Also, it would be possible to edit child themes for other WP frameworks such as Thematic?

No, you can not edit the themes

I am a bit confused. I thought this created child themes. You start with something close to what you want and then use this tool to fine tune it to your desired outcome and it creates the child CSS file to upload and use.

And/or is it you have to start from scratch everytime when creating a theme using this tool?

And/or is it you cannot edit a proprietary theme like Athualupa and Thematic because they have custom name references in them (guessing - do they)?

You can't take an existing theme (like Atahualpa) and use ThemeFrame to modify it.

If themes cannot be edited, do you always need to start from scratch?

I guess what I am asking is a workflow related question. What do I start with, what do I work on, what do I end up with.

Hi Brad,

I'm new to themeframe, and fairly new to WP, but I'll try to give you a couple of answers.

First, you can watch the video. It shows the Themeframe workspace in action

The attached .zip is the the default starting point in Themeframe. You can use it in WP, just load it the same as any theme.

In it's current form, this is the only a starting point. You can save copies of your own work, and modify them in different ways going forward. And, save them at any point.

There are no "theme templates" included in Themeframe other that it's default.

I suppose that users could share their work with each other if they wish.

Hope that helps a little.

Firstly, I certainly appreciate you taking the time to write such a thoughtful answer. Thank you.

I've watched the video several times and in great detail pausing on most every menu flyout.

The video makes me think this would help me customize wordpress but the answers on this discussion board seem to say otherwise.

It seems there are more postings clarifying what this tool is not rather than what it is. I am clearly confused.

I have been under the impression this tool would generate a CSS (or child CSS) file that I could then ftp into an existing WordPress installation that was using the 2010 default theme.

I am obviously missing something here.

Brad,

Themeframe builds an entire theme. As far as I can tell, it is not intended to modify any existing theme. It generates all of the php and css pages that make up a complete theme.

Since I'm no expert, I may not be interpreting your question correctly, sorry.

Themeframe presents you with all the elements of a theme. You use it to specify the layout, and the style properties for all the elements. You see in the workspace the result of your specification.

You can't use Themeframe to make just the css (style.css) and use it to replace the css from any other theme.

I think this has been clearly explained, but I'll just add, if you are a designer, wanting to use TF to help speed up individual site creations... You could "build" a basic site for yourself using ThemeFrame that would incorporate many of the things you like to use in your sites, a "skeleton" if you will. Then save/export the basic site & save it somewhere for yourself locally. Then when you have a new site to design, just import that basic theme into Themeframe & start customizing.

Jane and Dave,

Thanks so much for taking the time to respond in more detail my questions.

Although I think I tend to catch onto new technologies rather quickly, something is eluding me here and I believe I now know what it is.

Starting a theme from scratch is what I do not understand. Thinking through the logical layouts of header, sidebar, footer is easy to get my head around. Its all the little details which are elusive. Things like previous/next navigation, custom posts, making widgets compatible with a theme design.

I have been under the impression that I could copy/paste the code from an existing theme into the files that Dave posted (zip file). I could then work from that point and change things as I desired.

Starting from scratch is a bit overwhelming. I have never considered starting from scratch, only altering something that already exists. I would need to see a video that showed how easy (or hard) it is to create a theme from scratch to make a purchase decision.

Maybe this clarifies my confusion. Again thanks bunches.

Hi Brad,

As you suggest, all of the choices to be made starting from scratch is indeed somewhat overwhelming for a non hand coder (that's me).

That said, the idea (I believe) behind Themeframe is in fact the 'power' of being able to control, through a visual, non html, interface, all of the properties involved in a theme.

I don't want to get kicked off of here, but a program like Artisteer, is probably more along the lines of what you are thinking. Although, Artisteer does not let you modify themes either, unless they are Artisteer program files.

In Themeframe, every element is pretty much able to be edited. Not so, with Artisteer. Artisteer is a fairly pollished program; Themeframe is a beta, and has a ways to go. (This is not to say Themeframe is not workable right now)

If Flynn continues to improve Themeframe over time, I envision it to be a very powerful tool for Wordpress theme development. And so, I bought in at the beta price level.

As Jane said, a theme developer will work on different layouts and save them as skeletons for detailing in different ways later. Perhaps, down the road, Themeframe will come with more than one skeleton (framework) included. But, you have to guess that at that point, the price will be higher.

So, now you're back to your decision. Hopefully, I've made it more clear and not confused you instead.

That is some good information. I intend on getting in on the theme frame beta, but was somewhat disappointed that i couldn't edit an existing Atahualpa theme. Better to know up front rather than be disappointed after putting my $$ on the line.

I have some good experience working with Wordpress and think it's great, but getting it skinned to my liking has always been a problem. I'm an old Fidonet BBS system operator with some decent html knowledge via ms front page, and just now are getting into css. I think this themeframe may be a good learning experience for me.

Thanks again for all the info..

Just to throw my 2 cents in... I own Artisteer and much prefer the Themeframe methodology. Even without making any changes to Themeframe you get a default theme much like Atahualpa.

Artisteer does give you a lot of graphics and styling choices but I find them cumbersome and the web is filled with open source backgrounds and images.

Bottom line is Themeframe offers much greater flexibility. The trade off is a bit more of a learning curve but in my opinion it is well worth it.

Thanks for the info Larry. You have done some good looking sites!

I downloaded the Artisteer demo and it looks interesting too. I need to get up to speed with today's layouts, etc. I bought MS Expression Web a while back but didn't like it. Lots of make up learning i guess. The old days are just that OLD! LOL!

I have 38 years in the auto sales business and specialize in auto dealer marketing and seo.

Originally Posted by lmilesw

Bottom line is Themeframe offers much greater flexibility. The trade off is a bit more of a learning curve....

I agree completely with Larry.

It only make sense that a tool that is more comprehensive will take longer to learn.

In respect to Artisteer; What it does, it does very well. But, you can quickly bump up against it's limitations.

I just did a quickie with Artisteer and it actually looks pretty good for a newbie. I agree with the limitations, I can already get a feeling about that. But for $49 it's a good for quick easy sites in a rush.

Still waiting to get my access upgraded to download ThemeFrame.

Thanks everyone for your comments.

Dsn4me- I sent you a PM at 9 this morning

Got it.. Thanks for the help.

I like ThemeFrame so far - It will keep me busy for a while learning it.

Happy holidays Everyone..

Hi people,

I'm a bit confuse.

Some people say here that ThemeFrame does NOT have the option to *edit* an already made theme.

So then, what is the *import zip file* function inside TF do if not importing another theme from its zip file?

Thanks for your feedback.

Mario Bruneau ...trying to have Wordpress behave like I WANT and not like other wants.

The import a zip is to import a zip file of an exported Themeframe theme.

Originally Posted by HiTechBiniou

Hi people,

I'm a bit confuse.

Some people say here that ThemeFrame does NOT have the option to *edit* an already made theme.

Themeframe can edit themes that were created with themeframe, but not others. So, if you create a theme in Themeframe, you can edit it at any time with Themeframe.

Ok, I'm daft. Where's the "attached" zip file? I only had one chance to see a completed project from the french gentlemen elsewhere on the site and it is extremely clean. I'd like to see a few more if anyone has a link to share.

thanks
stu