Sandbox is a lot of things:
More importantly, the Sandbox can be a lot of things.
What began as Scott Allan Wallick's leftovers has become an advanced, semantics-based theme. Andy Skelton added his innovative semantic class-generating functions and Scott edited it to oblivion.
So what can you do with the Sandbox?
The real feature of the Sandbox is its markup. The use of class-generating functions in the body, post div, and comment/trackback li elements create an exceptionally extensible foundation. As Andy said, Given straightforward markup with plenty of selectors, there isn't much that can't be accomplished with CSS and a decent browser.
And the implementation of the hAtom and hCard microformats means we're looking forward. You might be able to improve on our markup, but who wants to work that hard?
The Sandbox theme is installed just like any other WordPress theme. To install this theme:
/sandbox/ folder from the archive../wp-contents/themes/ directoryYou can read more detailed installation instructions on the WordPress Codex.
Developers interested in Subversion access to the Sandbox repository may visit code.google.com/p/sandbox-theme. Please ignore if unfamiliar with Subversion.
For the latest and possibly unstable version, check out the /trunk/:
svn checkout http://sandbox-theme.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/
A legacy version for WordPress 2.0.x is in /branches/0.9/. Otherwise, please check out tagged versions in the /tags/ subdirectory. Tagged versions are stable and the latest release will be for the current stable version of WordPress.
For beginners getting started, see the example layouts in /sandbox-layouts/. Instructions for using the included layouts can be found in the folder.
The simplest way to get started with the Sandbox is to jump right in to style.css, using CSS to design the appearence of the Sandbox.
For help learning CSS, visit:
For Sandbox-related resources, including how-tos, Sandbox-based theme templates, and more, visit:
If you are interested in developing theme templates based on the Sandbox, see Creating theme templates in this document.
The three semantic class-generating functions used in the Sandbox are charted below, outlining what semantic classes are generated (“Class”), any related WordPress function (“WP Tag”), and the usage of these classes (“Usage”). For more on the WP Tag aspect, read Template Tags and Conditional Tags on the WordPress Codex.
sandbox_body_class()The sandbox_body_class() function is definied in the functions.php file. It has no parameters. It adds semantic classes to the body element relative to the content of the page that is being displayed.
<body class="<?php sandbox_body_class() ?>">
The chart below lists the semantic classes added to the body tag by this function.
sandbox_body_class() |
||
|---|---|---|
| CSS example | ||
body.single div.sidebar { display: none; } |
||
| Class | WP Tag | Usage |
| archive | is_archive() |
When any archive page is displayed, i.e., applies to category-, date-, and author-based archive pages |
| attachment | is_attachment() |
When the post subpage containing an attachment is displayed, as set with "Linked to Page" in the post editor |
| attachmentid-[n] | is_attachment() |
Displays the ID number of queried attachment page, where [n] is the ID, e.g., attachmentid-20 |
| attachment-[mime] | is_attachment() |
For attachment posts (see above), where [mime] is the abbreviated MIME type, e.g., attachment-jpeg |
| author | is_author() |
When a author archive page is displayed |
| author-[name] | is_author() |
When a specific author archive page is displayed, where [name] is the author's login name, e.g., author-admin |
| author-paged-[n] | is_author() & is_paged() |
Displays the "paged" number of author archive, where [n] is the paginated number |
| blog | is_home() |
When the page containing blog posts is displayed |
| category | is_category() |
When a category archive page is displayed |
| category-[name] | is_category() |
For a specific category, where [name] is the category slug, e.g., category-useful-links |
| category-paged-[n] | is_category() & is_paged() |
Displays the "paged" number of category archive, where [n] is the paginated number |
| d01–31 | gmdate('d') |
The current day of when the page is displayed (Offset to GMT) |
| date | is_date() |
When a date archive page is displayed, e.g., by month, by year |
| date-paged-[n] | is_date() & is_paged() |
Displays the "paged" number of date-based archive, where [n] is the paginated number |
| h00–24 | gmdate('h') |
The current hour of when the page is displayed (Offset to GMT) |
| four04 | is_404() |
When a request results in zero posts, i.e., a 404 error page |
| home | is_front_page() |
When the front page is displayed |
| m00–12 | gmdate('m') |
The current month of when the page is displayed (Offset to GMT) |
| loggedin | n/a | When the page is displayed by a logged-in user |
| page | is_page() |
When a page is displayed |
| page-author-[name] | is_page() |
For a page by a specific author, where [name] is the user's login name, e.g., page-author-admin |
| page-child | is_page() |
When the page is a child page to another page |
| page-paged-[n] | is_page() & is_paged() |
Displays the "paged" number of pages, where [n] is the paginated number |
| page-parent | is_page() |
When the page has one or more child pages |
| page-template | is_page() |
When the page is using a page template |
| page-template-[name] | is_page() |
When the page is using a page template, where [name] is the file name of the page template |
| paged | is_paged() |
When whatever is displayed is "paged," e.g., page 2 of the index |
| paged-[n] | is_paged() |
Displays the "paged" number, where [n] is the paginated number, e.g., paged-3 for third page of index |
| pageid-[n] | is_page() |
Displays the page ID number of queried page, where [n] is the ID, e.g., pageid-20 |
| parent-pageid-[n] | is_page() |
Displays the page ID of the current page's parent, where [n] is the ID, e.g., parent-pageid-20 |
| postid-[n] | is_single() |
Displays the post ID number of queried post, where [n] is the post ID, e.g., postid-20 |
| search | is_search() |
When the results of a search are displayed |
| single | is_single() |
When a single post is displayed |
| s-author-[name] | is_single() & is_author() |
For a single post published by a specific author, where [name] is the user's login name, e.g., s-author-admin |
| s-category-[name] | is_single() & is_category() |
For a single post published in a specific category, where [name] is the category slug, e.g., s-category-news |
| s-d01–31 | gmdate('d') |
For a single post published on a specific day (Offset to GMT) |
| s-h00–24 | gmdate('h') |
For a single post published at a specific hour (Offset to GMT) |
| s-m00–12 | gmdate('m') |
For a single post published in a specific month (Offset to GMT) |
| s-tag-[name] | is_single() & is_tag() |
For a single post published with a specific tag, where [name] is the tag slug, e.g., s-category-foo-bar |
| s-y2007 | gmdate('Y') |
For a single post published in a specific year (Offset to GMT) |
| tag | is_tag() |
When a tag archive page is displayed |
| tag-[name] | is_tag() |
For a specific tag, where [name] is the tag slug, e.g., tag-foo-bar |
| tag-paged-[n] | is_tag() & is_paged() |
Displays the "paged" number of tag archive, where [n] is the paginated number |
| wordpress | n/a | When anything is displayed; a class that is always applied |
| y2007 | gmdate('Y') |
The current year of when the page is display (Offset to GMT) |
sandbox_post_class()The sandbox_post_class() function is definied in the functions.php file. It has no parameters. It adds semantic classes to each post div element, relative to the actual post it contains.
<div id="post-<?php the_ID(); ?>" class="<?php sandbox_post_class() ?>">
The chart below lists the semantic classes added to each post div element by this function.
sandbox_post_class() |
||
|---|---|---|
| CSS example | ||
div.category-news .entry-title { background: url('images/news.png'); } |
||
| Class | WP Tag | Usage |
| alt | n/a | For odd-numbered posts, e.g., for the 1st, 3rd, 5th posts |
| author-[name] | is_author() |
For any specific author, where [name] is the user's login name, e.g., author-admin |
| category-[name] | is_category() |
For any specific category, where [name] is the category slug, e.g., category-news |
| d01–31 | gmdate('d') |
For a post published on a specific day (Offset to GMT) |
| draft | n/a | For a post saved as a draft, as contrasted with an published post |
| h00–24 | gmdate('h') |
For a post published at a specific hour (Offset to GMT) |
| hentry | n/a | For the hAtom 0.1 specification, applied every post |
| m00–12 | gmdate('m') |
For a post published in a specific month (Offset to GMT) |
| p[n] | n/a | For counting posts relative to the top of the page, where [n] is the number, e.g., p1 for the first post, p2 for the second, p3 for the third |
| page | n/a | A general class, applied to every page |
| post | n/a | A general class, applied to every post |
| private | n/a | For a post that has been saved as private |
| protected | n/a | For a post protected by a password |
| publish | n/a | For any published post, as contrasted with an unpublished draft |
| tag-[name] | is_tag() |
For any specific tag, where [name] is the tag slug, e.g., tag-foo-bar |
| untagged | is_tag() |
If there are no tags assigned to the post |
| y2007 | gmdate('Y') |
For a post published in a certain year (Offset to GMT) |
sandbox_comment_class()The sandbox_comment_class() function is definied in the functions.php file. It has no parameters. It adds semantic classes to the each comment li element (“comment” here meaning comments, trackbacks, and pingbacks).
<li id="comment-<?php comment_ID(); ?>" class="<?php sandbox_comment_class() ?>">
The chart below lists the semantic classes added to each comment li element by this function.
sandbox_comment_class() |
||
|---|---|---|
| CSS example | ||
div.comments li.bypostauthor { border: 1px solid red; } |
||
| Class | WP Tag | Usage |
| alt | n/a | For odd-numbered comments, e.g., for the 1st, 3rd, 5th comments |
| bypostauthor | n/a | When the comment author is also the post author |
| byuser | n/a | For comments by registered users |
| c-h00–24 | gmdate('h') |
For a comment posted at a specific hour (Offset to GMT) |
| c[n] | n/a | For counting comments relative to the first, where [n] is the number, e.g., c1 for the first comment, c2 for the second, c3 for the third |
| c-d01–31 | gmdate('d') |
For a comment posted on a specific date (Offset to GMT) |
| c-m00–12 | gmdate('m') |
For a comment posted in a specific month (Offset to GMT) |
| c-y2007 | gmdate('Y') |
For a comment posted in a specific year (Offset to GMT) |
| comment | n/a | A general class, applied to every comment |
| comment-author-[name] | n/a | For a comment by a specific registered user, where [name] is the user's login name, e.g., comment-author-susan |
| p[n] | n/a | For counting pingbacks relative to the first, where [n] is the number, e.g., p1 for the first pingback, p2 for the second, p3 for the third |
| pingback | is_pingback() | When a comment is a pingback |
| t[n] | n/a | For counting trackbacks relative to the first, where [n] is the number, e.g., t1 for the first trackback, t2 for the second, t3 for the third |
| trackback | is_trackback() | When a comment is a trackback |
In addition to the more advanced, code-related features of the Sandbox, there are at least two other features that make the Sandbox a highly viable choice as a base theme.
Comments are not displayed on pages by default, but are displayed on posts, per the current convention. You can enable comments on a per page basis by adding a custom key/value with only the text comments.
To enable comments on a page:
commentsEnabling comments simply includes the comments.php file with the page. You can turn off comments on a page by deleting the comments key/value. This does not delete any exisiting comments, but simply disables comments.php from loading with the page.
There are two page templates included: Links Page (links.php) and Archives Page (archives.php). You can add a title, text, and enable comments (see above) with both of these page templates.
To use the page templates:
The Archive Page template displays archives by month and by category. The Links Page displays links by link category.
If you are interested in creating a design for public release, consider creating a theme template based on the Sandbox. First read Designing Themes for Public Release on the WordPress Codex and seek support on the WordPress.org Forums.
A theme template is a WordPress theme that uses the PHP files, e.g., index.php, single.php, in another theme folder but the style.css of the theme template.
For a collection of excellent theme templates designed for the Sandbox, visit the Sandbox Designs Competition. In 2007, there were 46 designs submitted in the competition. All are examples of theme templates based on the Sandbox.
Creating a theme template is essentially the same as creating a regular theme for WordPress, except you are not modifying any of the theme files and instead providing an alternate style.css.
/* THEME NAME: My Design THEME URI: http://www.example.com/my-design/ DESCRIPTION: New curtains for an old room VERSION: 0.1 AUTHOR: John Doe AUTHOR Uri: http://www.example.com TAGS: one column, two columns, three columns, awesome, blue, pink TEMPLATE: sandbox */
The line TEMPLATE: sandbox tells WordPress to use the theme files installed in the /sandbox/ folder with the "My Design" style.css style sheet.
You can read more detailed information about developing WordPress Theme Style Sheets or in Creating Sandbox-based theme templates in the Sandbox Forums.
Filters allow plugins and theme templates to change the data that the Sandbox returns to the browser without having to alter the theme fiiles. Filters provide a simple, clean way of altering what the Sandbox does without modifying the actual theme files.
For example, if you wanted to add a link to globalnav page list, you would have to edit the theme files. When you upgrade the theme files (or accidentally break something), you will have to go back and make this change again. By using the globalnav_menu filter, however, you can alter the output of the sandbox_globalnav() without changing a single theme file.
The chart below lists the filters available in the Sandbox theme.
| Sandbox filters | ||
|---|---|---|
| Filter examples | ||
// Sandbox produces 32px avatars -- too small!
function make_avatars_big() {
return '64';
}
// Add our function to the filter in Sandbox
add_filter( 'avatar_size', 'make_avatars_big' ); |
||
| Filter | Reference | Usage |
| avatar_size | functions.php, 280 |
Sets avatar image dimenions in pixels |
| body_class | functions.php, 143 |
Adds classes to the body element |
| comment_class | functions.php, 222 |
Adds classes to a comment li element |
| gallery_img_class | functions.php, 280 |
Adds classes to gallery images |
| gallery_img_rel | functions.php, 334 |
Adds rel attributes to gallery images |
| globalnav_menu | functions.php, 23 |
Echos list of pages without white space |
| post_class | functions.php, 183 |
Adds classes to a post div element |
For more information on using filters, see Plugin API: Filters on the WordPress Codex. The initial discussion about filters in the Sandbox on the Sandbox Forums may be also useful.
The Sandbox allows for complete localization. For detailed information about translating the Sandbox into your language, see Sandbox in your language on the Sandbox wiki.
If you would like to submit a translation for the Sandbox, please open a new issue on the Sandbox project home. Please include both the PO and MO files. You're also welcome to help edit existing translations.
Translations have been graciously provided by the following individuals:
The Sandbox is compliant with both XHTML and CSS standards. What does this mean? An explanation of web standards from The Web Standards Project:
Complying with web standards can give your web pages greater visibility in web searches. The structural information present in compliant documents makes it easy for search engines to access and evaluate the information in those documents, and they get indexed more accurately.
Accessibility is an important idea behind many web standards. Not only does this mean allowing the web to be used by people with disabilities, but also allowing web pages to be understood by people using browsers other than the usual ones—including voice browsers that read web pages aloud to people with sight impairments, Braille browsers, hand-held browsers, teletext displays, and other unusual output devices.
You can read more about developing with web standards at 456 Berea Street.
Microformats are markup that express semantic information in your blog. People and machines can extract information from webpages marked up in a microformat much like feed readers extract information from Atom or RSS syndicated feeds. Essentially it's about making content more accessible.
Microformats that have been implemented in the Sandbox theme include (less XFN, which is built into WordPress):
Microformats help the Sandbox be an especially POSH WordPress theme. POSH stands for "plain old semantic HTML." It is a term used to refer to best practices of semantic HTML development.
So the Sandbox can be highly POSH, but the semantic use of HTML elements is completely up to you, the end user. To learn more about semantic HTML, visit Mezzoblue.
The Sandbox is a collaboration between Andy Skelton and Scott Allan Wallick.
Thanks to all those who have provided their assistance, know-how, and generally sound advice on all things Sandbox. You are many. But a special thanks to the follow individuals:
Thanks are due to those who helped ensure the success of the Sandbox Designs Competition:
The Sandbox © 2006–2008 is licensed under the GNU General Public License:
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but without any warranty; without even the implied warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. See the GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc, 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA.