Stripping the Menu Column

  • I want to rearrange the home page so that the header spans the page, and the right column – <div id=”menu”> – is much smaller. I would probably downsize div#menu by deleting some features and converting others to links that fetch popup windows.
    But I need to figure out what some of these features are first.
    Links – Self explanatory; I’ll simply find a way to make them smaller.
    Categories – If I’m just using my BLOG as sort of an online diary, can I delete this? And can I simply re-insert it if I later branch out and create a new category?
    Search – I changed the header h1 tag to a div – <div id=”header”> – and put the Search function inside another div which I position inside div#header and to the right. It should still work, right?
    Archives – I’ll probably leave them alone, along with Login and Register.
    Calendar – I’d like to replace this with a calendar that opens up in a popup window. Can I also use a different type of calendar, or does this calendear have some sort of special function that relates to the BLOG? If so, would I ruin things if I stripped the calendar out of the page and put it in a popup window?
    I don’t understand what these mean:
    * RSS 2.0
    * Comments RSS 2.0
    I’m vaguely familiar with RSS – some sort of “streaming media,” right? I just haven’t worked with it yet, so it’s unfamiliar to me.
    Any tips?
    Thanks.

Viewing 7 replies - 1 through 7 (of 7 total)

  • Hi, you will find links to helpful resources off of the wiki at https://wiki.www.remarpro.com
    Feel free to explore, and save a copy of index.php as indextest.php and work on it instead, if you think something might get broken, or just save a copy of index.php for later.
    RSS helps other know when you update the blog without their having to come visit the blog.

    I made the MENU division a PHP include. I have several. But it makes it easier to change things around on the fly. I have the long sidebar on my blog (and archive) pages, but an abbreviated version on all other pages on my site. I also have dispensed with the calendar. My reasoning is that anyone wanting to search back through past entries is more likely to want to search for a specific topic. The calendar doesn’t serve any purpose for me that the date-based archives don’t already do nicely. You could probably do nicely with just your category links and the search box. People will be able to find what they need just fine using those tools — if you’re just looking to throw ballast overboard.

    Thread Starter bearpress

    (@bearpress)

    OK, thanks for the tip. Also, do you know what fiile the header and page title are located in? I think it’s called <h1 id=”header”>, or something like that.
    I previewed the home page in my browser so I could copy the HTML without all the confusing PHP codes. Then I revised the header, and was about to replace the header in the original page when I discovered – or rather DIDN’T discover it. It’s apparently in an included page. I tried Dreamweaver’s search and replace, but I haven’t found it yet.
    I’m probably just confused by all the PHP codes and includes, many of which are new to me.

    Thread Starter bearpress

    (@bearpress)

    Yes, I saw that…although I may not have been thinking clearly. I see now that I can probably modify this as I planned.
    What confuses me is the page title – “my weblog.” Since the words “my weblog” don’t appear between <h1 id=”header”> and </h1>, I assume it’s buried somewhere in <?php bloginfo(‘name’); ?>
    But I don’t understand exactly what that means. If I want to change “my weblog” to “David’s Web Log,” do I have to open a certain file and find a PHP function named “name”?
    This isn’t totally unfamiliar, as I’ve been working with PHP includes for a few weeks, but this just isn’t clicking with me.

    Hey – something I think I can answer – this is a first!
    To change your blog name you go to options in your admin and then to base settings – your blog name is listed there…simply change it to your new name. This shows up in your browser title and in your header.

    Thread Starter bearpress

    (@bearpress)

    OK, thanks.

    One other clarification –
    To my knowledge (correct me, O experienced ones), WP doesn’t use any file includes, though of course you are free to do so with PHP. Everything that the engine sticks into your pages is stored in the database, so changing it is usually a matter of editing your settings in the control panel rather than finding a file to hack (unless you want to change the way it works rather than just the content).

Viewing 7 replies - 1 through 7 (of 7 total)
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