Is changing the Master Page behavior "mode" from Content Page a bad idea?

Question

I have a Master Page that has two different "modes" of behavior: "strict input restrictions" and "relaxed input restrictions". The code for what these two modes mean is completely contained in the Master Page and 95% of the functionality of the Master Page is unaffected by this setting.

Content Page A will always use the "strict input restrictions" mode while Content Page B will always use the "relaxed input restrictions" mode.

I've been setting a property of the Master Page from the Content Page to choose the mode, but this feels kludgy. Is there a better way to handle the situation?

I think it's a design-time decision, but it seems like I'm handling it in a run-time way.

Answer 1

That's how I handle it as well. Unfortunately, Master Pages are a bit of a kludge to begin with. They don't really follow real rules of inheritance so don't try to force that type of thinking on to them.

Answer 2

From the point of view of the master page, it is a runtime decision, as depending upon which page is loaded at runtime, the functionality of the master page changes. You could force it to be a design time decision by creating two separate master pages, but that leads to duplication of your markup and code, though heavy use of user controls can mitigate that.

However, I've implemented similar functionality from time to time, when it is required. It's simple and it works.

Answer 3

Could you not code this at the page level - or better yet, introduce a base page in the middle? And what exactly do you mean by "strict input restrictions"?