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Engage 08 Overview | Trend/Usage Reporting | Budget Hero

v Budget Hero description
v Terms of Use
v Request the Budget Hero for your Web site
v Embedding instructions
v Linking instructions
v Online Content
v Budget Hero promo graphics
v Budget Hero on-air promo text

Description

Budget Hero is an engaging and journalistically sound game that encourages players to think through the complexities and challenges of the federal budget and the major policy issues of the 2008 election. It frames the policy debate as a set of federal budget choices determining how money will be raised and spent. Budget Hero forces players make tradeoffs and confront compromises inherent in balancing a budget. Can they be Budget Heroes by staying true to their values while creating a sustainable government?

Terms of Use

Budget Hero is built and maintained by American Public Media, the producer and distributor of national public radio programming, and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and is supported in part by funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Stations who wish to use this game on their Web sites may do so at no cost, subject to the download policies contained in the American Public Media Web site terms and conditions. Please credit American Public Media as the game's creator and copyright owner.

Stations may either embed the game on their sites or may link to the game on American Public Media's site. Those who embed the Budget Hero on their sites will receive a unique URL to embed in order to track audience participation. American Public Media will provide these stations with quantitative usage reports. To use the embeddable version, simply Request the Budget Hero below. If you prefer to link to the game on American Public Media, follow the instructions in Linking Instructions.

Request Budget Hero for your Web site

Once you request the Budget Hero, you will be sent your custom URL within one business day. When you receive this URL, follow the Embedding Instructions below.

Embedding Instructions

Note: In order for your users to be able to send their friends a link to the Budget Hero on YOUR Web site, please follow the directions below.

The Budget Hero is embedded on your Web site in one of two ways. First, if your site is wide enough to embed an image that is 705px in width, you can use an <iframe> in your source code. If your site cannot accommodate that width, you can embed a pop-up link that will allow the Budget Hero to play in its own pop-up window. (Due to width limitations, this is the method used on this site.) Please embed the game using one of these two methods so that American Public Media can maintain all the collective data and so that your audience's usage can be measured accurately.

<iFrame> Embedding Instructions

Once you receive your custom URL from American Public Media, cut and paste the following code snippet into your page's source code, replacing [your_custom_url] with the URL you were sent. Locate this code snippet within an <html> element in the position you would like it to display.

Modifications:
Within the above code snippet you can make the following modifications:

Width: The width attribute is set to "705" by default because the game is 705px wide. It is a Flash application and cannot be scaled to a smaller size.; To change the width, change the code text width="705" to width="xx%" (percentage) or width="xx" (width in pixels). A percentage width means that the frame will expand to that percentage of the width of the element in which you place it.; Note: If you change the width to something less than 705px, make certain that the "scrolling" attribute of the frame is set to "yes" so that your users can reach all parts of the game.
Height: The height attribute is set to "630" pixels by default because the game is 630px tall. It is a Flash application and cannot be scaled to a smaller size.; To change the height, change the code text height="630" to height="xx%" (percentage) or height="xx" (height in pixels). A percentage height means that the frame will expand to that percentage of the height of the element in which you place it.; Note: If you change the height to something less than 630px, make certain that the "scrolling" attribute of the frame is set to "yes" so that your users can reach all parts of the game.
Border: The frameborder attribute is set to "0" by default which prevents a border from displaying around the <iframe>.; To show a border, change the code text frameborder="0" to frameborder="1". However, be advised that this will not show a border in all browsers.
Scrolling: The scrolling attribute is set to "yes" by default. This means that when there is content that extends beyond the width or height of the <iframe>, scrollbars appear to allow users to access that content.; DO NOT CHANGE the scrolling attribute to "no" unless you are certain that you have allowed enough room for all the content on the poll page, results page and candidate position page. If you have not, users will not be able to use the widget effectively.
CSS Styles: You can use CSS styles to style the <iframe> itself, but the styles will not affect the Budget Hero content.

Pop-up Embedding Instructions

To create a pop-up window for the Budget Hero game, cut and paste the following appropriate code snippet into your page's source code. Locate this snippet at the place you would like to have the button, image or text that will launch the Budget Hero window.

Button: Place the following code snippet at the place where you want your button.; <input onclick="javascript:window.open('[my_custom_url]','BudgetHero', 'height=630,width=705,scrollbars=yes,resizable=yes')" type="button" value="Play Budget Hero" /> To copy, click SELECT CODE and then press Control->C.; The type= attribute determines that the input type is a button.; The value= attribute determines what text appears on the button.; The appearance of the button may be styled via CSS.
Image: Instead of attaching the JavaScript code to a button, you can attach it to an image. To do so, place the following code where you want your image to appear, replacing [my_image] with the image you want to use to launch the window.; <a name="budgethero"></a> <a href="#budgethero" onclick="javascript:window.open('[my_custom_url]','BudgetHero', 'height=630,width=705,scrollbars=yes,resizable=yes')"> <img src="[my_image]" alt="Play the Budget Hero" border="0" /> </a> To copy, click SELECT CODE and then press Control->C.; The snippet <a name="budgethero"></a> creates an anchor on the page so that when the new window opens, the previous window stays open at the site of the anchor.; Note: In your image tag, be sure to set the border attribute to "0" or the link will give the image a border.; The appearance of the image may be styled via CSS.
Text Link: Construct the link exactly as you would for an image (above) except use the <a href=... tags to surround the text you want linked rather than the image. Your code might look something like the code below:; <a name="budgethero"></a> <a href="#budgethero" onclick="javascript:window.open('[my_custom_url]','BudgetHero', 'height=630,width=705,scrollbars=yes,resizable=yes')"> Play Budget Hero </a> To copy, click SELECT CODE and then press Control->C.

Modifying the Pop-up Window:
The JavaScript code above creates a pop-up window that has no menubar, address bar nor toolbar, but is resizable and will display scrollbars as needed.

You can add other window elements to the pop-up window such as location=yes (address bar), toolbar=yes or menubar=yes. To specifically disable one of these elements, change the yes to no.

Note: It is imperative that there are no spaces between the single quotes in the snippet. Do not add spaces to the word 'BudgetHero' or after any of the commas in the line beginning with 'height... and ending with ...,resizable=yes'). If you add other window element parameters (such as toolbar=yes as explained above), be sure to combine all of these instructions within the last set of single quotes with each instruction separated only by commas and no spaces.

"Tell a Friend" Link Customization

When the user completes this game, he/she has an option to "Tell a Friend" about it. This feature sends a customizable email to the friend, directing him/her to the URL of the game.

Note: In order for this email to direct users to your site, we need to know where you have implemented the Budget Hero on your site. If we do not have the URL for Budget Hero on your site, the friend will be directed to http://www.americanpublicmedia.org/engage08/budgethero/.

To submit your Budget Hero's location, please send its complete URL to Anne Breckbill at abreckbill@americanpublicmedia.org. Your implementation will then be configured to direct email recipients to the game on your site.

Linking Instructions

If you prefer to link to the Budget Hero on American Public Media's site, simply use the following link: http://www.americanpublicmedia.org/engage08/budgethero/. Please remember that, while your audience's responses will be included in the cumulative results for the Budget Hero, they will not be identified as your listeners and you will not receive audience reports from American Public Media.

Online Content

Item link: http://americanpublicmedia.publicradio.org/engage08/budgethero/?refid=1

Budget Hero

Manage $3.3 Trillion and Become a Budget Hero!
If you ever wanted to control where the tax dollars go, here is a game you must play. On Budget Hero, you can experience a glimpse of what it must be like to manage the budget of the United States. Choose from myriads of tax cuts, increases and various policy changes and see how it impacts this country's financial picture in the next 10 years. Do you have what it takes to balance the budget and actually get what you want done?

Budget Hero on [your station] from American Public Media

Promotional Graphics

To save images: right click the image you wish to save and choose "Save Image As..." from the pop-up menu.

300 x 250 pixels

200 x 150 pixels

160 x 600 pixels

On-Air Promotional Text

[:10 spot]: [STATION NAME] wants to know: How would you spend three trillion dollars?; Play Budget Hero, at [URL]. And fix America's federal budget, as only you see fit.
[:25 spot]: Declare and defend your values. Learn the issues. Fix the federal budget as only you see fit.; [STATION NAME] wants to know: How would you spend three trillion dollars?; Play Budget Hero, a new "smart game" from American Public Media. Raise or lower taxes. Set spending priorities. Take decisive action.; But be aware: allocating resources will require tough tradeoffs. Can you promote what you value most? Find out with Budget Hero, at [URL].