Need Best Practices for Custom Theme Development in GetSimple CMS

[LANA0]

Hello there,

I am new to using GetSimple CMS; and I am really excited about the potential it offers for lightweight and efficient website development. I have been exploring various themes and plugins available in the community; and now I feel ready to take the plunge into developing my own custom theme.

Although; before I dive in; I wanted to reach out to this knowledgeable and experienced community for some advice and best practices.

What are the essential steps to take when beginning a custom theme from scratch? Are there any templates or frameworks within GetSimple that you would recommend starting with?

Could you provide an overview of the typical file structure for a GetSimple theme? Understanding how to organize files and directories would be incredibly helpful.

What are some common pitfalls to avoid when customizing themes? Any tips on ensuring compatibility and smooth integration with plugins?

Are there any tutorials, documentation, or other resources you would recommend for someone new to GetSimple theme development?

Also, I have gone https://www.reddit.com/r/PHP/comments/26wy3glooking_for_lightweight_cms_with_only_salesforce_admin/ this post and found it very much useful and informative.

Lastly, what are some best practices for maintaining and updating a custom theme? How do you manage updates and ensure your theme remains compatible with future versions of GetSimple?

I am excited to learn and contribute back to this wonderful community as I grow more comfortable with the platform.

Thank you in advance for your help and assistance.

[islander]

Hello LANA0 and welcome aboard.

There are no frameworks for templates, just a few place-holders, so you can use whatever you feel comfortable with.

Here is a tutorial for converting an existing HTML template to a GS theme: http://get-simple.info/wiki/themes:tutorial
And here is an expanded list of place-holders: http://get-simple.info/wiki/themes:template_tags

As far as future versions are concerned, this mainly effects php, so the only worry would be with plugins themself.
If you have not already found it, there is an updated fork of GS located here: https://getsimple-ce.ovh/

This CE versino supports php8.x and has a plugin repo of many of the more popular plugins that are known to also work with the latest php versions. It is also has a responsive admin interface theme and comes bundled with many new features.

And you are more than welcome to join our Discord community: https://discord.gg/TraSyher

I hope this helps.