One of the most amazing things about PressWork is the ability to customize your site without leaving the front end. This would not be possible if it weren’t for the PressWork Toolbox. That’s what we call the collection of tools that appear in the lower left of your screen when you are logged in as an admin.
The PressWork Toolbox consists of six icons, each of which opens up a control panel. Except of course, for that last icon, which is the save button. Let’s take a look at what each panel looks like so you can get a better idea of how the PressWork Toolbox actually works.
PressWork Settings
PressWork’s standout feature is the ability to create a custom layout by dragging and dropping the elements on the page. This is where you can turn that on. If you’re a developer, turning on Hooks (known as Guides in v0.9.1) and Functions can help point you in the right direction when it comes to writing some custom PHP. Just in case you mess it all up, you can always reset PressWork to the default settings.
Layout
There’s a lot going on in the Layout panel. You can change the width of your main content and sidebars by increasing/decreasing the number of pixels in the appropriate fields. You can also add a body width or increase/decrease the column margin. The lower section is where you can add more elements to the page that you can drag and drop. It’s easier to to add elements when you have the drag and drop ability turned on so be sure to do so before you start playing around with your layout.
Colors
PressWork allows you to customize your color scheme with our easy-to-use drop down list and color picker. Navigate through the list to see which elements you can customize, and then click the small circular color icon next to each field to open up the color wheel. Once you select a color you will see a live preview of your changes.
Fonts
Who wants to use the same old web safe fonts when there are so many amazing Google Fonts to choose from? That’s why PressWork comes with the choice of the top twenty most popular Google Fonts. If that isn’t enough for you, you can easily add more (check out this doc).
Social
Social networking is a must and PressWork makes it easy for you to add your Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and LinkedIn accounts. Enter your username in the appropriate place and an icon will appear in your header with the correct link to your social presence on each of those sites. Expect this list to grow as PressWork evolves.
The Save Icon
The last icon in the PressWork Toolbox does nothing more than save all your changes. When it comes down to it, though, that’s a pretty important step. So no matter what, always make sure to click save or else you might lose all the changes you just made.