Info How To Edit Your Subject Inwards Blogger

This article is most how to edit your subject inward Blogger.

It supports many other articles on this site, which propose specific subject changes needed to solve special problems.    Note that until early on 2017, themes were called templates.   In practise, "edit your template" as well as "edit your theme" hateful the same thing.

In Blogger, a subject is a file which controls how your spider web log are displayed on the covert when someone reads it using a browser or a mobile device.   Themes used to last called templates, but were renamed "themes" inward early on 2017.

Previously, I've looked at whether it's a adept thought to edit your Blogger subject / template or not.   Because themes are the same matter equally templates, the same principles apply to editing your theme.

For many people, editing the subject is merely something which they postulate to do, because it's the alone way to do what they desire (remove the attribution, show a gadget on the homeppage only, add a Facebook similar push to posts, etc).   And Blogger is oft preferred because it allows users to edit aspects of their subject which other blogging tools done allow changes to.

Overview - how to edit your blog-theme

In general, the procedure to edit your subject is:

• Make a back-up re-create of the theme, equally it is now
• Open the theme-editor
• Make the change
• Check that it works, as well as if not, become dorsum to the previous theme.

The next sections bring to a greater extent than details most each of these steps.

How to brand a backup re-create of your electrical current theme

I know:   It's tempting to skip this if you're alone making a little change. I fifty-fifty skip it myself sometimes. And it's non needed if this is the rootage fourth dimension you've ever customised your subject - because you lot tin recover from problems past times precisely reinstalling the criterion theme.

But if you lot would last upset to lose whatsoever subject changes you lot made earlier, or if the modify you lot are making similar a shot is not minor, as well as hence I strongly recommend making a re-create before you lot start, precisely inward case.  To do this

• From the Blogger dashboard, become to the Themes tab
• Click the Backup / Restore button close the transcend right of the dashboard
• Click the Download Theme button, as well as then wait acre the file downloads.
• After the download has finished, uncovering the place where your figurer puts downloaded files.
• Find the file that was precisely created,
• Rename it to something sensible
   (eg MyBlog subject backup before modify 31 January 2012.xml)
• Move the file to somewhere safe: unremarkably somewhere on your figurer is fine - or you lot brand similar to upload it to somewhere similar Google Docs, to last absolutely sure enough that it won't teach lost.

How to opened upward Blogger's subject editor

• From the Blogger Dashboard, to to the Themes tab
• Click Edit HTML

Now you lot bring your subject opened upward inward the subject editor, the side past times side challenge is making changes successfully - or backing them out if your changes were non successful.

How to brand the modify to your theme

• Find the code you lot postulate to change:
  See Searching for text inward Blogger's subject editor if you lot postulate deal amongst this.
  
  Note:   unopen to of the older "how to" articles nation to brand sure enough that the Expand Widgets checkbox off or on.   This checkbox has similar a shot been removed from Blogger's subject editor.    If the instructions you lot are next says to move out it "off", as well as hence you lot should precisely last able to follow them equally is.    However if you lot are told to plough Expand Widgets off,  then you lot postulate to uncovering the right occupation of the code past times searching for the widget-id or department name, as well as and hence "unfold" that to run across the consummate code.   

• Make the modify (This article doesn't become into the principles of subject design, at that topographic point are plenty of other articles as well as websites most that: I'm assuming that you lot know what you lot postulate to do).

• Click the Preview theme button
  If Blogger tin brand feel of the modify you lot made, as well as hence thought of your spider web log is shown inward the theme-editing area, amongst what looks similar your blog's homepage. It's non a existent re-create of your spider web log (the links won't work, the spacing powerfulness non last quite the same), but it shows you lot how the home-page volition hold off amongst your subject edits.
  
• Do a quick banking corporation check that the covert looks right - for unopen to changes you lot fifty-fifty last able to tell if the modify has been successful precisely from this preview screen.
  
  However:  If the novel window/tab shows an fault message like

Your subject could non last parsed equally it is non well-formed. Please brand sure enough that all XML elements are closed properly. <br/> XML fault message: The chemical component type "div" must last terminated past times the matching end-tag "</div>".Error 500 

or

Your template could non last parsed equally it is non well-formed. Please brand sure enough that all XML elements are closed properly. <br/> XML fault message: Element type "b:widget" must last followed past times either attribute specifications, ">" or "/>".

 then Blogger has non been able to sympathise the modify you lot made. Sometimes the fault message gives a clue most what's wrong, although it tin last misleading.   Check that you lot made the modify correctly - cook whatsoever errors as well as click Preview again.  If it withal doesn't work, enquire for deal from the identify that suggested the modify you lot are making 

.

•  Once you lot are happy that the preview covert looks OK, click the Save theme button.

How to seek your subject change

the page-gadget equally a menu, the archive widget, ) your spider web log uses. You postulate to decide what to test, based on all of these.

At least, I ever click on as well as banking corporation check on these things when I've made a major subject change:

1. the abode page
2. the items inward the carte bar
3. a label value
4. an archive widget entry
5. custom-search-engine results
6. comments

And if I'm beingness especially reader-focussed, I'll also banking corporation check these things inward more than ane browser:   unremarkably inward the electrical current version of Internet Explorer, Firefox as well as Chrome.

What to do if your subject modify wasn't successful

If you lot uncovering that the subject modify has caused problems, as well as hence ou bring take keep a selection to make:

Can you lot as well as your readers alive amongst the problems on your spider web log for "a while", acre you lot hold off for other solutions? 

Or 

Do you lot postulate to withdraw the modify right now, hence visitors tin occupation your spider web log equally it was acre you lot solve the issues.

There is no right answer to this question:   It's a personal decision, based on the blog, as well as your readers.   But if you lot do postulate to withdraw the subject change, here's how to do it:

• Open the Themes tab
• Click the Backup / Restore button near the transcend right of the dashboard
• Click Choose File as well as uncovering the file that you lot downloaded earlier
• Click Upload.

It is best to restore your theme before you lot bring changed whatsoever gadgets.  If you lot teach a message most widgets beingness missing, as well as hence it way that the gadgets associated amongst your spider web log are non the ones referred to inward the theme.   If this happens, you lot postulate to create upward one's hear whether to deep or delete whatsoever "orphaned" ones, as well as may postulate to banking corporation check their settings again.

Making complicated changes

If your subject may postulate a lot of "surgery" acre you lot figure out how to brand a change, as well as hence it may last a adept thought to construct a individual test-blog to do the move in, as well as alone re-create the contents into your "real" spider web log subject when you lot are sure enough that you've got it right (or correct-enough).

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Related Articles

Advantages as well as disadvantes of editing your Blogger theme

Finding things acre editing inward your blogger theme

Adding CSS formatting rules to your blog, without editng the theme

How to withdraw the "powered past times Blogger" attribution from designer-theme blogs

Putting a gadget on the homeppage only

Planning changes to your spider web log - without readers seeing what you lot are doing

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