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PrestaShop 1.3 Theming - Beginner's Guide
PrestaShop 1.3 Theming - Beginner's Guide

PrestaShop 1.3 Theming - Beginner's Guide: Develop flexible, powerful, and professional themes for your PrestaShop store through simple steps

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PrestaShop 1.3 Theming - Beginner's Guide

Chapter 2. Customizing PrestaShop Theme Part I

Now that we have explored the PrestaShop theming control panel, it's time to move on to the next step. The most basic level is using the back office panel to customize the layout. Using this knowledge, we can make some quick and easy changes without having any technical knowledge.

If you need more advanced changes than what can be achieved here, you will need to edit the theme and the CSS files, which will be explained in the chapters on customizing the theme files later.

It must be noted that all design changes that you can do in this back office can also be achieved through customization on the theme files (which involves editing of the file's markup) too. Although knowledge of this theme editing approach encased that of the back office setting, it is useful to know that there are reasons to choose the latter option with no "hacking" of scripts even if you are an advanced user as there could be some issues when you have to update to the...

The default layout


Let's have a look again at your current storefront and how the theme is governed by the back office control panel.

By looking at the screenshot, you can tell which back office items you need to modify, replace, or set according to your needs.

The basic layout outline can be seen in the following screenshot:

Besides the back office control over appearance, as shown in the previous chapter, our theme is also affected by the modules that control the functionality of your store. At this stage, we will be working on the existing modules in PrestaShop. This is where you decide whether your site visitor will see the product categories, the top selling products, your product listing, the specials, your featured products, and so on. If you run an e-commerce store with a payment option that links automatically to a payment gateway, you may want to study a bit more about each of these modules as well.

You will also notice that the default theme uses a three column layout with a header...

Modules


The Modules tab allows you to control the modules you want to use in the store. You will be able to transplant the modules and move them around according to the site navigation you want, considering some limitations at this stage. You can move them up or down in the columns. You may also position them in the left or the right column or you may disable them. You also have the option of adding a new module or choosing ones that are available from the PrestaStore. PrestaShop has some already installed modules, and the number of newly developed ones is growing every day.

Now let's move on to Back Office | Modules, as shown in the following screenshot:

We will go into the listing and get some ideas on each one. However, we will focus in greater detail on the modules that affect theming directly.

Among the existing modules in this version (PrestaShop 1.3.1), which are readily available for installation, some of them are:

  1. Advertisement – 1 module: Google Adsense.

  2. Products module – 6 modules...

Time for action—Installing and enabling modules


In order to make the modules work, you will have to check if it is installed and enabled. When you see the word Install on the rightmost portion of each module, it indicates the module is yet to be installed. In PrestaShop, when a module is installed, it is automatically enabled.

The following screenshot shows an example of the installed and uninstalled states.

By simply clicking on the Install button, we have installed and enabled the modules. Note that some modules will require further configuring, while others work fine automatically once they are installed. The green tick indicates enabled modules.

Have a go hero—Choosing the modules to install

It is best to start with a blank page. So, what we will do now is disable all the modules by clicking the green check button so it will turn into the disabled state again.

When you begin to modify your default setting in PrestaShop, you may want to know how each installation affects your store. It...

Positioning modules


Before we start installing and enabling modules, let's learn two important terms that you need to understand in PrestaShop's modules. They are as follows:

  1. Hooks

  2. Transplanting

Hooks

A hook is a place where the module code can be inserted. In the back office, hooks are shown in a block that comprises a few modules installed within it. As an example, the right column blocks is a hook, which is like a housing for the four modules (Cart block, New products block, Top seller block, and Specials block) as shown in the following screenshot. It is possible to change the order of these modules that have been placed within the hook.

Transplanting modules

Transplanting a module is enabling the module to be displayed in a different hook.

For example, once you have installed and enabled a New products module, it will be hooked to the right column, as a default position. When you transplant another New products module, you will have to specify where to hook it.

If you transplant another one...

Time for action—Installing the Home text editor module


You will note that some modules are automatically set and need little configuring to be able to be used and viewed by the site user.

One of the key modules in the center column, that you will need to work on, is the Home text editor module, as shown previously (this was referred to as the editorial block). Now, let's get started with installing this module.

  1. Go to Back Office | Modules and scroll down in the Tools block.

  2. Look for Home text editor v1.5.

  3. Click on the Install button for this module, and click on >>Configure. You will get the center block and the text that you may want to edit and configure accordingly. You will see the following:

    • Main title

    • Subheading

    • Introductory text

    • Homepage's logo

    • Homepage logo link

    • Homepage logo subheading

  4. The next screenshot shows the default page before it was edited:

The Main title appears at the bottom of the home page logo. It is also set as the Homepage logo's alternate tag, not the title...

Time for action—Installing, enabling, and configuring the Categories block


You will need to install the chosen blocks using the following steps:

  1. Go to the Modules | Blocks | scroll down and find the Categories block just like the Home text editor module, which we installed some time back.

  2. Once you have enabled the installed Categories block, you will see the block appear in your front office, as shown in the following image:

  3. Configure the block. In this case, we will be able to decide how many categories we want to display in our category block.

  4. You will get to set the Maximum depth of the sublevels displayed in the block.

  5. This specifies how many categories you have in your category box. By default, there are three sublevels and the module block is positioned on the top left of your web page.

  6. You can also choose the Dynamic mode on this sublevel.

Having the Maximum depth of the Categories block of 3, you may have the following within your Categories block:

  • a category

  • a sub-category

  • a sub-sub-category...

Time for action—Moving the modules within the column


There are a few ways to position a module through the PrestaShop back office. This also depends on the expected navigation of your web page. As mentioned, modules are, by default, positioned in particular sections of the page (or hook).

  1. Let's go to Back Office | Modules.

  2. Click on the Positions tab.

Here you will see a list of hooks (blocks) that you have installed and the modules within them.

Let's take an example of the right column block. You can see a list of modules, which are within the hook in the following screenshot:

Here you have the Cart block, the New products block, and the Top seller block. In this list, click on the up and down icons to change the module's display order. More details on this will be provided in the next section.

Time for action—Moving the blocks


The default positions of the blocks when they are first installed are shown in the following screenshot. Now, let's try moving the blocks to a different location.

We will try to do the following:

  • Add a NEW PRODUCTS block to the left column and delete the NEW PRODUCTS block on the right column.

  • Shift the CART to the top position on the right column and move the TOP SELLERS to the second position on the same column.

  • Move the NEWSLETTERS block to the right column.

We need to perform the following steps:

  1. Click on the Positions button. This will direct us to the Back Office | Modules | Positions page.

    This page will show us all the modules already installed on the left, right, and center columns. It will also allow you to see which modules can be moved or set exceptions.

    Our first task is to transplant a NEW PRODUCTS block on the left column.

  2. Click on the Transplant a module button, and you will get to a page where you choose the modules you want to transplant from...

Summary


Specifically, using the layout settings of the PrestaShop default theme, we covered how to make the following through minor adjustments from the back office without much technical knowledge being required:

  • Installing and enabling module blocks

  • Adding the module blocks in the columns

  • Transplanting modules and hooking modules

  • Moving modules within columns

  • Updating the editorial block in the center column.

In the next chapter, we will cover how to set up the key elements in your store through configuring the module blocks including setting up the editorial block, the Featured Products block, and the Catalog function from the back office. You will also work on the other key module blocks, the top, header, footer, logo, and so on. All these complete the look of the store and will be covered when working on the back office administration. Also, we will get a sneak-peek at customizing the theme files.

Left arrow icon Right arrow icon

Key benefits

  • Control the look and feel of your PrestaShop store by creating customized themes
  • Learn the tips and tricks to make theming in PrestaShop easier
  • Create your own PrestaShop theme in a few simple steps
  • Learn how to use PrestaShop back office panel to make simple changes to your theme as well as tweaking the right lines of code to customize the look of your store
  • A beginner's guide packed with step-by-step exercises to simplify your task of developing a new theme for PrestaShop stores

Description

Themes in PrestaShop are unique and powerful tools to brand your store for a particular corporate image. Using custom themes you can control the look and functionality of your web store, thereby making your site extremely flexible. Although it might sound like an easy task to build a theme, it is quite challenging to create a custom theme that fits your business needs. This book's prime focus is guiding the readers without much technical know-how, thus enabling them to create a new theme that fulfills the needs of their PrestaShop store. By understanding practical ways to develop your theme for PrestaShop speedily, you can invest more time on developing attractive and unique raw materials. It will simplify the challenging task of creating a unique, new PrestaShop theme through easy-to-follow, practical steps. This book shows how to develop professional themes for your PrestaShop store using some simple steps. The book starts by exploring the various ways of changing the looks (including modules) of your PrestaShop store. It shows you how certain back office administration adjustments can affect the appearance and theme of your store. It then takes you through understanding the code modification of a default theme that results in a new look for your existing theme. The book also covers understanding the PrestaShop architecture and essential syntaxes that control the look of a PrestaShop store. You will also learn about the files that hold the key to themes. By the end of this book, you will have grasped the knowledge to make advanced changes by tweaking the right CSS and module files in order to achieve highly specific outcomes.

Who is this book for?

This book is meant for beginners to PrestaShop who want a hassle-free way to come up with their own themes. If you are a designer who enjoys creative work but does not want to spend too much time exploring the code, this book is for you. This book is also useful for those "layman" online store owners, who want to do their own modifications for their PrestaShop store.

What you will learn

  • Explore the various ways to modify the default PrestaShop theme
  • Customize and tweak your theme s layout
  • Edit an existing PrestaShop theme to meet your business needs
  • Control the look of every part of your store by making the right modifications to the code
  • Make your store interactive by using third-party modules and JavaScript
  • Find the resources to make your task in developing the theme easier
  • Build your own PrestaShop theme in simple steps so that you can invest more time into creative aspects
  • Test the theme on various browsers and package it for easy deployment to your store
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Table of Contents

8 Chapters
Customizing PrestaShop Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Customizing PrestaShop Theme Part I Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Customizing PrestaShop Theme Part 2 Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Adjusting Style Sheets Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Adjusting Style Sheets
Getting to know the basics of PrestaShop theme
Time for action—Getting to know the PrestaShop CSS files
A brief background to Cascading Style Sheets
Time for action—Modifying the maintenance mode
Modifying colors in your theme
Time for action—Deciding on a color scheme
Time for action—Changing the main page background color
Changing the blocks background colors
Time for action—Changing the default blocks' background color
Time for action—Changing the exclusive blocks' background color
Time for action—Changing the background color of the CATEGORIES block header
Changing the color in the FEATURED PRODUCTS block
Time for action—Changing the color of the background for the FEATURED PRODUCTS block
Time for action—Changing the color of the tab for the FEATURED PRODUCTS block
Time for action—Changing the background color of the footer
Time for action—Changing the header user block background color
Modifying text
Time for action—Changing the color of the text in the block header of the default blocks
Time for action—Changing the color of the text of the header on the MANUFACTURERS block
Time for action—Changing the color of the text in the exclusive blocks (CART, SPECIALS)
Time for action—Changing the color of the text in the top user information block
Time for action—Changing the color of the text of the footer
Time for action—Changing the color of the text in the center column
Time for action— Changing the color of the text in the FEATURED PRODUCTS block
Time for action—Changing the color of the text in the CART block
Time for action—Changing the size of the text in the default block
Time for action—Changing the size of the text and font style on the center column blocks
Time for action—Changing the size of the text and font style on the footer blocks
Changing the color of the border
Time for action—Changing the color of the border for the default block
Time for action—Changing the color of the border in the footer
Modifying the paragraph
Time for action—Modifying lines in the center column
Saving your changes
Summary
Applying Images Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Steps for Creating Themes Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Tips and Tricks to Make PrestaShop Theming Easier Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Deploying Your New Themes Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

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Guiom Feb 24, 2012
Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon 2
Ce livre est bien conçu mais il n'est pas indispensable au développeur expérimenté qui trouvera plus de réponses auprès de la communauté.
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CAMILO Aug 02, 2015
Full star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon 1
Terribly outdated. lost my money completely. It lacks a lot of resources regarding hooks and template coding. (not very good for developers) It spend a lot of pages on very basic css instructions, jquery and useless and outdated modules
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