I've gotten some good questions about the template update today, so I'm writing up my answers here for everyone:
How often will template updates be released?
There is no set schedule for releasing template updates. I generally release updates to add new features, deal with changes in technology (such as IE 7), or address a critical mass of smaller issues that have built up over time.
You can apply template updates on your own schedule, though it is a good idea to apply them as soon as you can.
Does a template update mean that I'll have to redo my entire site?
Not at all. It is possible to apply the template update to an existing site without recreating all the pages.
How do I apply a template update to an existing site in Dreamweaver?
I need to write up some documentation on this, but here's the quick and dirty version:
- Make a back up of your site.
- Download the latest version of the templates.
- Replace all the stylesheets in the assets/css folder, all the images in the assets/img folder, and all the templates in the Templates folder.
- Repeat Step 4 of the Instructions.
- Perform a site wide template update.
You won't have to repeat Step 5 again because Dreamweaver will respect the individual settings for each page.
Repeating Step 4 of the instructions is really tedious. Is there any way to make it easier?
If you have Dreamweaver or a good text editor, you can do a multiple file find and replace of all the placeholder text in the templates. I haven't tested this, but here's something you can try in Dreamweaver:
- Go to Edit > Find and Replace.
- In the Find and Replace dialogue box, go to Find in: Folder... and select the Templates folder.
- In Find: put "Your Department" (without quotes).
- In Replace: put the name of your department (without the "Department of" part).
- Click the Replace All button.
If you have access to server-side technology, you can put all of your often repeated content (such as navigation) into include files. You'll still have to reinsert the include statements into the updated templates, but you won't have to redo the placeholders, and you might even be able to avoid Dreamweaver's template update process all together.
Abobe's website has a good article on when to use templates, library items and server side includes to manage your site.