kasiblog

I have a similar problem for another theme (Branford Magazin) and I am trying to adapt your solution to that theme. The Theme uses one specific category for the Feature.

So, it seems this is first main item:

$main_query = new WP_Query("showposts=1");
$category = wp_get_object_terms($main_query->post->ID, 'category');
$cat_offset = $category[0]->term_id;
echo $category[0]->term_id;

– Line 1 saves the latest post from all categories into the Variable main_query
– Line 2 gets the category from the latest post
– Line 3 saves the ID from that category into the variable cat_offset

What does Line 4 do?

Okay, and this is the second important bit for the place where the remaining articles are displaced, in this case for category 12

<?php $offset = 0;
if ( 12 == $cat_offset ) {$offset = 1;}
query_posts("showposts=1&cat=12&offset=$offset");
?>

Line 1 puts the variable offset into False.
Line 2 say that if the Category Number (12) is equal to the Category Number of the Feature-Article, then Offset is True
Line 3 says to post the remaining article(s).

If I want to use for another category number, I just have to replace 12 with 44 or 767 or whatever number, right?

If I want to show more than of the remaining posts, than I change the number behind showposts, right?

Then the normal loop follows for this category.

The third important bit is this

<?php if ($main_query->have_posts()) : ?>
<?php while ($main_query->have_posts()) : $main_query->the_post(); ?>

I don’t understand this if-clause. Why is it needed? It seems that already above the newest posts is in main_query? Why would you have to check whether there is a post (have_posts)? Is it so that the_post and the_excerpt and the_content give back the newest article?