Building a Template From a Static Html Design

This tutorial shows you how to transplant the html, css and javascript from a static html design into a page template for use on a Contensive site.

Install the html design on top of your development site

Create a collection to hold the new template

1. This collection will include all the stylesheets, javascript, page templates and addons needed for this page.

Create addons for each jQuery extension on the html design

1. If your template requires javascript, we recommend you create that javascript in an add-on, then reference the add-on in the template. For example, if you have a design that you have named "myDesign", create an addon called "myDesign Includes". In the javascript tab of the addon, paste the template's javascript in either the Head or End-of-Body section. Then in the actual html for the template, add { % "myDesign Includes" % } (without the spaces between % and {}).
2. If the design includes a jQuery extension, it should be isolated as a discrete addon and add a dependency for it to your template includes addon described above. If the addon already exists, just install it in your development environment and add the dependency.
3. Be sure to add collection dependencies to any libraries that need to be included.

Combine all styles into a single stylesheet

1. From the source of the new design html, copy the necessary stylesheets one at a time, in order into a single shared stylesheet.
2. Add the shared stylesheet to the new collection

Combine all custom javascript into a single script

1. From the source of the new design html, copy the necessary scripts into one javascript file. Exclude those isolated into separate addons.
2. Add the new consolidated script into the "Includes" addon created earlier.  

Create a new Page Template record from the body-to-body html from the design

1. Copy and paste the html from the body tag into a new page template record.
2. if there are any special requirements fo the body tag from the design, add them to the body tag in the template.
3. Add the consolidated javascript into the javascript tab of the new template.
4. Locate the region in the template where the editable content should go. Replace it with the addon
5. Add the page template to the collection 

Add External resources to the Collection

The design often includes a folder or two of included resources that have not already been isolated into stylesheets and javascript scripts, like images. Add those images to the collection by entering each resources root-relative path to the Resources tab of the collection. For instance, if you have in image called Logo.png in the img folder, it is probably referenced in the html or stylesheet with "img/Logo.png". Add it to the Resources tab, in the wwwRoot resources as "/img/Logo.png". If you have many resources and would like to zip them first, you can just add a single reference to the zip file and they will by unzipped on deployment.

Export the Collection

1. If you have not already, installed the Addon Collection Export Tool from the Addon Library
2. Select your collection from the list and export it to a zip file.
3. Be sure to test the deployment on a staging site, preferably on a different server before deploying to a production site.
4. Once the new collection is installed, you can create a new test page, and set it's template to one of the ones created by the collection.