# More elegant solution for turning link into button? **URL:** \ **Category:** Rails\ **Created:** [March 2, 2010, 4:27pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436 "2010-03-02T16:27:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Dudebot)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 4:27pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436/1 "2010-03-02T16:27:16Z")
I’d like my print link to look like a button. Its action responds to a GET request (as I think it should.) I wrote this helper: ` def button_link( label, path, *features ) # makes a link look like a button linktext = " 0 # opens new window, assigns features linktext << "window.open('" << path << "','" << label << "'" features.each { |feature| linktext << ",'" << feature << "'" } linktext <' else # opens in same window linktext <' end end ` Which works as expected in the view, e.g. ` <%= button_link( ‘Print’, url_for( … ), ‘new_window’ ) %> ` But feels kind of hacky. Does anyone have a more elegant solution? TIA, Craig ---
**Author:** ![Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Dudebot)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 4:33pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436/2 "2010-03-02T16:33:07Z")
On Tue, Mar 2, 2010 at 7:26 AM, Dudebot [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote: > I’d like my print link to look like a button. Its action responds to > a GET request (as I think it should.) I wrote this helper: > But feels kind of hacky. Does anyone have a more elegant solution? Just style a regular link; that’s what CSS is for… – Hassan S. ------------------------ removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid twitter: @hassan ---
**Author:** ![Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Dudebot)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 4:55pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436/3 "2010-03-02T16:55:57Z")
> Just style a regular link; that’s what CSS is for… > > – > Hassan S. ------------------------ removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid > twitter: @hassan That would be useful if you wanted to use an image for the link. But what if you want the default button for the browser? Craig ---
**Author:** ![Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Dudebot)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 5:17pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436/4 "2010-03-02T17:17:03Z")
> You don’t need to use an image to style a link to look generically like > a button, but yes, if you want it to look like a platform’s native button, > then you need to use a form element (or jump through a lot of hoops > to try to simulate it). > > – > Hassan S. ------------------------ removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid > twitter: @hassan How would you style a link to look generically like a button without an image? Sorry for wandering OT into CSS land, but if the answer works, it cuts out some Rails code in my app. Keep in mind that I need the functionality of opening a new window when the user presses a button, which my code currently provides. Thanks, Craig ---
**Author:** ![Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Dudebot)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 5:05pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436/5 "2010-03-02T17:05:54Z")
On Tue, Mar 2, 2010 at 7:54 AM, Dudebot [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote: > > Just style a regular link; that’s what CSS is for… > That would be useful if you wanted to use an image for the link. But > what if you want the default button for the browser? You don’t need to use an image to style a link to look generically like a button, but yes, if you want it to look like a platform’s native button, then you need to use a form element (or jump through a lot of hoops to try to simulate it). – Hassan S. ------------------------ removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid twitter: @hassan ---
**Author:** ![Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Dudebot)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 5:56pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436/6 "2010-03-02T17:56:17Z")
On Tue, Mar 2, 2010 at 8:15 AM, Dudebot [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote: > How would you style a link to look generically like a button without > an image? Sorry for wandering OT into CSS land, but if the answer > works, it cuts out some Rails code in my app. Keep in mind that I > need the functionality of opening a new window when the user presses a > button, which my code currently provides. A quick example: [http://webtuitive.com/samples/button.html](http://webtuitive.com/samples/button.html) – Hassan S. ------------------------ removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid twitter: @hassan ---
**Author:** ![Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Dudebot)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:49pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436/7 "2010-03-02T18:49:33Z")
On Tue, Mar 2, 2010 at 9:42 AM, Dudebot [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote: > Appreciate it, but that’s a heck of a lot of CSS code to get something > that approximates the look of a default button 😉 Are you kidding? It’s utterly trivial. And you don’t even have to use most of that if you don’t care about the hover/active behavior. And I would certainly prefer it to creating a form element needlessly for a simple link. But YMMV. – Hassan S. ------------------------ removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid twitter: @hassan ---
**Author:** ![Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Dudebot)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:43pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436/8 "2010-03-02T18:43:42Z")
> A quick example: [http://webtuitive.com/samples/button.html](http://webtuitive.com/samples/button.html) > > – > Hassan S. ------------------------ removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid > twitter: @hassan Appreciate it, but that’s a heck of a lot of CSS code to get something that approximates the look of a default button 😉 Thanks, Craig ---
**Author:** ![Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Dudebot](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Dudebot)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 4:34am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/more-elegant-solution-for-turning-link-into-button/184436/9 "2010-03-04T04:34:58Z")
> Appreciate it, but that’s a heck of a lot of CSS code to get something > that approximates the look of a default button 😉 > > Thanks, > Craig Hassan is right that its trivial css implementation. If you feel like learning SASS & Compass, there is the fancy buttons mixin that gives very , well fancy, buttons [http://brandonmathis.com/blog/2009/11/19/fancy-buttons-are-here/](http://brandonmathis.com/blog/2009/11/19/fancy-buttons-are-here/) Brian