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GDS 214 WEB DESIGN II
Dreamweaver Templates - Page 10
Instructor: Rob Higgins

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Nested Templates

About nested templates

A nested template is a template whose design and editable regions are based on another template. To create a nested template, you must first save the original or base template, then create a new document based on the template, and then save that document as a template. In the new template, you can further define editable regions in areas originally defined as editable from the base template.

Nested templates are useful for controlling content in pages of a site that share many design elements, but have a few variations between pages. For example, a base template might contain broader design areas and be usable by many content contributors for a site, while a nested template might further define the editable regions in pages for a specific section in a site.

Editable regions in a base template are passed through to the nested template, and remain editable in pages created from a nested template unless new template regions are inserted in these regions.

Changes to a base template are automatically updated in templates based on the base template, and in all template-based documents that are based on the main and nested templates.

Example: A Car Rental site’s base template might contain two editable regions, named body and footer:

To create a nested template, we created a new document based on the template, then saved the document as a template and named it globalNested. In the nested template, we made changes in the editable region named body. We inserted a graphic in the left column and inserted a new editable region in the right column.

When you add a new editable region in an editable region passed through to the nested template, the highlighting color of the editable region changes to orange. Content you add in an editable region, such as the graphic in the left column, is no longer editable in documents based on the nested template. The blue highlighted editable areas, whether added in the nested template or passed through from the base template, remain editable in documents based on the nested template. Template regions you do not insert an editable region in, pass through to template-based documents as editable regions.

Creating a nested template

You can create a nested template by saving a document based on a template, then creating a new template of that document. Nested templates let you create variations of a base template. You can nest multiple templates to define increasingly specific layout.

To create a nested template:

1. Create a document from the template you want to base the nested template on by doing one of the following:
   
   • In the Assets panel’s Templates category, right-click the template you want to create a new document from, then select New From Template.
     
   • Choose File > New. In the New Document dialog box, click the Templates tab and select the site that contains the template you want to use; then in the document list, double-click the template to create a new document.
     
     A new document appears in the Document window.
     
     
2. Choose File > Save as Template or click the Make Nested Template button in the Insert bar, to save the new document as a template.
   
   
3. In the new template, add additional content and editable regions.
   
   
4. Save the template.
   
   In documents based on the nested template, you can add or change content in editable regions passed through from the base template, as well, as editable regions created in the new template.

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Last updated: 6/28/02 • Webmaster: Paul Young

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