Introduction

This document introduces key concepts and tools in C1 CMS that front-end developers are required to be familiar with in order to build customized sites with C1 CMS.

It can be used both as reading material to hand out while conducting trainings on C1 CMS and a self-study guide to learning C1 CMS.

Who Should Read This Guide

This document is an introduction to C1 CMS for front-end developers who want to learn to create and work with XML layout templates in C1 CMS.

However, part of this document might be useful to a broader audience. Not everyone is required to know the technical details, but it helps when you know the concepts on a more detailed level.

This document assumes that you have basic knowledge and/or experience in working with C1 CMS and know how to create a new empty site.

C1 CMS uses a number of open web standards, so you are supposed to have at least basic understanding of XML, XHTML, XSLT and CSS.

Since C1 CMS is based on a number of Microsoft technologies, you will want to have an experience with Internet Information Services, Visual Studio and .NET Framework, C#, ASP.NET, Windows Workflow Foundation, .NET User Controls.

System Requirements

While working with this document, you should have access to a working C1 CMS environment. It should be one of the following options:

• (minimum) A laptop or PC that meets requirements to install C1 CMS (see below).
• (preferred) A laptop or PC that has C1 CMS already installed and running.
• (in some cases) Web access to an external C1 CMS installation (one website per attendee who wants to complete hands-on exercises)

(See “C1 CMS System Requirements” for more information on the requirements.)

Document Overview

In Introduction, you will get an overview of what this document is about, and learn what prerequisites must be in place.

TheAnatomyofa C1 CMSWebPage gives you a quick introduction to what a standard C1 CMS page is and what the role a C1 CMS template plays in creating pages.

In CreatingLayoutTemplatesinC1 CMS, you will learn how to create XML templates in C1 CMS.

ACloserLookattheTemplateMarkup will thoroughly examine the core C1 CMS template elements you can use when creating or editing templates.

EditingTemplates focuses on how to use a built-in C1 CMS template editor to edit templates as well as what you need to know to edit templates in external editors. It also discusses how to use external resources within your templates such as style sheets (CSS), JavaScript and media files.

LocalizingTemplates covers the topic of template localization on multiple-language websites in C1 CMS.

In TestYourKnowledge, you can check how good you have mastered the topics discussed in this document.

What You Will Learn

When you finish the document, you should know:

• How to create XML layout templates in C1 CMS
• What core C1 CMS template elements to use in XML templates
• How to edit templates in C1 CMS built-in XML template editor
• What it takes to edit XML templates in external editors
• How to use external CSS, JavaScript and media in XML templates
• How to localize XML templates

References and Links

For further information on C1 CMS’s concepts, tools, packages, visit http://docs.c1.orckestra.com where you can read many articles and tutorials on various C1 CMS’s subjects.

C1 CMS’s FAQ is another source of information you can refer to, available at Layout FAQ.

You can always ask questions or look for existing information on our forums at: http://compositec1.codeplex.com/discussions.

If you are a Composite’s partner, you can also sign up and report your issues at http://support.composite.net.

For information about standards and technologies used in C1 CMS such as XML, you should use external sources (e.g. http://www.w3schools.com).