Skin Setup

Your website has a predetermined 'skeleton', that is, it has a number of set pages and a particular type of content within it. However the 'skin' of the website - the look, feel and (to an extent) the layout, can be wholly determined by you. This is incredibly important since the look and feel of your website will dictate the impression your customers get - and so potentially the success of your site, a good deal of time must be spent ensuring that your site design is optimal. To customize the look and feel of your website, you need to make changes to your site's template - a process you can start by selecting the 'Skin Setup' menu option from the left navigation menu, within the 'Customization' section of the menu.

Fig. 2.5.1.1: The "Skin Setup" link for reviewing / changing your site's look and feel:

This will open a new window that may look a little daunting at first - but don't panic! - once you've taken a moment to read through the relevant sections in this manual, which describe each element of the skin setup screens, you'll be customizing the look and feel of your website in no time. What's more, should you need to make changes later on (if you're not quite happy with your initial revision) you can always drop back into a specific section and make more changes as required.

Fig. 2.5.1.2: The "Skin Setup" page from which you can make modifications to the look and feel of your site:

If you look carefully at the illustration above you will see that the Skin Setup page has four main sections:

1.	Firstly, on the left side of the screen there is a navigation menu, from which you can select the area of your website that you want to modify.

2.	Secondly, just above this navigation menu, there is a customization window, where you can actually make the desired changes to the area that you selected from the Skin Setup navigation menu.

3.	Thirdly, occupying most of your computer's screen, there is a live preview window, where you can see your website and any changes as they are made. We'll call this area the "preview screen" hereafter.

4.	And, fourthly, at the bottom of the preview screen you will see four buttons: 'Preview', 'Full Screen Preview', 'Close' and 'Apply Changes'. Their functions are as follows:

"Preview" Button: This button allows you to load your website in the preview screen. This is a great way to visualize how different colors, fonts and layouts will work together coherently on the page (or not, if you've chosen a poor mix of styles!). This button does NOT make changes to your 'live' site - it is only for use as a visual 'proof' of your proposed changes. Please note that all changes made to your site - even those in other customization sections - will be previewed on pressing this button.

"Full Screen Preview" Button: This button allows you to load a new pop-up window illustrating, in full preview mode, exactly how the changes you have just made will look when your page is made live.

"Close" Button: This button will close the "Skin Setup" page without saving any changes you may have just made. If, for example, you change your mind, you can simply abandon your proposed changes by clicking the "Close" button. Only by clicking the "Apply Changes" button (details of which are below) will you commit your changes.

"Apply Changes" Button: This button saves any changes you might have made to any of the skin setup sections. When you click on the button, you will be presented two options/buttons, "Cancel" and "Generate Site", as seen below:

Fig. 2.5.1.3: The "Cancel" and "Generate Site" options that appear after clicking on the "Apply Changes" button:

If you click on the "Cancel" button, the system will reload the previous version of your website in preview mode, without making any changes to the website.

If, however, you click on the "Generate Site" button, the system will save your proposed changes and then will display the website in full screen preview mode. For clarity, this button will make live all the changes you have made since you last pressed the "Generate Site" button. Your customers will see all of the changes you have made immediately.

Tip: You should therefore take great care, before clicking the "Generate Site" button to ensure you have previewed (and are happy with) all of the changes you have made, as they will be seen by all your customers the second you click the Generate Site button.

Running quickly through each of the options from the skin setup navigation menu, the below descriptions give a very brief introduction to each of the customization pages:

This is where you can customize the background of your website template, using either colors or a background image [Section entitled: "Background" in this manual]

Change your site's header graphics, including: Logo image and strap-line graphic [Section entitled: "Header" in this manual]

Select from a range of header menu styles, and customize the menu colors as required [Section entitled: "Tab Strip" in this manual]

Choose your preferred banner adverts from this screen, these appear at the top of your site's pages and can be either graphical banners or Adsense links as required. [Section entitled: "Banner Ads" in this manual]

Select whether or not you require a 'breadcrumb trail' and the appearance of the trail if displayed [Section entitled: "Breadcrumb Trail" in this manual]

Alter the appearance of the search box [Section entitled: "Search Box" in this manual]

Change the appearance and colors used in the category navigation menu [Section entitled: "Category List" in this manual]

If you have an Adsense account you can specify the Google ID here and adjust the Adsense panel's appearance in this section [Section entitled: "Adsense Panel" in this manual]

Change the appearance of the 'new listings' menu [Section entitled: "New Releases Panel" in this manual]

The special 'Custom Links' panel can be tailored in this section [Section entitled: "Custom Links Panel" in this manual]

The 'Recommended' panel colors and fonts can be set up in this section [Section entitled: "Recommended Panel" in this manual]

This is where you can change the look of your main body text panel. [Section entitled: "Main Panel" in this manual]

The style of the 'best sellers' panel can be customized in this section [Section entitled: "Best Sellers Panel" in this manual]

All of the discreet page elements above can be arranged within your page template, to give you flexibility over the overall appearance of your site and to ensure your own distinctive look and feel. [Section entitled: "Panel Positions" in this manual]

Change the color and appearance of the footer panel and links within [Section entitled: "Footer" in this manual]

As can be seen from the above list, there are a huge range of customization and layout options which together afford you an unprecedented level of control over how your site works, and appears to the customer. You also have the opportunity to create and upload custom graphics and to monetize your pages with Adsense content.

The relevant topics for each of these customization options go into more detail on how to make specific changes throughout the different areas.