Big Medium uses the default subsection template to build all subsection index pages for a main section. You may view or change the default subsection template from the section settings page for the main section.
For general tips on designing templates, read the templates help file.
What Is a Subsection Index Page?
The subsection index page is the webpage that lists links to all of a subsection's articles. Consider it the front door to all of the content for a subsection. Big Medium lists the subsection's articles by publication date, with the most recent articles appearing first. You set the format display of these links in the "Link Formats" section of Widget Settings. All subsection index links are displayed using the ++INDEX++ widget.
In addition, the subsection index page is used as general utility page for lists of simple links or text. For example:
- The subsection template is used for links to archive articles for a main section. When Big Medium fills up the main section page, it creates additional pages, using the default subsection index template, to display the remaining "overflow" links for the section. These links are displayed with the
++INDEX++widget. - The subsection template is used to display tip text. You select the tip section in the "News and Tips" panel of the site's widget settings. Big Medium then uses the subsection template from that section to display all tip text. This text is displayed with the
++INDEX++widget.
Do All of a Section's Subsections Have To Use the Same Template?
No. The default subsection index is just that: the default. It is the template that gets used for a section's subsection index pages if no other options are available. Any subsection may have its own custom subsection template, however. You may view or load the custom index from the section settings for the subsection.
Available widgets
Widgets are the chunks of dynamic html content that Big Medium generates for your site. To include a widget in your default subsection template, insert its tag into your html where you would like the Big Medium content to appear, and flank the widget tag with ++. For example:++ABOUTUS++
Widgets available for the default subsection template:
- ABOUTUS
- ADMINDIRURL
- ANNOUNCE
- BREADCRUMBS
- BROWSEMORE
- DESCRIPTION
- HEADLINE
- HNAV
- HNAVIMAGE
- HOMEDIRPATH
- HOMEDIRURL
- HSUBNAV
- HSUBNAVIMAGE
- HTMLEND
- HTMLHEAD
- INDEX
- MAINIMAGETEXT
- MAINPARENTLINK
- MAINPARENTNAME
- MAINPARENTSLUG
- PAGEDIRPATH
- PAGEDIRURL
- PARENTLINK
- PARENTNAME
- PARENTSLUG
- PULLDOWN
- QUICKTEASE:slug
- SECTIONSLUG
- TIP
- TITLE
- TOPNEWS
- URL
- VNAV
- VNAVIMAGE
- VSUBNAV
- VSUBNAVIMAGE
Loading the Default Subsection Index Template
The default subsection index template, like all template files, must be a text file. Users with webmaster or administrator accounts may load this template into the Big Medium system from the section settings page for the main section. To get there, click the "Section Editor" link in the left column menu of the Big Medium control panel, then click the "Settings" link in the section panel for the section in question. (If you haven't created the section yet, click "New Main Section").
In the "Default Index Template" section of the section settings page, click the browse button, then indicate the location of the file on your computer's local hard drive. After selecting the file, click the "Save" button at the bottom of the page.
Need more help?
For further assistance and documentation, visit the website of Global Moxie, the developer behind Big Medium.