Using templates

The layout of your blog is defined by a number of templates, which specify the layout and formatting of its content. The arrangement of items on the main page, the category and photo album pages, and the individual article and photo pages are all defined by templates.

Templates are made up of regular HTML interspersed with template variables, which act as placeholders for specific types of content. Before displaying your blog as web pages, the system replaces these variables with the actual content for which they are placeholders. Using the template functionality gives you a high degree of control over how your blog is laid out.

When you open the Templates page, two lists are displayed — Components Templates and Favorites Templates. Each list contains the following information:

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Template: the name of the component or favorite template.

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Type: whether the item is a default or customized template.

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Style: the name of the style that has been applied to the template.

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Live: whether the template has been activated.

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Staging: whether the template has been uploaded to the staging area.

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Action: there are two possible actions that may be performed for each template:

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Edit: clicking this link opens the Select Style page, where the template may be modified. See Editing Templates for more information.

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List Variables: clicking this link opens a new browser window, displaying the Template Tags page for the specified template. The Template Tags page contains a list of tags that may be used in that template, and provides explanations of how each tag is used.

The following templates are available for editing:

article	The article template defines the layout of articles as they appear in their individual pages. This template also contains the comments template and the trackbacks template within it.
base	The base template defines the basic overall layout of a blog, and controls which items go into its columns, header, and footer.
category	The category template defines the layout of articles as they appear in their category pages. Remember that the main page is also a category page.
comments	The comments template defines the layout of comments posted in response to an article or photo.
favorites	The favorites template defines the layout of favorites lists in the sidebar columns.
photo	The photo template defines the layout of photos as they appear in their individual pages. This template also contains the comments template and the trackbacks template.
photoalbum	The photoalbum template defines the layout of photos as they appear in their photo-album pages, in the "by page" format.
photoalbum-byday	The photoalbum-byday template defines the layout of photos as they appear in their photo-album pages in the "by day" format.
style	The style template is the CSS template for the blog, and defines the colors, fonts, and other visual elements used.
trackbacks	The trackbacks template defines the layout of trackbacks for articles or photos.