CHAPTER 12 STYLING PHPBB (Web server info) 349 they are
CHAPTER 12 STYLING PHPBB 349 they are familiar with other phpBB-based boards. Finally, modifying the default theme helps you avoid a sticky mess involving other template authors who may or may not wish for you to use their work as a base. Caution If you are tempted to use FrontPage or another WYSIWYG HTML editor, resist at all costs! You run the risk of introducing a great deal of incompatible code. Additionally, these editors may try to reformat (and ultimately destroy) the .tpl files, which are not full HTML files, but rather snippets of HTML that phpBB s engine pieces together to build full pages. Avoiding WYSIWYG editors for special projects such as a phpBB template is always a smart move, as they just don t know how to handle these files. Stick with a text editor like EditPlus (http://www.editplus.com), and you won t go astray. Working with phpBB s Template System Before you begin creating or modifying a theme, you need to understand how phpBB uses templates. phpBB s styling system involves two components: The template engine does the work of putting together output from the phpBB script and individual template files (typically a header, body, and footer) to create the HTML pages you see while browsing your board. The style system operates from the database and, if your template is designed for it, permits you to use different color schemes and style sheets with the same template on the fly, without necessarily editing the template directly. Note When I refer to templates, I m talking about the physical files that make up a template set. When I refer to styles, I m talking about the color schemes retrieved from the phpBB database that can be applied to individual templates. The combination of templates and styles are generally known in phpBB lore as a theme. As you delve into the phpBB template code, you ll find the flexibility of the template system to work to your advantage, and you ll also find that it isn t much harder to work on a template than it is to create a static HTML page. Theme Files A full theme consists of its template files, style sheets (if needed), graphics, and theme configuration file. Table 12-1 lists the template files that come packaged with the subSilver template (.tpland .css files), which is the basis for the customizations I ll describe in this chapter. Note You will not be doing any work with the files in the templates/theme/admin directory in this chapter. You will not commonly want to modify those, although it is theoretically possible, because making changes to your administrative templates puts you at risk of rendering your Administration panel inaccessible.
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