I'm new to this and i have NO idea what I'm doing! I cannot figure out how to re-design (change colors, add new tabs etc etc ) I cannot figure out how to edit the templates Am i just that dumb!? i know HTML and I use dreamweaver all the time... Any help would be greatly appreciated !! Thank you!
Your best bet is to scour the documentation, specifically the template section. Templates - 68 Classifieds
I got hired to design this website. Is there software I need? I noticed that in the Templates-68 Classifieds in changed the logo i saw that they were using some software... do i need that? because i do not have that. Thanks again!
No you dont need any special software to edit templates. You only need special software if you want to create or alter images but that goes for any sort of web site. The template files are just plain text, like any html file and the layout is all controlled by the templates and css files......if your charging people to "design" sites then html and css should be something you are very familiar with.
of course there are a lot of smarty templates, the whole system is based on smarty. The templates however are still just regular html with smarty variables inside. You can learn all about smarty at Smarty : Template Engine. As for uploading images, I do that with an ftp application just like I do any file I want to get on the server.
I do know how to do this stuff.... I have a degree. I have never used the Smarty Templating system.. or whatever you call it. I just wanted to know where i can add background images, change alignments, add tabs. When you mean "" the layout is all controlled by the templates and css files"" Where can i go to edit that but see a preview of it before its completely edited??? thx.
I dont live in the land of wysiwig so im having a hard time understanding what you are finding so difficult to do. Edit the template/css, save it on the server then open a browser and view the page to see your changes. If you want a background image, edit the css, add the proper css attributes pointing to the image you upload with an ftp client, save the files, refresh browser to see your changes. I hope that where ever you got your degree, they explained to you what dynamic web pages are and that you cant generate a preview on a dynamically created page without requesting the dynamic content from the server.
Forget it, i will figure it out on my own. I do not appreciate being degraded because I do not understand something.
You ask how to do something, I tell you and you say you know how to do that then ask the same question again while throwing the "I have a degree" in my face. as I already mentioned, I dont understand exactly what it is you after. 68C is a dynamic site, it relies on feedback from the web server/database to generate the site, as I already mentioned. You want specific answers then ask specific questions.
In your template folder there is another folder called default and in that a folder called css. In this folder is a file called style.css . This file controls the look and feel of your template. Now the structure of what is displayed is controlled by all those other files in that template folder (these are a mix of smarty and html) - each having a different purpose. The most important is layout.tpl . This controls the surrounding part of the page which is the same for every page. In order to change stuff using an editor and test it locally on your own machine, you will need to install something like WAMP. Otherwise you edit the file upload it and review it live. This is not a big pain if you put everything on a subdomain first to test it out for example. If I am honest I do question the wisdom in accepting a paid project without the skill set to undertake the work efficiently. To create a customized site which is roubst is quite a learning curve and not something to be taken on lightly. It is not a 5 minute affair.
Although you have a degree and may not need anything other than notepad to edit files, I would like to recommend a free program that I have used for years that will make editing the files a lot easier. The program is PSPad. It will allow you to edit the files via built in ftp capabilities and you can undo the changes very easily. It also has a preview feature that I never use but it is not a WYSIWYG editor. I would rather view the website in my web browser. It has a lot of great features built in just for the php, html, css programmer. Syntax highlighting and spell checking are two of my favorites.
I apologize for not being more specific about my questions and to answer your honest questions in wisdom to accepting a paid project.... here is the story. My ex boyfriends best friend called me about this site he wanted..... I figured it was just like any other site importing flash and graphics, java script etc. you know the basic web design things; and uploading using FTP such as fetch or filezilla on to the server and hosting the site. Yes, maybe I should of looked more into 68Classifieds. I apologize. Here are some specific questions... answer if you like/want. Where can i get a WAMP that is compatible with Mac? I have Fetch on my Mac- do I edit my css and layout.tpl in dreamweaver and upload this way? and insert my pictures designs? Is 68Classifieds easier for computer networkers? is that why I am confused?(I am a web design/developer/Graphic Design major.) - Sorry for the misunderstanding.
OK, so let’s get started. I am assuming that you are working on your own computer and not trying to use the administration to do this or to edit your files. So first find your original download of the 68 Classifieds software. I do not have the original download of 68 Classifieds software... Where can I get this... Would the person I am designing this for have it ? (he started it on his computer and gave me all the passwords etc. ) thanks!
Yes, your ex-boyfriends best friend should have a copy of this. You'll definitely need that. Of course if you have access to where he installed it, you have access to the same files. But you should have the original files in case something goes wrong.
The external links at the bottom of the page I linked to in my early post described many things, such as how the site is largely made up of a layout and body template etc, if you didnt get much from that then you are beyond my help because you need to understand some basics.
