Chapter 3. Customizing PrestaShop Theme Part 2

In the previous chapter, you learned about selecting, installing, and positioning the appropriate modules for your store. You also discovered how you can modify the key default modules through the back office, in order to customize your web page navigation and layouts.

We will now proceed with configuring and customizing the other key elements of your online store through the back office.

This chapter will help you set up your key elements for the PrestaShop store: The title, top of page, footer, logos, featured products. This will be a part and parcel of what you need to do. It also completes the look of the store you are designing through the back office administration. You will also begin to explore the relevant files you need to work with in customizing your own theme.

Let's move on with our next step.

Of course, exploring every tab in the back office would be advantageous, but we will specifically touch only those points that will affect your theming process. We will now look at how we can modify the following:

• Logo
• Top of page
• Adding FEATURED PRODUCTS block
• Footer
• Title
• Placing the other modules useful for your store on other section of your pages.

Before going further, I would like to emphasize two important points. They are:

1. Always work on a copy of your default theme:
   • If you have not copied the default theme file, I would advise that when you start your development work, you copy the default theme file so that you have a backup or a comparison to work with.
   • We will be working on the copy of the default theme, as in some cases, we will still change a few lines of codes to modify the theme. This means that if you ever make a huge blunder, you will at least have the original to start with again. If the worst ever happens, you can always upload the original file again to overwrite your errors, but that will be a big waste of time.
2. Keep a quick reference list of any modifications made to any file:
   • It may sound a bit tedious, but you will find this advice useful to heed. There are a few ways of making modifications to your theme, sometimes through modification of your other files (which are not in the theme folder).
   • You may copy the file and put it into the theme folder to make the changes, or it is also possible to merely modify them by overwriting the file in its location.
   • Whichever way you chose, when you need to modify files which are not in your custom theme folder, you should make a quick note of what changes you have made and where have you made them.
   • Why? Because when there is a new version of PrestaShop, you will need to upgrade your PrestaShop site, thus the modifications you have made will be lost. The modifications in the theme folders will remain even if you update the version of your PrestaShop site.
   • By keeping a list of the modifications you've made, it will be much easier to track back to where to re-apply them after you have upgraded your PrestaShop installation.
   • Never procrastinate on making this quick list because you will always find that it is a waste of time to find and trace those changes later; even just six months down the road.