Roundabout

Note: Roundabout is no longer under active development. I've moved the documentation over here to support the exists plugin, but there are known issues and such that won't be fixed. Use at your own risk.

Roundabout is a jQuery plugin that easily converts unordered lists & other nested HTML structures into entertaining, interactive, turntable-like areas.

It�s ready-to-go straight out of the box, but if you want to get crazy, Roundabout is highly-customizable with an extensive API that allows for some pretty amazing results.

Roundabout requires jQuery (at least version 1.2).

Add-Ons

Roundabout is equipped to play nicely with a couple of other plugins if they�re made available.

• Roundabout Shapes by Fred LeBlanc Roundabout can move in more ways than just a turntable. With Shapes, you have many other ways you can move your content around the page.

• jQuery Easing by George McGinley Smith jQuery comes with two easing styles built in, but this plugin adds many, many more. Include this script and use any of its defined easing functions in your Roundabout animations.

• Event.drag & Event.drop by ThreeDubMedia In addition to rotating on click, Roundabout can also move by clicking and dragging on the Roundabout element itself. Include these scripts and turn on enableDrag.

But That�s Not All!

The list above is only a list of the plugins that have support baked in, but Roundabout will play nicely with many other plugins. (It�s up to you to integrate those yourself.)

Using Roundabout

Include the jquery.roundabout.js JavaScript file on your page after you include jQuery itself. Also, either link to the included CSS file, or copy the CSS styles from that file and paste them into your site's CSS file.

To activate Roundabout in its simplest form, you can do this:

$('ul').roundabout();

Of course, this will change all of your ul elements into Roundabouts, which probably isn't what you want, but you can easily change the selector to only target the elements you wish to convert

Setting Options

You can set options on Roundabout to change how it behaves. Do this by passing in an object of options into the main Roundabout call upon initialization, like so:

$('ul').roundabout({
    btnNext: ".next"
});

Incorporating Roundabout Shapes

If you're using the sister plugin Roundabout Shapes, be sure to include the jquery.roundabout-shapes.js file after you include the main Roundabout JavaScript file. Next, you'll select the shape as on of the options that you pass into Roundabout upon initialization:

$('ul').roundabout({
    btnNext: ".next",
    shape: "figure8"
});

Calling Roundabout Methods

Roundabout comes with a number of methods you can call to better control how it works. Calling those methods are done by re-calling roundabout on the element that Roundabout is already working on and passing in the name of the method to use as the first parameter. If the method requires other parameters, pass those in as subsequent parameters.

For example, instead of using the btnNext option, you can manually implement this yourself like this:

$('.btnNext', function(e) {
    e.stopPropagation();
    e.preventDefault();
    
    // this is the action
    $('ul#myRoundabout').roundabout('animateToNextChild');
    
    return false;
});

Enabling Drag & Drop

Lately it seems that this doesn't work as well as it once did. Not sure why, but you can still enable it. To do this, you'll need to grab v2 of the jquery.event.drag and jquery.event.drop plugins by ThreeDubMedia. Include them on your page after Roundabout is included.

Next, enable your Roundabout to use drag and drop like so:

$('ul').roundabout({
    enableDrag: true
});

Using Autoplay

Autoplay lets you have Roundabout automatically animate on an interval. This functionality is included with the Roundabout core, so no additional scripts are needed to get this working.

To enable autoplay, there are three options you can set:

$('ul').roundabout({
    autoplay: true,
    autoplayDuration: 5000,
    autoplayPauseOnHover: true
});

The first option, autoplay will turn on autoplay. The second, autoplayDuration is the length of time in milliseconds between animation triggers. The final option, autoplayPauseOnHover will force autoplay never to figure while the user has their cursor over the Roundabout itself.

Support

Version 2 (the current version) works reasonably well, although if you look in the issues you'll see a number of things that don't work for some people. As mentioned above, this plugin is no longer under active development. Feel free to continue submitting issues for others to see, but no further official action can be guaranteed at all.

API

Settable Options

Roundabout comes with many settable configuration options that let you customize how it operates.

	<tr id="tilt">
		<td class="option"><code>tilt</code></td>
		<td>
			Slightly alters the calculations of moving elements.
			In the default <code>shape</code>,
			it adjusts the apparent <code>tilt</code>. Other shapes
			will differ.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">float</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>0.0</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="minZ">
		<td class="option"><code>minZ</code></td>
		<td>
			The lowest z-index that will be assigned to a moving
			element. This occurs when the moving element is
			opposite of (that is, 180� away from) the 
			<code>focusBearing</code>.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">integer</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>100</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="maxZ">
		<td class="option"><code>maxZ</code></td>
		<td>
			The greatest z-index that will be assigned to a
			moving element. This occurs when the moving element
			is at the same bearing as the 
			<code>focusBearing</code>.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">integer</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>280</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="minOpacity">
		<td class="option"><code>minOpacity</code></td>
		<td>
			The lowest opacity that will be assigned to a moving
			element. This occurs when the moving element is
			opposite of (that is, 180� away
			from) the <code>focusBearing</code>.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">float</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>0.4</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="maxOpacity">
		<td class="option"><code>maxOpacity</code></td>
		<td>
			The greatest opacity that will be assigned to a
			moving element. This occurs when the moving element
			is at the same bearing as the
			<code>focusBearing</code>.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">float</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>1.0</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="minScale">
		<td class="option"><code>minScale</code></td>
		<td>
			The lowest size (relative to its starting size) that
			will be assigned to a moving element. This occurs
			when the moving element is opposite of (that is, 180�
			away from) the
			<code>focusBearing</code>.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">float</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>0.4</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="maxScale">
		<td class="option"><code>maxScale</code></td>
		<td>
			The greatest size (relative to its starting size)
			that will be assigned to a moving element. This
			occurs when the moving element is at the same bearing
			as the
			<code>focusBearing</code>.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">float</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>1.0</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="duration">
		<td class="option"><code>duration</code></td>
		<td>
			The length of time Roundabout will take to move from
			one child element being in focus to another (when an
			animation is triggered). This value acts as the
			default for Roundabout, but each animation action can
			be given a custom duration for that animation.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">integer</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>600</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="btnNext">
		<td class="option"><code>btnNext</code></td>
		<td>
			A jQuery selector of page elements that, when
			clicked, will trigger the Roundabout to animate to
			the next moving element.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>null</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="btnNextCallback">
		<td class="option"><code>btnNextCallback</code></td>
		<td>
			A function that will be called once the animation
			triggered by a
			<code>btnNext</code>-related 
			click has finished.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">function</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>function() {}</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="btnPrev">
		<td class="option"><code>btnPrev</code></td>
		<td>
			A jQuery selector of page elements that, when
			clicked, will trigger the Roundabout to animate to
			the previous moving element.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>null</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="btnPrevCallback">
		<td class="option"><code>btnPrevCallback</code></td>
		<td>
			A function that will be called once the animation
			triggered by a
			<code>btnPrev</code>-releated 
			click has finished.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">function</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>function() {}</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="btnToggleAutoplay">
		<td class="option"><code>btnToggleAutoplay</code></td>
		<td>
			A jQuery selector of page elements that, when
			clicked, will toggle the Roundabout�s <a
			href="#autoplay"><code>autoplay</code></a> state
			(either starting or stopping).
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>null</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="btnStartAutoplay">
		<td class="option"><code>btnStartAutoplay</code></td>
		<td>
			A jQuery selector of page elements that, when
			clicked, will start the Roundabout�s 
			<code>autoplay</code> feature
			(if it�s currently stopped).
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>null</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="btnStopAutoplay">
		<td class="option"><code>btnStopAutoplay</code></td>
		<td>
			A jQuery selector of page elements that, when
			clicked, will stop the Roundabout�s
			<code>autoplay</code>
			feature (if it�s current playing).
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>null</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="easing">
		<td class="option"><code>easing</code></td>
		<td>
			The easing function to use when animating Roundabout.
			With no other plugins, the standard jQuery easing
			functions are available. When using the 
			jQuery easing plugin, 
			all of its easing functions will also be available.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>"swing"</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="clickToFocus">
		<td class="option"><code>clickToFocus</code></td>
		<td>
			When <code>true</code>, Roundabout will bring
			non-focused moving elements into focus when they�re
			clicked. Otherwise, click events won�t be captured
			and will be passed through to the moving child
			elements.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">boolean</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>true</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="clickToFocusCallback">
		<td class="option"><code>clickToFocusCallback</code></td>
		<td>
			A function that will be called once the 
			<code>clickToFocus</code> 
			animation has completed.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">function</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>function() {}</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="focusBearing">
		<td class="option"><code>focusBearing</code></td>
		<td>
			The bearing that Roundabout will use as the focus
			point. All animations that move Roundabout between
			children will animate the given child element to this
			bearing.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">float</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>0.0</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="shape">
		<td class="option"><code>shape</code></td>
		<td>
			The path that moving elements follow. By default,
			Roundabout comes with one shape, which is
			<code>lazySusan</code>. When using Roundabout with the
			Roundabout Shapes
			plugin, there are many other shapes available.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>"lazySusan"</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="debug">
		<td class="option"><code>debug</code></td>
		<td>
			When <code>true</code>, Roundabout will replace the
			contents of moving elements with information about
			the moving elements themselves.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">boolean</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>false</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="childSelector">
		<td class="option"><code>childSelector</code></td>
		<td>
			A jQuery selector of child elements within the elements Roundabout
			is called upon that will become the moving elements within
			Roundabout. By default, Roundabout works on unordered lists, but it
			can be changed to work with any nested set of child elements.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>"li"</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="startingChild">
		<td class="option"><code>startingChild</code></td>
		<td>
			The child element that will start at the Roundabout�s 
			<code>focusBearing</code>
			on load. This is a zero-based counter based on the
			order of markup.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">integer</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>0</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="reflect">
		<td class="option"><code>reflect</code></td>
		<td>
			When <code>true</code>, reverses the direction in which
			Roundabout will operate. By default, <em>next</em>
			animations will rotate moving elements in a clockwise
			direction and <em>previous</em> animations will be
			counterclockwise. Using reflect will flip the two.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">boolean</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>false</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="floatComparisonThreshold">
		<td class="option"><code>floatComparisonThreshold</code></td>
		<td>
			The maximum distance two values can be from one
			another to still be considered equal by Roundabout�s
			standards. This prevents JavaScript rounding errors.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">float</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>0.001</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="autoplay">
		<td class="option"><code>autoplay</code></td>
		<td>
			When true, Roundabout will automatically advance the
			moving elements to the next child at a regular
			interval (settable as
			<code>autoplayDuration</code>).
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">boolean</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>false</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="autoplayInitialDelay">
		<td class="option"><code>autoplayInitialDelay</code><small>added in v2.4</small></td>
		<td>
			The length of time (in milliseconds) to delay the start of 
			Roundabout�s configured <code>autoplay</code>
			option. This only works with setting <code>autoplay</code> to
			<code>true</code>, and only on the first start of <code>autoplay</code>.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">integer</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>0</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="autoplayDuration">
		<td class="option"><code>autoplayDuration</code></td>
		<td>
			The length of time (in milliseconds) between
			animation triggers when a
			Roundabout�s <code>autoplay</code>
			is playing.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">integer</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>1000</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="autoplayPauseOnHover">
		<td class="option"><code>autoplayPauseOnHover</code></td>
		<td>
			When <code>true</code>, Roundabout will pause 
			<code>autoplay</code> when the
			user moves the cursor over the Roundabout container.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">boolean</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>false</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="enableDrag">
		<td class="option"><code>enableDrag</code></td>
		<td>
			Requires event.drag 
			and 
			event.drop
			plugins by 
			ThreeDubMedia. 
			Allows a user to rotate Roundabout be clicking and
			dragging the Roundabout area itself.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">boolean</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>false</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="dropDuration">
		<td class="option"><code>dropDuration</code></td>
		<td>
			The length of time (in milliseconds) the animation
			will take to animate Roundabout to the appropriate
			child when the Roundabout is �dropped.�
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">integer</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>600</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="dropEasing">
		<td class="option"><code>dropEasing</code></td>
		<td>
			The easing function to use when animating Roundabout
			after it has been �dropped.� With no other plugins, 
			the standard jQuery easing functions are available. 
			When using the 
			jQuery easing plugin
			all of its easing functions will also be available.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>"swing"</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="dropAnimateTo">
		<td class="option"><code>dropAnimateTo</code></td>
		<td>
			The animation method to use when a dragged Roundabout
			is �dropped.� Valid values are <em>next</em>,
			<em>previous</em>, or <em>nearest</em>.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>"nearest"</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="dropCallback">
		<td class="option"><code>dropCallback</code></td>
		<td>
			A function that will be called once the dropped
			animation has completed.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">function</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>function() {}</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="dragAxis">
		<td class="option"><code>dragAxis</code></td>
		<td>
			The axis along which drag events are measured. Valid
			values are <em>x</em> and <em>y</em>.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">string</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>"x"</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="dragFactor">
		<td class="option"><code>dragFactor</code></td>
		<td>
			Alters the rate at which dragging moves the
			Roundabout�s moving elements. Higher numbers will
			cause the moving elements to move less.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">integer</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>4</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="triggerFocusEvents">
		<td class="option"><code>triggerFocusEvents</code></td>
		<td>
			When <code>true</code>, a <code>focus</code> event will
			be triggered on the child element that moves into
			focus when it does so.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">boolean</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>true</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="triggerBlurEvents">
		<td class="option"><code>triggerBlurEvents</code></td>
		<td>
			When <code>true</code>, a <code>blur</code> event will be
			triggered on the child element that moves out of the
			focused position when it does so.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">boolean</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>true</code></td>
	</tr>

	<tr id="responsive">
		<td class="option"><code>responsive</code><small>added in v2.1</small></td>
		<td>
			When <code>true</code>, attaches a resize event onto the 
			window and will automatically relayout Roundabout�s
			child elements as the holder element changes size.
		</td>
		<td class="data-type">boolean</td>
		<td class="default-value"><code>false</code></td>
	</tr>
</tbody>

Callable Methods

Roundabout does a lot on its own, but all of the methods it uses internally to perform actions are publicly usable as well. Manually calling these methods give even more control over how Roundabout functions.

roundabout

Starts the Roundabout.

Usage

.roundabout()
.roundabout(options)
.roundabout(callback)
.roundabout(options, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

setBearing

Changes the bearing of the Roundabout.

Usage

.roundabout("setBearing", bearing)
.roundabout("setBearing", bearing, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

adjustBearing

Alters the bearing of the Roundabout by a given amount, either positive or negative degrees.

Usage

.roundabout("adjustBearing", delta)
.roundabout("adjustBearing", delta, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

setTilt

Changes the tilt of the Roundabout.

Usage

.roundabout("setTilt", tilt)
.roundabout("setTilt", tilt, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

adjustTilt

Alters the tilt of the Roundabout by a given amount, either in positive or negative mounts.

Usage

.roundabout("adjustTilt", delta)
.roundabout("adjustTilt", delta, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

animateToNearestChild

Animates the Roundabout to the nearest child. This animation will not move the Roundabout if any child is already in focus.

Usage

.roundabout("animateToNearestChild")
.roundabout("animateToNearestChild", callback)
.roundabout("animateToNearestChild", duration, easing, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

animateToChild

Animates the Roundabout to the given childPosition, which is a zero-based counter of children based on the order of markup.

Usage

.roundabout("animateToChild", childPosition)
.roundabout("animateToChild", childPosition, callback)
.roundabout("animateToChild", childPosition, duration, easing)
.roundabout("animateToChild", childPosition, duration, easing, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

animateToNextChild

Animates the Roundabout to the next child element.

Usage

.roundabout("animateToNextChild")
.roundabout("animateToNextChild", callback)
.roundabout("animateToNextChild", duration, easing)
.roundabout("animateToNextChild", duration, easing, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object. Returns a jQuery object.

animateToPreviousChild

Animates the Roundabout to the previous child element.

Usage

.roundabout("animateToPreviousChild")
.roundabout("animateToPreviousChild", callback)
.roundabout("animateToPreviousChild", duration, easing)
.roundabout("animateToPreviousChild", duration, easing, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

animateToDelta

Animates the Roundabout to the given amount of degrees away from its current bearing (either positive or negative degrees).

Usage

.roundabout("animateToDelta", degrees)
.roundabout("animateToDelta", degrees, callback)
.roundabout("animateToDelta", degrees, duration, easing)
.roundabout("animateToDelta", degrees, duration, easing, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

animateBearingToFocus

Animates the Roundabout so that a given bearing ends at the configured focusBearing.

Usage

.roundabout("animateBearingToFocus", degrees)
.roundabout("animateBearingToFocus", degrees, callback)
.roundabout("animateBearingToFocus", degrees, duration, easing)
.roundabout("animateBearingToFocus", degrees, duration, easing, callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

startAutoplay

Starts the Roundabout�s autoplay feature.

Usage

.roundabout("startAutoplay")
.roundabout("startAutoplay", callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

stopAutoplay

Stops the Roundabout�s autoplay feature.

Usage

.roundabout("stopAutoplay")
.roundabout("stopAutoplay", keepAutoplayBindings)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

toggleAutoplay

Starts or stops the Roundabout�s autoplay feature (based upon its current state).

Usage

.roundabout("toggleAutoplay")
.roundabout("toggleAutoplay", callback)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

isAutoplaying

Checks to see if the Roundabout�s autoplay feature is currently playing or not.

Usage

.roundabout("isAutoplaying")

Parameters

No parameters.

Returns a boolean.

changeAutoplayDuration

Changes the length of time (in milliseconds) that the Roundabout�s autoplay feature waits between attempts to animate to the next child.

Usage

.roundabout("changeAutoplayDuration", duration)

Parameters

Returns a jQuery object.

relayoutChildren

Repositions child elements based on new contextual information. This is most helpful when the Roundabout element itself changes size and moving child elements within need readjusting.

Usage

.roundabout("relayoutChildren")

Parameters

No parameters.

Returns a jQuery object.

getNearestChild

Gets the nearest child element to the focusBearing. This number is a zero-based counter based on order of markup.

Usage

.roundabout("getNearestChild")

Parameters

No parameters.

Returns a integer.

getChildInFocus

Gets the child currently in focus. This number is a zero-based counter based on order of markup.

Usage

.roundabout("getChildInFocus")

Parameters

No parameters.

Returns a integer.

Hookable Events

Roundabout is equipped to trigger events on both the Roundabout element itself and the moving child elements.

ready

This event fires on the Roundabout element once it and its child elements have been initialized. It also fires on each child element once it has been initialized.

focus

This event fires on child elements that land in the focusBearing at the end of an animation. Will only fire if triggerFocusEvents is set to true.

blur

This event fires on child elements that move away from the focusBearing at the start of an animation. Will only fire if triggerBlurEvents is set to true.

childrenUpdated

This event fires on the Roundabout element when its child elements have been repositioned and are in place.

reposition

This event fires on child elements that have been repositioned and are in place.

bearingSet

This event fires on the Roundabout element when its bearing has been set.

moveClockwiseThroughBack

This event fires on moving child elements when an animation causes them pass through the point that is opposite (or 180�) from the focusBearing in a clockwise motion.

moveCounterclockwiseThroughBack

This event fires on moving child elements when an animation causes them to pass through the point that is opposite (or 180�) from the focusBearing in a counterclockwise motion.

animationStart

This event fires on the Roundabout element at the start of any animation.

animationEnd

This event fires on the Roundabout element at the end of any animation.

autoplayStart

This event fires on the Roundabout element when the autoplay feature starts.

autoplayStop

This event fires on the Roundabout element when the autoplay feature stops.