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News!! Making A Test-Blog For Template Changes

This article is i of a series almost preparing to alter the template inward Blogger.  It looks at how to pose upwards a template-test blog.  

Other articles inward the series explain how to utilisation this template to project design your template alter hence that yous don't lose whatever fundamental features that you've installed before.


Steps to pose upwards a template-test blog

Check your blog's post-template is not corrupt

Go into Layout > Blog Posts > Edit, inwards improver to alter i of the ticked items (just temporarily).    For example, demo reactions or un-show an detail that is currently shown.   Save this change, inwards improver to tally that it appears on your blog.

If the alter is ok, hence yous hand the axe un-do it, inwards improver to displace straight to the side by times side step.

But if the alter doesn't demo up, hence yous have got a corrupt post-template.   You may wish to re-set the post service template  showtime inwards improver to in conclusion sure enough that your weblog is showing the items yous wish before moving on.

Create a new, person weblog to operate with:

Find out what template your existing blog has.

Go to the Dashboard, inwards improver to click Create a Blog.  Give it a elevator inwards improver to URL similar "testing-YOURBLOGNAME"

When Blogger asks which starter template to use, select your electrical menstruum template, (if it's on the listing shown), or only whatever template.

After the weblog has been created, press Start Blogging,

Go to the Settings / Basic tab inwards improver to pose
  • "Add your weblog to our listings?" = No
  • "Let search engines respect your blog?" = No  

Give it the same settings every chip your real blog:

In this step, yous demand to pose upwards your acquit witness weblog have got the same structure every chip your electrical menstruum blog.   This doesn't mean value the same contents, only the same widgets inwards improver to other background settings that comport upon how the weblog looks.   The detail things yous demand to tally include:
  • In the Settings > Basic tab, pose all the other options (except the ones at the finish of the in conclusion section) to precisely the same settings every chip your real weblog has.
    • In the Settings > Formatting tab, do the same thing.
    • In the Settings > Comments tab, do the same thing.
    • In the Template tab, select the SAME template that your existing weblog has.
    • Go to Layout > Blog Post, inwards improver to mitt your acquit witness weblog precisely the same settings every chip your main re-create one:  this includes their spot on the page, every chip goodness every chip whether or not they're displayed.
    • Go to Layout inwards improver to utilisation the Add a Gadget per centum to give your acquit witness weblog EXACTLY the same gadgets that your main re-create weblog has. 

      This mensuration is ho-hum if yous have  a lot of gadgets.  But inwards that location are no shortcuts:  uploading the downloaded template would apply the template customisations every chip goodness every chip the gadgets, which defeats the purpose!   And level though it's a lot of work, it's worth it if your weblog has a lot of "weight" (visitors, control etc) an hence yous don't wish to lead chances having it fail.
    If yous have got done whatever structural alter to your template (eg I added a footer sectionto the blog), hence yous testament demand to do the same structural alter to your test-blog every chip well.   This is ok, because yous most probable testament not in conclusion needing the same structural alter inward your novel template. 

    If inwards that location are whatever gadgets on your main re-create weblog that you've been planning to delete anyway, it would in conclusion practiced to do this correct away - it saves having to re-create them inward your acquit witness blog

    Technically yous should apply whatever header images inwards improver to the same fonts inwards improver to colours too: I chose not to do this when I was preparing to displace BHAT, because I didn't wish to accidentally pose upwards an update to the test-blog which should have got i to the real weblog - having the colours inwards improver to header await different reduced the peril that I would pose upwards this kind of mistake.


    Get virtually posts to acquit witness with:

    Choose whether to import all your existing posts into the testing blog, or only copy virtually person posts. Or yous may select not to acquit witness with whatever at all (at this stage).

    Any links inward your posts WON'T in conclusion re-directed, hence when yous are testing, yous testament respect that clicking whatever internal links inward your posts testament lead maintain yous dorsum to your main re-create blog. If yous are moving all posts, yous could avoid this by times opening the export file with a text-editor, inwards improver to doing a fine/replace to alter the main re-create blog's URL to the testing blog's URL inward whatever links.

    Depending on what shape of tests yous wish to do, yous may not demand many posts.   Personally, when I was preparing to displace BHAT I only did two.



    Related Articles

    Adding a footer division to your Layout Template blog
     
    Making a shadow-blog  for testing with

    Copying all your existing posts into a novel blog

    Copying virtually posts.

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