Layout Selectors are similar to variables, except that they insert layouts into the design, rather than just text. You use layout selectors to insert layouts into other layouts. This is described at the end of What Is A Layout?.
The value of the layout selector (i.e. the layout that is used) can either be set within your store content (e.g. selecting a product layout) or it can be 'fixed' within the design, and never vary.
To edit a layout selector you can just right-click on it in the layout code and select 'Edit Selector'.
Alternatively, if you have a setting in the 'Layout' tab that you want to change the properties of, then you need to click on it and look at the area underneath the grid. In one of the lines of information it will say 'Variable name is "."'. This is the name of the layout selector.
You will find the layout selector within 'Design | Library | Layouts'. The items within the 'Layouts' tab here are sorted into groups - locate the relevant group for the layout selector, then double-click on a layout selector to edit it.
When viewing the properties of a layout selector, you can change the following:
|
Setting |
Description |
|
Prompt |
This is the text that appears next to the layout setting within the main part of Actinic (if you have selected any of the 'Place of Setting' options). |
|
Place of Setting |
Where do you want to be able choose the layout that this layout selector will insert into the design? If you select nothing here, the value can only be set in the 'Top Level Value' field, below. |
|
Group |
Under what heading will this setting appear in the 'Layout' tab? |
|
Tab |
You can change the tab that this layout setting appears within. |
|
Top Level Value |
The default value for this layout selector. See Use Parent for an explanation about inheriting values. |
|
Initial Value |
The value that will appear in the layout setting before any change is made to it. |
The 'Values' tab of a layout selector is used to specify what layouts you want this layout selector to offer. This affects what layouts appear in the drop-down lists within the content area of your site (e.g. within the 'Layout' tab of a product).
The right-hand list - 'Layouts Offered By This Selector' - shows all the layouts that will appear within the list offered by this layout selector. You can change the order they appear in within the list by using the arrows at the right hand side of the list.
The left-hand list - 'Available Layout Names' - shows all the unused layouts that could be offered by this layout selector. These are all the layouts that are part of the same 'layout type' as this selector. Layout types are described in more depth in Using The Library.
To add a new layout to the list of layouts offered by this selector, click the '>' button. To remove a layout, click the '<' button.
In the same way you can restrict certain variables to certain content categories, you can also restrict certain layout selectors to certain content categories.
Content categories are a way of allowing Actinic to handle different types of product (or section, or fragment etc) in a different ways. More information about content categories is in Content Categories.
For example, you might want to offer a choice of price layout (e.g. tax inclusive or tax exclusive) to some products and not others.
When editing a layout selector, go to the 'Advanced Place of Setting' tab and click the '+' next to any item selected in the tree. You will be shown all the content categories for that type of content item. De-select any content categories where you don't want the setting for this layout selector to appear.
If you have set up a list of layouts for a layout selector, it is possible to restrict certain layouts to only appearing within certain content categories.
Once you have set up a list of layouts for the selector, switch to the 'Advanced Place of Setting Tab'.
Click the '+' next to any items in the tree that are selected. You will then see the content categories that have been set up for that type of content tree item.
Then click the '+' next to the content category name. You will then see a list of all the layouts for that selector. You can now deselect any layout that you don't want to appear for certain content categories.
Once you click 'OK', you can test this by changing the content category of a product (or section, or fragment or whatever) and then seeing the effect this has on the list of layouts that are available for that selector.