structDisplay
structDisplay is conStruct's data display and templating system, available as a separate module.
structDisplay combines the unique strengths of four contributing components, in the process overcoming some of their individual weaknesses:
- Smarty – a fast, productive, and extensible templating language
- TinyMCE – WYSIWYG data forms design (also used for Drupal WYSIWYG editing)
- Drupal – a flexible and powerful deployment framework, and
- RDF – a data model that helps pre-define the structure for any given template.
Their combination leads to faster development and deployment, with many of the standard template development steps automated.
A structDisplay display ("template") is a structured format for information presentation that is dynamically populated (“driven”) by individual data records. The source of such data is the conStruct structured content system. Examples of display templates are all around us and include such structures as recipes, calendars, business cards, search engine results pages, or any patterned way to present data.
Display templates are thus a presentation framework for underlying data. They can be designed and styled and used separately from the actual data that drives them. A generic product “template”, for example, might be the basis for a very specific variant presenting music album or car product information.
structDisplay provides a WYSIWYG environment and simple templating language for creating these displays.
