Creating your own personal web site or web site design couldn’t be easier using DotNetNuke skins…

My-ASP.Net specializes in website design and support for DotNetNuke. We hope the information contained on this website will help New Users.

Where's the free skins?

Click on the links in the Free Skin Template Downloads navigation bar on the right hand side to view the learning skins. No registration required to download these DotNetNuke skin/templates. One of the first skins we designed for version 2 available for download in May/ 04 is Pacific. Check out our newest skin Retro 97 includes matching container. Our newest upgrade is DotNetNuke version 3.1.  DotNetNuke Version 1 CSS skins have been moved to our old version one site, click here to download the skins.

What’s a DotNetNuke skin?

A DotNetNuke skin is a template that you use to frame your web site page. You can easily upload the template and then use it on your page or pages. The DotNetNuke skin/template can contain any number of functions that the designer includes. Click here to read more on the built-in core DotNetNuke Skin Functions

The skin design on this page displays the banner and colors. Included in this skin is the built-in DotNetNuke functions logo, register/login, profile, copyright, terms, privacy and host link. This is all you see in the website skin design until you add a DotNetNuke module to your page.

How to upload your DotNetNuke skin package

Most of the skin packages available for download are zipped. Zipped files make all files and folders into one package by making everything smaller (compressed). It’s faster to download for you and many email browsers will not accept the types of file extensions on the skins if they were not zipped. You will usually have to unzip the package to see any read me files and the separate zipped skin and container folders.

• In version 2 use the File Manager to upload your skin, choose the ‘Skin Package’ radio button to upload the skin. Choose the ‘Container Package’ radio button to upload the container package.
• In version 3 choose the Admin>>Skins tab to upload your skin, choose the correct skin or container upload from the dropdown edit module menu or link buttons. Click the browse button to upload the correct skin or container package you have chosen. You can also upload skins from inside the Admin or Host Settings page.

DotNetNuke lets you control the skin

Host – Host/Super User accounts can set the Portal and/or Admin skin globally so that all administrators see the same skin on each page in Host>>Settings. The administrators cannot change the skins on these pages. The host/super user account can also set skin upload permissions for the administrators.

Site - With permission administrators can upload skins. Administrators can set the Portal and/or Admin skin globally so that each page displays the same skin in Admin>>Site Settings. Administrators can set the Portal and Admin skin to ‘Not Specified’ requiring that each pages skin be set individually. Setting each page individually overrides the parent portal setting so you can globally set them and make individual changes later. Make sure you are on the page you want to set the skin into then click on the Edit link in the administrators toolbar for version 2. Version 3 click the Settings link in the administrators toolbar or click the icon next to the print button. Choose the skin you want from the dropdown box provided for Portal Skin.

Administrators can also control the skins using the tab Admin>>Skins. The only difference here between versions is that version 3 allows you upload skins and containers while you must use the file manager in version 2.

Use the Admin>>Skins page to delete individual skins or containers or the complete skin or container package. If the skin is in the Host folder choose the host checkbox/radio button. Choose the skin you want to delete from the dropdown list. You will now see the picture preview of the skin(s) in this package. Click the delete link under the picture preview to delete only that one skin out of the package (the folder remains). Click the Delete Skin Package at the bottom of the screen to delete the entire skin(s) package (the folder is deleted).

What’s parsing?

When I make a free skin for you and put pictures in it, I have to tell the skin where the pictures are. Because I don’t know the name of your folder I just put src=”skin.jpg”. When DotNetNuke reads the file it knows where your folder is so it adds the correct extension and folder name. If your skin doesn’t display your graphics properly try clicking on the Parse Skin Package link at the bottom of the page in Admin>>Skins. Make sure you have chosen the skin from the dropdown box first.

Where are the skin files for DotNetNuke kept?

Host - All the Host skins that are uploaded using Host>>File Manager in DotNetNuke version 2 are stored in your DotNetNuke Folder Portals/_default/Skins. All skin files uploaded by this file manager are available to all administrators if ‘Not Specified’ is chosen in Host>>Settings Portal and Admin skins. Choose the Host checkbox/radio button to view the skins uploaded to this folder. In DotNetNuke version 3 upload your host skin files in Host>>Host Settings.

Site - All the Administrator files that are uploaded using Admin>>File Manager are stored in your DotNetNuke Folder Portals/0/Skins. All skin files uploaded by this file manager are available to this site administrator only. Choose the Site checkbox/radio button to view skins uploaded to this folder. In DotNetNuke version 3 all skins uploaded under the Admin>>Skins tab or Admin>>Site Settings are located in Portals/0/Skins folder.

If you have Host/Super User access then all your parent and child portals that you make are stored in successive folders Portals/1, Portals/2, Portals/3 and so on. Each administrator uploading their skins will do so to their appropriate folder. Site Administrators for each parent and child portal you have cannot access each others skins. All the administrators can see and apply are the Host skins in your Portals/_default/Skins folder and the Site skins in their Portals/xx/Skins folder.

What's the difference between a Parent Portal and a Child Portal?

The Parent portal controls the Host account (there is only one per install in version 2 ). The Host account can make new portals or child portals. The only difference is the name. New Portal = www.myname.com (needs domain registration) New Child Portal = www.myname.com/mypage (freely make these no registration required). If you are the Host account, when you visit your portals or child portals from Host>>Portals the Host tab is yours. In version 3 you can have more than one Host account and they are called SuperUser accounts.

Child Portals are very useful in organizing your site, for an example you could departmentalize your company and have an administrator for each section. www.myname.com/sales. These are also good for special event, seasonal or temporary sites because you have control of the page. Excellent if you plan on having a large personal site and you don't want people visiting to get lost. 

When you make your new Portal or Child Portal you and your customers (if you let them) now have a choice of website templates. DotNetNuke Version 3 has an excellent Export template tool that lets you easily make templates of websites. Unfortunately this feature doesn’t work with version 2.

For more information on our website designs, skins, templates, sales or individual email support and help with your DotNetNuke website click here or email dnn@my-asp.net.