List templates are special templates that define repeating rows or columns of dynamic information. One of the main listing functions is to list the products in the product database that meet a certain criteria—such as the category listing, featured product listing, and product search results.
The list template is placed directly on the page template where the results will be displayed. This allows you to at least see the format and general appearance the repeating rows will take. The script will know what type of listing will be required by the template ID specified. Specific listing and searching parameters will be specified by passed parameters in the URL address (or included in a form) that links to the page. If not included in the call, these parameters can be included in the listing template. But note that parameters used in the listing template cannot be a dynamic shortcut variable.
For instance, listing all the products in the category, “blowouts”, can be achieved 3 ways:
- Link to a specific PHP page:
href=http://www.mysite.com/myshop/phppages/blowouts.php?category_id=blowouts
- Form action:
<form action=blowouts.php>
<input type=”hidden” name=”category_id” value=”blowouts”>
. . . .
Or drop downs might be used to supply a category_id value
- In the listing template itself:
<!--template_begin id=products-->
<!--category_id=blowouts-->
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