How to Create a Template

[Xav]

What's the best way to create a template, where I just have the content in the individual files. The layout needs to be stored in separate file(s), so I can update the design/layout all in one place, and it affects all the pages.

So far I'm just using PHP "include" statements to add in the different parts of the page. Is there a better way (and NOT with a CMS)?

[TcM]

When you say template, you mean the layout for example where the sidebar should be, where the header should be etc.. or the images?

[Jordan]

Before my CMS days I always created a header.php and footer.php. I included these on all pages after that and it was fairly easy to update and maintain. I think a better method is to make a header.php, footer.php and index.php. The index file would have a select/case statement and receive a variable input. Depending on the variable it would automatically load the page the user is requesting. It would also include your header/footer.php file only once.

[Xav]

You mean like www .website.co.uk/index.php?page=home or something? Wouldn't that mean there would only be one page for SEO, or not?

[TcM]

No, if the spider crawls those links and the content is different, there will be more than one 'page'. vB without the SEO mod is just like that.

[Xav]

And with the SEO mod?

[Xav]

Originally Posted by Jordan

I think a better method is to make a header.php, footer.php and index.php. The index file would have a select/case statement and receive a variable input. Depending on the variable it would automatically load the page the user is requesting. It would also include your header/footer.php file only once.

Why do you need the header.php and footer.php files? Can't I just have one main file - index.php - and within that I have the entire structure of the page - topbar, sidebar, footer at bottom - and just have a script block in the content section, to load the relevant content page, which contains only the content and no formatting?

[TcM]

Originally Posted by Xav

And with the SEO mod?

It's just more Search engine friendly... nothing less nothing more.

[Kaabi]

Being search engine friendly is important though. For my personal website I've used PHP Include, I didn't think there was another way.

[TcM]

Well, for my websites I use TPL.. it's very easy once you get around it.

It's great to have various skins and easily switch/change between one and another.