen need JavaScript to work. If a visitor does not have JavaScript on it would not make sense to show these buttons. Put the "JavaScript content" in an almost bare bones Twisty. Write `showlink="" hidelink=""` to not display any default link texts. %TWISTY{ link="" noscript="hide" start="show" }% %ENDTWISTY% [](#)[](#)
Do not forget to set `start="show"` to show the Twisty content at all. When JavaScript is off, the button should be invisible. This code will show the button when JavaScript is off: %TWISTY{ link="" start="show" }% %ENDTWISTY% [](#)[](#)
### Styling the Twisty Use parameter `class` to style the content div or class: %TWISTY{ mode="div" showlink="Show..." hidelink="Hide" class="twikiHelp" }% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% Generates: %BR% [Show...](#)[Hide](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
### Twisty headers To be able to use header tags like `

`, use the properties `prefix` and `suffix`. Because we have identical show and hide links we can use the shorthand property `link`. %TWISTY{ prefix="

!!" mode="div" link="Header" showimgleft="%ICONURLPATH{toggleopen}%" hideimgleft="%ICONURLPATH{toggleclose}%" suffix="

" }% my twisty content %ENDTWISTY% Add the `!!` to prevent the twisty header appear in the table of contents when you use `%TOC%`. Will create: #### [![](http://www.dementia.org/twiki//view/Main/WebHome/toggleopen.gif)Header](#)[![](http://www.dementia.org/twiki//view/Main/WebHome/toggleclose.gif)Header](#)
%GREEN% my twisty content %ENDCOLOR%
### All on, all off You can toggle all Twisties on or off at once by putting a link or button on the page with class `twistyExpandAll` or `twistyCollapseAll`.   Creates these controls: When you want to use links, write: #VarTOGGLE Expand all   Collapse all [Expand all](#TOGGLE)   [Collapse all](#TOGGLE) ## Special syntax: format tokens If you use TWiki variables inside TWISTY parameters chances are it will mess up the variable, or the rendered html. Use format tokens to 'delay' rendering of these variables until the Twisty parameters are parsed. The format tokens are the same as with [[FormattedSearch]]:
Escape: Expands To:
$n or $n() New line. Use $n() if followed by alphanumeric character, e.g. write Foo$n()Bar instead of Foo$nBar
$nop or $nop() Is a "no operation".
$quot Double quote (")
$percnt Percent sign (%)
$dollar Dollar sign ($)
For example, to show an icon inside the link, do not write: link="%Y%" but use format tokens: link="$percntY$percnt" ... to get: [![](http://www.dementia.org/twiki//view/Main/WebHome/toggleopen-small.gif)$percntY$percnt](#)[![](http://www.dementia.org/twiki//view/Main/WebHome/toggleclose-small.gif)$percntY$percnt](#)
my twisty content
Or a more complex example using [[SpreadsheetPlugin]]; do not write: link="Count: (%CALC{"$GET(infoCount)"}%)" but use format tokens: link="Count: ($percntCALC{$quot$dollarGET(infoCount)$quot}$percnt)" ## Syntax ### TWISTY This renders the button as well as the toggled content section contained within this and the closing ENDTWISTY tag. %BR% Usage: `%TWISTY{ ... }% Toggable contents %ENDTWISTY%`
Parameter Value Description Remark
id Unique identifier Used to link [[Main/WebHome#VarTWISTYBUTTON]] and [[Main/WebHome#VarTWISTYTOGGLE]] optional
link Link label Link label for both show and hide links optional
hidelink Link label Hide link label optional
showlink Link label Show link label optional
mode "div" or "span" Specify if the Twisty Toggle section will use a <div> or a <span> tag. optional, defaults to <span>
showimgleft Image url Specify the url of an image that will be displayed with the show link at the left side of the link.
You may use [[TWiki/TWikiVariables#VarICONURLPATH]] to display one of the [[TWiki/TWikiDocGraphics]] icons. Alternatively use an image attached to the topic.
optional, defaults to no image
hideimgleft Image url Specify the url of an image that will be displayed with the hide link at the left side of the link.
You may use [[TWiki/TWikiVariables#VarICONURLPATH]] to display one of the [[TWiki/TWikiDocGraphics]] icons. Alternatively use an image attached to the topic.
optional, defaults to no image
showimgright Image url Specify the url of an image that will be displayed with the show link at the right side of the link.
You may use [[TWiki/TWikiVariables#VarICONURLPATH]] to display one of the [[TWiki/TWikiDocGraphics]] icons. Alternatively use an image attached to the topic.
optional, defaults to no image
hideimgright Image url Specify the url of an image that will be displayed with the hide link at the right side of the link.
You may use [[TWiki/TWikiVariables#VarICONURLPATH]] to display one of the [[TWiki/TWikiDocGraphics]] icons. Alternatively use an image attached to the topic.
optional, defaults to no image
remember "on", "off" If "on", the Twisty state is remembered the next time the page is shown. If "off", the stored setting will be cleared.
Note: when used, think carefully about a unique name (id) for the Twisty, otherwise the cookie that is set might affect other Twisties with the same name. Also note that only interaction is stored, not the state of the Twisty when left unclicked.
optional, no default
start "hide" or "show" Initial state of the Twisty; this will override any setting stored in a cookie (see remember). optional, default no initial state
firststart "hide" or "show" Initial state of the Twisty the first time the visitor gets to see the Twisty; this will NOT override cookie settings (see remember). optional, default no initial state
noscript "hide" Make content hidden in case use does not have JavaScript on optional, default content is shown in case JavaScript if off
class CSS class name Class for Twisty div or span optional, default none
prefix Text Text to display before the show/hide links optional, default none
suffix Text Text to display after the show/hide links optional, default none
img Image url %GREEN%Deprecated, use showimgleft, hideimgleft, showimgright or hideimgright.%ENDCOLOR% optional, defaults to no image
imgleft Image url %GREEN%Deprecated, use showimgleft, hideimgleft, showimgright or hideimgright.%ENDCOLOR% optional, defaults to no image
imgright Image url %GREEN%Deprecated, use showimgleft, hideimgleft, showimgright or hideimgright.%ENDCOLOR% optional, defaults to no image
hideimg Image url %GREEN%Deprecated, use showimgleft, hideimgleft, showimgright or hideimgright.%ENDCOLOR% optional, defaults to no image
showimg Image url %GREEN%Deprecated, use showimgleft, hideimgleft, showimgright or hideimgright.%ENDCOLOR% optional, defaults to no image
- Related [[TWISTYBUTTON|Main/WebHome#VarTWISTYSHOW]] and [[TWISTYTOGGLE|Main/WebHome#VarTWISTYTOGGLE]] ### ENDTWISTY **Twisty closure, complements the opening TWISTY tag.** - Syntax: `%ENDTWISTY%` See [[ENDTWISTYTOGGLE|Main/WebHome#VarENDTWISTYTOGGLE]]. ## Twisty components syntax

Ocassionally you might need to create a custom set of individual Twisty components:

TWISTYBUTTON

Shorthand version for TWISTYSHOW & TWISTYHIDE This is useful if both the show and the hide button take the same arguments.

TWISTYSHOW

Show/open link

TWISTYHIDE

Hide/close link

TWISTYTOGGLE

Twisty Toggle contents section

ENDTWISTYTOGGLE

The Twisty closure
## The Fine Print TwistyPlugin is a convenience plugin for TWiki:Plugins.TwistyContrib. Major features are: - When active, the Twisty JavaScript library is included in every topic - Provides a convenience syntax to define Twisty areas - Automatically generates ids - Automatically fills in default values - Global preference settings can be set in this topic or locally in individual topics ## Plugin Settings Plugin settings are stored as preferences variables. To reference a plugin setting write **%<plugin>\_<setting>%**, i.e. **%TWISTYPLUGIN\_SHORTDESCRIPTION%** - Set TWISTYSHOWLINK = More... - For example: `More...` - Set TWISTYHIDELINK = Close - For example: `Close` - Set TWISTYMODE = - Either `div` or `span`; `span` if nothing set - Set TWISTYREMEMBER = - Either `on` or `off`; default is not specified. If set to `on` all Twisty states will be stored in a TWIKIPREF cookie; if set to `off` the TWIKIPREF cookie will be cleared - Set SHORTDESCRIPTION = Twisty section JavaScript library to open/close content dynamically - Set DEBUG = 0 ## Plugin Installation Instructions - Download the ZIP file from the Plugin web (see below) - Unzip **%TOPIC%.zip** in your root ($TWIKI\_ROOT) directory. Content:
File: Description:
TwistyBundleTWiki04x02_installer  
TwistyBundleTWiki04x02_installer.pl  
data/TWiki/TwistyBundleTWiki04x02.txt  
data/TWiki/BehaviourContrib.txt  
data/TWiki/TwistyContrib.txt  
data/TWiki/TwistyPlugin.txt  
lib/TWiki/Contrib/BehaviourContrib.pm  
lib/TWiki/Contrib/TwistyBundleTWiki04x02.pm  
lib/TWiki/Contrib/TwistyContrib.pm  
lib/TWiki/Plugins/TwistyPlugin.pm  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/behaviour.compressed.js  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/behaviour.compressed_src.js  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/behaviour.js  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/behaviour_src.js  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/cssQuery/cssQuery-p.js  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/cssQuery/src/cssQuery-level2.js  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/cssQuery/src/cssQuery-level3.js  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/cssQuery/src/cssQuery-standard.js  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/cssQuery/src/cssQuery.js  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/cssQuery/src/test.html  
pub/TWiki/BehaviourContrib/cssQuery/test.html  
pub/TWiki/TwistyContrib/twist.compressed.js  
pub/TWiki/TwistyContrib/twist.compressed_src.js  
pub/TWiki/TwistyContrib/twist.css  
pub/TWiki/TwistyContrib/twist.js  
pub/TWiki/TwistyContrib/twist_src.js  
- Optionally, if it exists, run **%TOPIC%\_installer** to automatically check and install other TWiki modules that this module depends on. You can also do this step manually. - Alternatively, manually make sure the dependencies listed in the table below are resolved. None - Visit `configure` in your TWiki installation, and enable the plugin in the \{Plugins\} section. ## Plugin Info
Authors: TWiki:Main.RafaelAlvarez, TWiki:Main.ArthurClemens
Copyright ©: 2005 Rafael Alvarez; 2006, 2007 Arthur Clemens
License: GPL
Dependencies: None
Plugin Version: 24 Nov 2007 (version 1.4.8)
Change History:  
24 Nov 2007 1.4.6 - 1.4.8 Arthur Clemens - Added format tokens.
07 Oct 2007 1.4.5 Arthur Clemens - Fix html tag with show/hide controls.
25 Sep 2007 1.4.4 Arthur Clemens - Fix rendering of headers when prefix is used.
11 Jul 2007 1.4.3 Arthur Clemens - Fix invalid html when prefix and suffix is used.
23 Jun 2007 1.4.2 Arthur Clemens - Fixed bugs with parameters firststart and noscript (since version 1.4).
20 Jun 2007 1.4 Arthur Clemens - Updated to work without ugly inserted javascript 'init' calls. This will change nothing to the functionality, but it will produce cleaner HTML, while at the same time the twisty is still set immediately (not at page onload) and graceful fallback in case of no javascript is maintained.
19 Jun 2006 1.3 Arthur Clemens - Updated with TWiki 4 JavaScript files.
25 Oct 2006 1.2 New variables to set default values: TWISTYSHOWLINK, TWISTYHIDELINK, TWISTYMODE, TWISTYREMEMBER; property id is no longer required as this is automatically set (still recommended in some cases with remember="on"); property value remember="off" will clear a previously stored cookie; new properties prefix and suffix; JavaScript to collapse or expand all Twisties on the page.
27 Sep 2006 1.101 Fixes JavaScript handling when AllowInlineScript in configure is not set
11 June 2006 1.100 Added parameters start, firststart, noscript and class; complete JavaScript rewrite for speed
12 Sep 2005 1.000 First Version
Home: http://TWiki.org/cgi-bin/view/Plugins/%TOPIC%
Feedback: http://TWiki.org/cgi-bin/view/Plugins/%TOPIC%Dev
Appraisal: http://TWiki.org/cgi-bin/view/Plugins/%TOPIC%Appraisal