Extend a theme

We can extend an existing theme to use a different color scheme or to display different content.

Templates can be reused in multiple themes and still maintain a different color scheme or content using the _options.vm file, which stores variables used in the other templates, to include or ignore content or file imports. Include the _options.vm file in the weblog.vm template to set values in the _header.vm template.

For example, the Khaki_Standard theme reuses the blog theme templates, but contains an _options.vm file with one line:

#set ($lookAndFeel = "khaki")

The _header.vm checks for the $lookAndFeel variable, and includes the appropriate .css file:

#if ($lookAndFeel)
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="$url.site/roller-ui/styles/${lookAndFeel}.css" />
#end

The result is two themes, with two different color schemes, based on the same set of templates.

Parent topic:
Customize a blog theme