Legacy XSL Layouts
This page describes the old version of the Layouts screen that manages XSL Layouts. This screen is only available to sites created before 10/14/2007 that have not been upgraded to the new JavaScript Layouts.
The Layouts screen allows site administrators to control the layout of
their site. While style sheets control the fonts and colors of content
on your site, the Layout controls the over-all placement of content.
Skins are a bundled combination of Layout and Style sheet, and are
the easiest way to customize the look of your site.
Edit your site's current layout
By default, your site's current layout is displayed in the editor. You can make changes here and click the Preview Page button to see what it will look like. If you have made an error, it will be displayed in place of content on the preview page. When you're happy with the results, click Apply Layout to make the changes permanent.
The easiest way to familiarize yourself with EditMe layouts is to copy the contents into a text editor and read through it. Understand the entire scope of the layout before making changes.
Save a copy of your custom style sheet
If you have made changes to a style sheet and don't want to lose them, enter a name in to the text box next to the "Save Style Sheet" button, and then click the button. Saves style sheets appear in the Open drop down list. Simply select your saved styles sheet from the dropdown and click Open to retrieve it. The dropdown at the bottom of the screen allows you to delete saved stylesheets.
Advanced XSL Editing
If you are familiar with XSL or want to learn, here are some tips to get you going.
- If you're just starting out, try the ZVON.org XSLT Tutorial
- Once you know the basics, check out the excellent ZVON.org XSLT Reference
- Here is the XML output of the Home page of the Demo site to give you an idea of what you have to work with. This is the entire tree that can be matched using an XSL layout.
- Here is the generic XML Pretty Print stylesheet
we used to create the XML dump above (just paste it into your Layout
editor and click Preview). You can use this to create your own to see
exactly what you're getting for a particular page on your site. Be sure to only Preview this stylesheet - if you apply it your site will be busted.
- Heed the comments in the XSL stylesheet. Some of the template names are required in order for certain pages on your site to work properly.
- Be sure to save copies of your stylesheet so you don't lose your changes. Also, ALWAYS preview a change BEFORE clicking Apply!!
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