How do templates work

[marklar]

Hi

Bit of a vague question I know. I know php but don't get the code used in the templates, is there a file that parses it into something else, is this another form of php (like you get with ASP) or is it another language entirely.

If someone could give me an example where a php file builds a page using a template with conditions and variables, that would be great. vB is a bit too complex for me to learn from.

:I

[Colin F]

vBulletin fetches the templates from the database, where they are stored in plain html.
What's special is that there are template conditionals in them that allow things to be shown or hidden depending on certain conditions (for example if a variable is true or not).
There's more information on template conditionals in the Documentation.

The templates themselve are called with the function fetch_template(), used in an eval() so that the variables are passed. The information is stored in variables and is output at the end of the page with do_output() (or something similiar :))

[deathemperor]

where can I find the 'There's more information on template conditionals in the Documentation' ?

[Colin F]

In the vBulletin Documentation: http://www.vbulletin.com/docs/