Where do I put the new template in order to customize it?

Hello,

I am 'extremely' new to Zen Cart and after much searching and 'trial & error' I've come to find it to be exactly what I was looking for. I purchased a template from someone that is exactly what I needed looks wise. I uploaded the folder to the same folder on my server that contains the 'classic' template. I then selected it from the Admin area and it looks fine. My question is this: After reading through the forums and the FAQ's I've read alot about adding the edited/customize files to a CUSTOM folder on the server. It's my understanding that the CUSTOM folder should be named after my custom template, but I'm not sure about this -

'Should I have put my new template into this custom folder or did I put in the right place?'

Should I create a folder that has the same name as my new template to create the override pages? Is that how it works? Or do I need to move my new template folder (the one that I bought) to another location that the one I put it in?

Thank you for your help! I appreciate it...

P.S. I've already added some products --- will that matter in either case?:D

Since you bought the template, and it appears to have installed properly, it is already in the right place. The template author created the correct override file structure for you.

Any further customizing you do should be in your template folders, and if there is a file you need to edit that does not yet have a template folder to hold the edited copy (parallel with a /classic/ folder), just make a new folder there with your template's name to match the others.
Good luck, and welcome!

Say that your new template exists in a folder called new_template (what ever the name is) - then in every place that there is a "classic" folder - all the files in this folder can be edited and placed in a folder that you create named new_template

If you have another template installed say really_new_template - then this one can have different edits to the files and be placed into respective folders named really_new_template

Then with a couple of clicks you can change templates - Now why is this even great??

Consider a site - say gifts or a plant nursurey or?? They can have 4,5 6 templates reflecting seasons, holidays etc. and change them according to the need quickly.

Hope this assists in clearing this up for you

Hello and thank you for the welcome... Also, thank you for the responses. Just so I am clear, please allow me to confirm what you have both stated here.

As of right now, the template that I am using which I will call "PAID_FOR" for now because using the words 'template' and 'custom' over and over again are a bit confusing for me at the moment... Here is where I put it:

/includes/templates/paid_for

This is what the instructions that came with the paid for template recommended. This is however the same location that the folders 'classic' and 'default_template' are stored. From what you have both stated, this is an accurate location for that folder to be in.

So, if I wanted to change the Zen Cart! (that appears in my browser's header) to "My Shop Name!", the instructions that another user so graciously noted in a FAQ tutorial suggest editing the 'english.php' file located here:

/includes/languages/english.php

After editing this file, the instructions state that you should save the edited file in a newly created folder located here:

/includes/languages/custom/english.php

My confusion begins here:::
So am I supposed to create a new folder as noted above but instead of calling it custom am I supposed to call it paid_for (the same name of my custom template) and place it here:

/includes/languages/paid_for/english.php

? Is this accurate?

And if I wanted to change the "Congratulations! You have successfully" text that appears on my shops main page, I would edit the index.php file and save the edited version here:

/includes/languages/english/paid_for/

? Is this also accurate?

The information in the tutorials and around these forums are fantastic and quite detailed, it's just the common use of the words 'custom' and 'templates' in the instructions are throwing me for a loop. I am having a problem discerning one folder from another...

Thanks again and have a great one! Much success to you all...:yes:

/includes/languages/paid_for/english.php

? Is this accurate?

And if I wanted to change the "Congratulations! You have successfully" text that appears on my shops main page, I would edit the index.php file and save the edited version here:

/includes/languages/english/paid_for/

? Is this also accurate?

You've got it!

By George I think that you have got it!!!!

Each instance that you referenced is correct...

and for any others where you have a "classic" folder that exists like
/any_folder/any_folder/classic/ - for the files that exist at/under
/any_folder/any_folder/ - you can edit and place in
/any_folder/any_folder/paid_for/

You've got it right. :clap:

You would call the folder paid_for where ever you want to create overrides for your template. Where ever you see a classic folder, you can create a folder for your tempate. You don't necessarily have to create paid_for folders everywhere you see a classic folder. You only have to create paid_for folders when you want to override a file. On the same note, you don't have to copy every file into your paid_for folder. You only need the files you want to modify.

Fantastic! I can now put the bottle of excedrin away and have a nice cup of coffee in a very peaceful "ZEN"-like state!

Thank you all for your help with this... Very much appreciated and it is equally nice to find a support forum filled with people who actually want to help and not just criticize those who are simply new and not yet fluent with the program...

Thanks again!

kobra:

Say that your new template exists in a folder called new_template (what ever the name is) - then in every place that there is a "classic" folder - all the files in this folder can be edited and placed in a folder that you create named new_template

If you have another template installed say really_new_template - then this one can have different edits to the files and be placed into respective folders named really_new_template

Then with a couple of clicks you can change templates - Now why is this even great??

Consider a site - say gifts or a plant nursurey or?? They can have 4,5 6 templates reflecting seasons, holidays etc. and change them according to the need quickly.

Hope this assists in clearing this up for you

Almost forgot this >>> Thank you Kobra for this idea! It may very well prove to be useful and I would never have thought of it. I would definitely like to use different templates for different occassions & promotions. It would be great to set one up for a specific promotion, switch it on and then when the promotion is over, go back to my normal state of being... Very nice, thank you!:smartalec:

It would be great to set one up for a specific promotion, switch it on and then when the promotion is over, go back to my normal state of being... Very nice, thank you!
Thank the Zen Cart Dev's and their templating system - which seems complicated until one grasps the basics but then the POWER that it provides is truly ZEN MAJIK!!

Welcome the a thanks to the developers... Very nice feature... Takes a lot of stress off my mind knowing that if I make changes, I'm not totally dead in the water should I make an error...

Hopefully, this info helps someone else...

I used the template override system mentioned in this thread earlier and it worked perfectly! Thank you all. This is what I did to make the changes that helped me out immensely:

My server has an auto-install function that loaded Zen Cart for me so I downloaded a copy of it for my computer. After unloading the zip file, I copied the Zen-Cart folder, put it in the same folder as the original and renamed it Zen-Cart_Modified. Everytime I needed to edit a file, I created the custom folder in the Zen-Cart_Modified folder and saved the edited file there. Now I have a copy of the file pathways on my computer that exist on my server. Seeing it first on my computer helped me to become comfortable and familiar with the file pathway/structure.

I then uploaded the folders with the edited files in them into the places they belonged and it was just that simple... Everything worked and I learned a little something.

Thanks again...