CUSTOMIZING i.STAR CONTENT
From i.STAR Help
VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION
PLEASE CAREFULLY READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE CHANGING THE DYNAMIC DATA BROUGHT IN THROUGH THE TEMPLATE FILES.
Custom changes made to the i.STAR content without reading the documentation we provide can result in losing functionality of some aspects of your online store or in some cases the entire website.
Some of the dynamic content on i.STAR pages is brought in though includes and can be customized. However, the /templates/stock/ directory, where these include files reside, does not have write permissions because it's a directory that i.STAR installs into and overwrites content during upgrades, as necessary.
Customized i.STAR content includes need to be placed in /templates/custom directory (you can create the "custom" directory if it isn't there already). If there is an include you wish to customize, you will put a copy of the "stock" include into the "custom" directory in templates, and refer to the custom directory for the include path.
Example: instead of pointing to <isinclude name="/stock/shoppingcart/cart.include"> from viewcart.template you would point to <isinclude name="/custom/shoppingcart/cart.include">
If after reading our instructions here, you have further questions or want to make sure your changes will not affect the functionality of your website, you can submit a ticket here with details about the customization you were looking to apply on your site and/or include file you were considering to change.
- Do not place content from the includes directly onto the template page.
- Do not copy all files and folders from stock into custom, this can add to the downtime of your website during a version upgrade and can also result in additional costs to compare and "fold in" changes from one version to another.
- Try and keep the files structure in "custom" as close as possible to "stock".
- Make sure you always keep a back-up of the files you are editing.
Here are some often used customizations specific to certain pages and the content they display.
- Home Page - Display Featured Items
- Category Lister - Dynamic Department Navigation and more
