ATTENTION LAYOUT MAKERS

In this section, I will go through the steps in making your layout work with the AFF marketplace layout system. This will not cover how to make the layout. You must already know the basics to use the information in this section.

1. Have your layout codes out (on notepad or where ever you type it up).

2. Read through UNDERSTANDING CONTENT TAGS. Take note of all the symbols used for layout makers. We will briefly go over it again in a bit.

3. Look at your layout codes. How many text sections do you have? Only count the ones that you want the user to customize on their own. I will use my Carbon layout as an example. I specifically filled the text area with generic text.
 

I have here six text areas but only five of them are highlighted. Why is that? The first text area is XSYKOTICA (unhighlighted). I want that to stay exactly as it is so it is not highlighted. The highlighted areas will be swapped out for CONTENTID# tags.

What do I count as one text area? A section of text that is not broken by html codes.

Look carefully at my codes. I have two text areas with the exact same text. TITLE and TITLE. The reason why I have two text areas carrying the same text is because one is acting as a shadow. We must count those two as one. Basically, they are one in the same, correct? If TITLE becomes CHAPTER ONE. The other TITLE should also become CHAPTER ONE. The two Lorem Ipsum paragraph I have look the same but one is for the main body and one is for the author's note. Neither one is a shadow of the other. I will count them as separate text areas.

So, how many different text areas do we have (that we wish for the user to customize on their own)? FOUR.

With four different text areas that should be made customizable, we will need four different CONTENTID# tags. You may use any counting number you wish but 1 to 4 is the easiest.

What are the tags that layout makers use? CONTENTID# in braces. We need four:

{CONTENTID1}

{CONTENTID2}

{CONTENTID3}

{CONTENTID4}

There should be no spacing in between the symbols and the letters. The letters must all be in uppercase.

4. Replace the four text areas with the four CONTENTID# tags.

It does not matter which order you substitute them in as long as both TITLE and TITLE (or which ever text area you have a duplicate of) share the same CONTENTID# tag. The reason why I ordered Carbon and my other layouts like this is because I like to have CONTENTID1 as the main body (for people who do not read instructions on how to apply layouts. When you activate a layout and have no CONTENTID# tags surrounding your text, your text will automatically fill the CONTENTID1 area).

So, let us go over this again. If you have FIVE different text areas you want the user to customize on their own, how many different CONTENTID# tags will you need? FIVE. If you have THIRTY different text areas you want the user to customize on their own, how many different CONTENTID# tags will you need? THIRTY.

5. Once you have swapped out all generic text with CONTENTID# tags, save it in the layout marketplace. Set a price and click the "save changes" button.

6. This is an important step! IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT! Buy the layout. It does not matter how much you put it as, buy it and the karma points will simply be returned to you (unless you do not have that many karma points then please make the layout free. You can change the price later after you have bought it for free.)

7. This is an important step! IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT! Apply it. Create a chapter just for testing. Put it in draft mode. Surround your text with CONTENTID# tags (the one specified for the user and not the maker). Make sure it works correctly because we are human. We make mistakes like misspelling CONTENTID# tags or repeating numbers that are not supposed to be repeated, etc.

This is what Carbon looks like in the Layout Marketplace. Your layout should also display CONTENTID#.

This is the text editor for the test chapter I applied Carbon to.

This is what Carbon looks like applied to that test chapter.

What is the big thing you need to remember? Buy it and Apply it! That should be the layout making motto.

NOW, we come to the section where I tell you the things I have seen... done wrong. Let us say you have a text area that you expect the user to fill... with a huge chunk of text. Do you put multiple CONTENTID# tags like this?

{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}
{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}
{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}
{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}
{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}
{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}
{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}
{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}
{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}
{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}{CONTENTID1}

No. No. Do not do it. DO NOT DO IT! I get a little emotional when I see this done. But I have practiced self-restraint. It is very fortunate for everyone.

If you do this, their text will be repeat how many times? For this example, EIGHTY times. Do they want their chunk of text repeated EIGHTY times? I doubt it very much. So... bottom line, do not do it.

NEXT. Links. Links. Links. No. No. No. Just no. If you type out the links so they appear as URL.COM or Link 1, Link 2, Link 3, or cute little images that should be links. They will not be able to link those. What can you do? You can replace those areas with CONTENTID# tags for each "text link." Example:

|| LINK 1 || LINK 2 || LINK 3 || LINK 4 ||

Change that to:

|| {CONTENTID1} || {CONTENTID2} || {CONTENTID3} || {CONTENTID4} ||

NEXT. Credits. If you have a little credit somewhere on the layout, the user will not be able to remove it. Anything that is not a CONTENTID# tag cannot be altered. If they use the layout as intended (applied through the AFF layout marketplace), it cannot be done. Unless they just steal your codes through source viewing then that is a whole other mess. Do not assume they will. Be optimistic. Most people who use layouts from the Layout Marketplace do not have knowledge of html/css. They use it so they don't have to mess with html/css. Okay?

NEXT. {Content ID 1}, {CoNtEnTID 2}, { CONTENTID3 }, {ContentID4}, {contentid5}, { content id 6 }. Pretty and creative. Real pretty and creative. Too bad it does not work. Too bad.

If I see other things... done wrong. It will be placed here.