Web developers consider WordPress as the most necessary part of web development. Majority of those who start with WordPress merely do so out of their pursuit for a more comfortable process of creating their simple website. Designers and developers then Google and consult about WordPress codex later and that is the way out for them. However, a large number of users don’t just stop there. They keep offering more ideas for experiment. And then they discover Firebug! Soon, there’s no looking back! Being a WordPress beginner, it’s pretty natural to have the urge and willingness to have increased control on your site. Users crave for custom functionality, design and everything else!
Luckily enough, there’s almost everything that you can do on WordPress as it is built exactly for customization. A designer can change technically anything that he wants on his site due to the compartmentalized architecture and flexible structure of WordPress. Among some of the vital tools which help designers get full control on their website are custom page templates. Templates actually help users in altering the designing of their website’s functionality dramatically. Here are some examples of nicely customized WordPress site designs www.littleco.com, www.nettikasinot.com and www.harveynichols.com for you to get new ideas on your customization journey.
WordPress Template files – They tell WP how to display content
What do we actually speak of when we utter the word ‘templates’ in field of WordPress? Well, templates are nothing but files which prompt WordPress the way in which it should display various kinds of content. Keeping in mind the longer version, each time a user sends you a notification to check a portion of your respective website, the platform of WordPress will determine which content to be viewed and in what way that particular portion needs to be rendered.
WordPress will give an effort to utilize the best template file within the theme. Which template will be used is determined in accordance with an order which is called the template hierarchy. The hierarchy is a congregated list of files which WordPress is accustomed with and which are ranked to determine which files should succeed over the other. This can be thought of as a tree which is used for decision-making. Whenever WordPress decides how it should display a webpage, it works down the template hierarchy unless it locates the 1st template file which is ideal for the requested webpage.
Custom page templates – How they’re used
For webpages, the basic template that is used is usually given the name of page.php. Unless there are better or more particular template files which are available, WordPress will always use page.php to render website content on all webpages. However there are cases where you may require changing the design, feel, look and functionality of different portions of the site and this is where the all-encompassing role of templates comes in. Customized templates let you personalize any section of the WordPress site even without letting the remaining site suffer any impact.
If you have been into web designing, you must have seen this at many places. For instance, there are a number of WordPress themes which give you a chance to alter your webpage to full width, add another sidebar or change the location of the sidebar. If your case is similar to this, it was definitely done with the help of template files. Well, there are also numerous ways in which you can accomplish such goals.
One of the most important ways in which you can master the art of WordPress is by using page templates. Templates can make personalizing your website extremely easy and effortless and allow you to assign design and functionality to as many webpages as you want to. From adding widget areas to showing content, possibilities are endless with WordPress.
