E-mail Templates

In order to format e-mails or Web pages created by PonyExpress, you will create separate template files. There are two types of templates used with PonyExpress: e-mail templates and file templates.

All the templates are plain text files, so if you create them in more advanced word processors like MS Word, make sure to save them as plain text. Also since Windows applications may append file extensions invisibly, make sure you rename the file once it is on the server so that it does not have any 3-letter extension (e.g. .TXT).

.message templates

The admin.message template is used to format the e-mail message sent to the form owner. Without this template, e-mail will be sent as a list of form fields and their values, whereas the template allows you to format the message any way you wish. Similarly, the visitor.message template formats mail sent to the person filling out the form. The latter is required if you wish to reply to the visitor; these replies cannot be sent as unformatted lists.

In both templates, you simply compose the message as you want it to appear. This will look exactly like the sent message, with one important exception: any variable names you include in square brackets [ ] will be substituted with the corresponding variables from your form. For example:

[fullname] submitted the following information:
[phone]
[address1]
[address2]
[city], [state] [zip]

He/she has ordered [amount] [product](s), and will pay by [payment_method].

Once someone has filled out the form using this hypothetical template, the form owner would recieve the following e-mail:

John Smith submitted the following information:
617-555-1234
13 Nowhere Ln.
APT #4
Boston, MA 02234

He/she has ordered 7 tumbleweed(s), and will pay by check.