Templates Overview

Templates are used as a blueprint for creating other documents on your Web site. This is yet another way Dreamweaver helps you maintain a consistent look and feel across your site. And just like library items, templates allow you the convenience of single-source editing while Dreamweaver makes changes which can then be propagated to all other pages based on that template in a matter of minutes.

When you create a template for your site, you specify which areas of the document will be noneditable and which areas can be edited. Templates can be created from existing documents, or you can start from scratch with a blank document to create a new template page.

The content pages on your site are the most likely candidates for templates. Your home page probably has a unique design that is not used widely across your site. But your second-level and third-level pages usually contain content that changes while the navigation and graphics will remain constant. It's these types of pages that are ideal for templates.