A Single Page Template for All Pages with Global Corrections and Additions.

dons1 · #1 10-03-2007, 01:18 PM

I'm new to web building and BV. BV was one of my key determinants in joining this programme and I have not been disappointed I can tell you!

However, I would love to be able to set-up a page at the start of a build which would contain all of the static elements such as banner, header, footer, menus etc. I would then use this for all my pages and add the other content as needs be. THEN when I need to change or add anything I just do it the once on my template and it changes all web pages globally.

Bit long winded but I don't know the 'technical speak' yet!

Now I know that Navaldesign has a brilliant work-around in place but I suggest it would be better if we didn't need it?

John
www.clanfootball.com/

Collectors-info · #2 10-03-2007, 01:34 PM

Hi, would be nice if a common menu this was built into BV. But Navals way is actually so much more flexible on what it will do if you want to use these areas for? Let’s say a rotation on advertising, or news in specific areas/directories of the site.

dons1 · #3 10-03-2007, 02:16 PM

Thanks Chris!

As I say, I am new at this and don't have the full understanding of all the issues. Could you please enlarge on the theme of ad rotations etc. that you quoted and how this plays out against the approach I suggested and Naval´s approach. i.e. the pros and cons I guess?

Sorry to be so slow, but I will catch up!

John
www.clanfootball.com/

Collectors-info · #4 10-03-2007, 02:45 PM

It was just a case that if you had an area of your site that dealt with a specific subject, IE: cars. & each of these areas was about 20 pages. You could set up you php template just for this area & rotate the adds just relating to fords & another area for Toyota. It will make targeting a bit more accurate & better for the visitor.
Could also be the same for a holiday site in the way you could set up weather links for certain destinations.

dons1 · #5 10-03-2007, 02:55 PM

Thanks.

I get you now!

John
www.clanfootball.com/

navaldesign · #6 10-03-2007, 06:53 PM

Please note that the php method that i have posted here will allow for much more than having a simple template or menu or banner added in the page.

In fact, i could have simply explained how to include a page, without need to make use of a function definition. You can simply create a simple page, (even simple html, not necessarily php as in my tutorial) and call it in all your pages using a simple php command as

<? include('template.html') ?>

The reason i made it as a function, is that, an advanced user can also create, from a single template page ,using parameters, many different templates (i.e. customize, for each page, the background, the banner color (if it contained in a table that can be coloured), the hyperlink style, and many other elements. So a single template page can autocreate many different lloking templates.

A command like
<?
include ('template.php');
template($param1, $param2, $param3 ....etc.);
?>

would be enough at this point to create all those different templates according to the parameters values in the above code.

This is far more flexibility that simply having a single static page included as template.

dons1 · #7 10-03-2007, 11:52 PM

Thanks very much for this.

I'm with you now and have a much better understanding of the real benefits of your solution. I'm going to look very closely at this and perhaps use it on my site before it gets too large - as in fact Chris suggested when he critiqued my site but at the time I really didn't understand the full implications.

John
www.clanfootball.com/ connecting fans around the world

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