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One option for designing a website is using a website template. Using a website template may be ideal for someone who doesn't have the required skill to design an attractive website or who just happens to like the looks of a particular website template. In some cases it may save some time, but it really doesn't take very long to design a website template. There are a few tradeoffs from using website templates. There are a few free website templates, but most of these, including those that I offer, are intended to serve as a hook to convince you to consider paying money for something else. Some companies use the term premium website template to refer to some of their templates. These are just website templates that you have to purchase. Most of the ones that I have seen have a price of about $60 and may got up to as high as $200. In my opinion, these prices are fair. Website templates are not unique. One website template may be used on several different websites. This means that you might visit another website that is using the exact same template that you are using. Website templates provide the graphical design only. If you use one you will still have to put the rest of the website together.
If, after considering the alternatives, you have decided that you want to use a template rather than doing the design yourself, then you may be wondering what it will take to use it with the code that is in the book. If you use one of my website templates then you need only use the files as is described in the book. Just copy the files to the correct location. If you are using a website template that was created by someone else then you will need to make a few modifications to get it to work. Fortunately, these modifications than you would have to make to use the template anyway.
There are no standards when it comes to how website templates are designed. Without looking at the template, it would be impossible for me to tell you were to put things. I can give you a rough idea of what to look for when you are working with the template. First create a design.html file that is a copy of the template HTML file. In the HTML file, find the lines in the header that describe the title and the description. Remove these lines and insert the text "" Usually, there is some sample text that is included with a template HTML file. In the HTML file, find the text that is the main text for the template. Delete this text and insert the text "" in its place. The design.html file should not function properly with the index.asp and article.asp files.
Some other changes that you might have to make to get the website template to function properly is to change some of the links and modify some of the graphics. This is a normal process in using a template. You may also find that there are more boxes in the template that available to you than what has been described in the book. You can fill these with static text, but it is better if you modify the ASP files to support these boxes. It is not quite as simple as copy/paste, but the changes are not difficult. Use the code that is given in the book as a model and fill these boxes with lists of articles, calendar events or anything else that you want to tell your readers. In some of the files, like Article.asp there is a line of code that reads "<%ELSEIF InStr(1, Line, "") <> 0 THEN%>". This checks to see where parts of the document are to be inserted. If you have more boxes, you can create more of these lines, making the changes in the ASP files and the design.html file. Instead of "Document text goes here!" you can put something like "Box 1 text goes here!" or "Article list goes here!"
Rather than spending the money for a template that you won't use, download one of the free templates that are available on some sites and make the modifications that are needed. If everything seems to work properly, then you can buy a Premium Website Template and make the modifications that are needed.
Many of the same websites that are offering website templates are offering samples of their work. If you find a template that you like, it is best to use a sample from the same designer, so that you have an idea of how much trouble it will be to make the modifications that are needed. Not all templates are created equal. Some designers use bad practices. Some designers may use techniques that make the template hard to modify. Even though templates are different, designers tend to repeat their mistakes and successes.
Website Templates may cost extra, they will not provide a unique website and they may require nearly as much work as you would have to do anyway, but you may find that website templates are ideal for your situation. Modifying the website template to work with a database drive website is a fairly simple task.