Aleksandr is a template created in the free, flexible, elegant and easy-to-use spirit of the content management system which it has been designed for - Textpattern.
It is xhtml 1.0 strict, structurally semantic, consistent across all modern browers and very customisable.
Included is a fancy toggle to show/hide the menu. Not only for 'oooh' expressions, it serves practically by revealing the main banner in all its glory.
Download and install a copy of Textpattern.
Login to your hosting account using an ftp client. If you don't have ftp access, zip up the folders 'images' and 'scripts' and send it to the appropriate person.
Aleksandr uses 5 page templates. Each text file within the 'pages' folder of Aleksandr corresponds to a page template with the same name.
Go to presentation » pages in your Textpattern admin interface, then create (or replace) all appropriate pages, using the contents of Aleksandr's 'pages' folder.
Aleksandr uses 1 stylesheet.
Go to presentation » style, then replace the default stylesheet with the contents of 'default.txt' file in the 'styles' folder.
Aleksandr has 4 sections.
Go to presentation » sections, create 'archive' and 'contact' and set 'uses page' to the page which corresponds to each section (same name).
Be sure to save every section you adjust.
Go to admin » plugins, then install the plugins by copying the contents of each file in the 'plugins' folder into the field provided and then click 'install'.
Make both plugins 'active'.
Aleksandr uses 13 forms.
Go to presentation » forms, then create all provided forms. All forms are type 'article' apart from:
Go to admin » preferences, edit 'site name' and 'site slogan'. Set 'automatically append comments to articles?' and 'present comments as a numbered list?' to no.
Optional: Make any other changes of interest such as 'time zone', 'date format' and 'permanent link mode'.
Save.
Aleksandr's strength, like Textpattern, is in its ability to change. Through the tweaking of a few css selectors and the overwriting of 5 images, you can give Aleksandr its own distinct look and feel.
Go to presentation » style. At the very top of the stylesheet you will see a contents outlining the structure of the document. Locate 'variables' in the css and work your way through each of the commented selectors. Key features include:
Have a good look around and don't hesitate to have a play. Just make sure you have a copy of the default.txt stylesheet on hand if anything goes awry.
Earlier (re:'before we begin') you uploaded an images folder with 4 images, they were:
Replace these via FTP. When changing logo.gif, take note of the dimensions of the image and edit these in the CSS under the 'variables' section - look out for 'h1'.
You may be wondering where the main banner is pulled in. By default in every Textpattern installation, an image (1.gif) is included. Go to content » images and replace it with your own. Don't worry about its dimensions as by default this image will be cropped (hidden) from the right.
Go to content » write and write an entry for the 'about' section.
Go to presentation » pages and click on 'contact'. Here you can edit the respective details for your vcard and change the recipient's email address for enquiries through the contact form.
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You're done!
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