[Koha] changing look and feel of KOHA

[Owen Leonard]

> I am pretty new in linux and koha,though i have succesfully installed
> Koha,i don't know how to change the look and feel of the interfaces

Changing the look and feel of Koha is really easy, and you can do as much
or as little was you'd like in order to get the look you want. I'll run
down what the options are in the latest version.

You've got different options depending on which template you use. Start by
looking at System Preferences. The intranet (librarian interface) and OPAC
(public interface) are controlled by separate preferences. To change the
appearance of the intranet, look for the 'Intranet' tab. You have a few
options here for changing the look and feel:

 - template -- allows you to switch between 3 options: default, npl, and
   ccfls

 - intranetcolorstylesheet [NPL template only] -- allows you to specify an
alternate color stylesheet for use with the NPL templates. Current choices
are colors.css and colors.npl.css.

 - intranetstylesheet [NPL template only] -- allows you to specify an
alternate layout stylesheet for use with the NPL templates. Includes
layout, fonts, borders, etc. Current choices are intranet.css and
intranet.liblime.css

Click over to the 'OPAC' tab and you'll find many choices for altering the
public search interface:

 - opacthemes -- like the intranet's 'template' preference. Choose npl or
   css

 - opacheader [NPL template only] -- Allows you to enter custom HTML at the
top of opac pages

 - opaccolorstylesheet [NPL template only] -- allows you to specify an
alternate color stylesheet for use with the NPL templates. Choose
opac-colors.afognak.css, opac-colors.css, opac-colors.nbbc.css,
opac-colors.npl.css, opac-colors.smfpl.css, or opac-colors.wipo.css.

 - opaclayoutstylesheet [NPL template only] -- allows you to specify an
alternate layout stylesheet for use with the NPL templates. Choose
opac-layout.css, opac-layout.crru.css, opac-layout.liblime.css,
opac-layout.nbbc.css, or opac-layout.smfpl.css.

 - opaclargeimage [default/fr template only] -- specify an image to appear
   on
the main page of the opac

 - opacsmallimage -- specify a small image to appear at the top of opac
   pages
alongside the library name

 - opacstylesheet -- specify an external stylesheet to completely supersede
 the stylesheets included with Koha. This option allows you a great deal of
control, but requires that your web designer familiarize themselves with
the markup generated by Koha.

The final option for exercising the /most/ control over the Koha interface
would be to develop your own set of custom templates. .tmpl and .inc files
can be edited like HTML files as long as your web designer is familiar with
the basics of HTML::Template. One thing to keep in mind, though: Creating
your own set of templates means you must closely follow changes in each
upgrade and make corresponding changes to your set of custom templates.
This
creates a lot of work! It's much easier to rely on custom stylesheets if
you're looking to achieve a certain look and feel.

I hope all that made sense. Feel free to reply with additional questions!

 -- Owen

----
Web Developer
Nelsonville Public Library
http://www.athenscounty.lib.oh.us