Blank Sidebox and Banner Manager

[Spinach]

Hi,
I am using version 1.5.5f.

I tried to use the mod for new blank sideboxes but I have an error somewhere because when I enable the boxes in Admin, instead of the actual box heading being displayed (Galleries) I get BOX_HEADING_GALLERIES_SIDEBOX and TEXT_GALLERIES_SIDEBOX under the heading.

Can somebody tell me where I have made a mistake for the above to be happening.

Because I can't get the blank sideboxes to work, I have used the Banner Manager, Banners All, to make two new sideboxes. I have text links in the sideboxes, not images.

My problem is the text is centered and not aligned to the left like the Information sidebox is.

Can somebody please tell me how to make the text links in my two sideboxes align left. Which file or files do I have to edit?

Thank you.

[dbltoe]

You should be seeing error files in the logs directory, but, when you see text like that, it means a define has not been made. When it's two, I'd say you've either left out a filenames****.php or put it in an incorrect folder.

Are you sure the mod is working on 1.5.5#

[Spinach]

You should be seeing error files in the logs directory, but, when you see text like that, it means a define has not been made. When it's two, I'd say you've either left out a filenames****.php or put it in an incorrect folder.

Are you sure the mod is working on 1.5.5#

I movedmy file from includes/languages/english/extra_definitions/MyTemplate/galleries_sidebox_defines.php
to
includes/languages/english/extra_definitions/galleries_sidebox_defines.php

and the sidebox now displays without the php code showing.

One little problem I have is there is a gap under sidebox header and the first link in the box. Which file would I edit to remove the space between the sidebox header and the first link?

I'm new to this and the style sheet intimidates me, so if I have to edit that file, can you give me a sample code of what I should add please.

Thank you

[Spinach]

I got rid of the space. Just posting it for others who might want to remove the space between the custom blank sidebox header and the content.

The file I edited was includes/templates/MyTemplate/sideboxes/tpl_galleries_sidebox.php

Change this line of code

$content .= '<p>' . TEXT_GALLERIES_SIDEBOX . '</p>';

to

$content .= '<div>' . TEXT_GALLERIES_SIDEBOX . '</div>';

[dbltoe]

It's best to provide information requested in the posting tips. Especially a link to the site. Just makes it easier to help.

It's better to not change a file's coding if it can be done in a stylesheet. The file code should be constant as to what is provided while the stylesheet determines how it is displayed.

It's good to learn basic css. W3C can help.

It's not good to replace a <p> tag with a <div> tag ESPECIALLY if the <div> tag has no id or class assigned. An id (found in the stylesheet with a prefix of #) is for a div that only appears once. A class (found in the stylesheet with a prefix of .) is for a div that appears in two or more separate areas. Used only once, <div id=galleriesBox> would have allowed future control by the stylesheet. Still, it would be better to adjust the problem by adjusting the stylesheet instead of changing code. Especially since your method provides no way to identify and adjust the div in a stylesheet.

Not busting your chops. A lot of this is for the lurkers now and in the future. If we had information provided in the posting tips, we could have saved you some time and grief.

[Spinach]

Thank you dbltoe,

My site is not live yet so I can't add a link.

I will put the original code back.

I have two sideboxes. So in the stylesheet would the code I add look like this?

#div id=galleriesBox
#div id=lessonsBox

Thank you for your help, I do appreciate it!

[dbltoe]

https://www.w3schools.com/Css/ can really be your friend. Just start out in small steps and build.

In a php file, you'll see something like <div id="navMainWrapper">. That's telling php that this is a one-time display of the navMainWrapper. <div class="leftBoxContainer'> will show up several times throughout the site.

In the stylesheet, the navMainWrapper would appear as

#navMainWrapper {    margin: 0em;
    background-color: #9a9a9a;
    font-weight: bold;
    color: #ffffff;
    height: 1%;
    width: 100%;
    }

You'll note that many things are defined for the navMainWrapper. Just as it's important to use certain syntax in php, it's really important in the stylesheet.

Note the item is listed first, then a space and enclosing brackets (or curly brackets) - { } They've got to be there just as each line of directions ends with a semi-colon. Purists will tell you there doesn't have to be a ; at the end of the last line, BUT if you always use it, you're less likely to forget later.

If you're using Chrome or Firefox for a browser, you can hit F12 and bring up a representation of what the site it doing. What comes up in Chrome is the Console. You can click on Elements in the header to see the code on the left and the css on the right. With each line of code you highlight on the left, the css on the right will change to show you what is used to style that code.

baby steps will get you there.