Hi,

On large content managed sites it's not a question of templates or no  
templates, but, rather, a question of how templates are managed and  
deployed. With large volumes of content, there is simply no other way  
to publish - structure is required. The issues that arise are partly  
technical (e.g. how does the CMS implement a template, how much  
variability within a template) and human (do page authors understand  
the difference between page types/templates) and management (what  
happens if you need to move content, as Dug says, when redesigns or  
reorganisations happen).

Devin, perhaps you could be more specific about what you mean by 'work  
well'? That could help focus  your research question.

hope that helps.

best,

/avi

On 28 Jul 2008, at 23:08, Dug Falby wrote:

> Hi Devin,
>
> You should check out the migration of Movable Type templates from 2.5
> to 2.33 and on to MT4.1
>
> - You get massive community upheaval at every change
> - You see the gradual move from files containing structure and design
> interspersed with placeholders to complex, interlocking files
> containing structure and logic
>
> A lot of it is down to personal preference (I like templates with
> logic as they are more re-usable) but on the hole there is a
> relationship between template complexity and community adoption which
> impacts the likely success of the software.
>
> All the best,
> Dug
>
>
>
> On Mon, Jul 28, 2008 at 9:29 PM, Devin M Sanera (RIT Student)
> <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>> I'm researching the use of templates as a part of the web  
>> publishing process. The process involved with the research is  
>> simple: several templates are created and then one is chosen based  
>> on the type of content the user of the template is intending to  
>> publish.
>>
>> Clearly, templates are useful. They save time when structure is  
>> fixed and the focus is on content delivery.
>>
>> My research is focused on when this process breaks down, namely,  
>> when the final page deviates radically from the template in some  
>> way. I'm writing to see if anyone has any experience managing  
>> templates or opinions on the subject, either when templates work  
>> well and they are a boon, or when templates break down and they are  
>> a handicap.
>>
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>
>
> -- 
> Dug Falby
> +44 75 15 66 16 55
> http://www.donkeyontheedge.com/
>
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Avi Soudack
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