AJAX Search

The built-in search engine utilises AJAX and MySQL's powerful FULLTEXT feature to rapidly return, in real-time, any pages that match your search query.

When you click on a returned result, the visited page will highlight the search terms until one of them is clicked on. Try searching for 'ajax' and clicking on a returned result.

Search results appear here in real-time.
Example Sidebar

Create and integrate sidebars on-the-fly.

You can create and add as many of these sidebars as you want. Sidebar content is generated via the same easy to use WYSIWYG editor as regular pages, allowing you to insert and format text, HTML, forms and images. Each sidebar has the option of a toggle link which expands and collapses the panel. The sidebar's toggle state is recalled upon susbsequent visits to the same page.

You can even create a sidebar that contains raw PHP code - thus providing unlimited extensibility via functions, libraries and includes. Smart.

Mix 'n' match your markup.

We hate to be fenced in. Designers and programmers especially hate to be constrained by hard-coded methods and templates. With this in mind, we've tried to make Vanilla as flexible as possible when it comes to both behaviour and look and feel.

Main Style Features

Vanilla has the following features to aid in styling your website:

The Theme Engine

You can see that Vanilla is very flexible on the design front and you can delve in and get your hands dirty in multiple ways. However, by far the best method for styling your site is The Theme Engine.

WYSIWYG Layout Templates

For convenience, we've also included a small collection of content layout templates. A single click allows you to populate new pages with well-styled and logical markup.

Edit Core CSS Files

All of Vanilla's associated HTML and CSS files can be edited right there within the browser using the built-in AJAX editor.

Custom Includes

For über-flexibility, you can totally skip the built-in page structure and include your own custom HTML pages and CSS files on a per-page basis. Substitute custom HTML files can also hook into site and page variables using PHPs echo or print function. Using this very flexible technique, you could quite easily build your own template system.

For technical extensibility, Vanilla supports both Embedded PHP and the use of external PHP files using the Custom HTML method outlined above.

Custom Header Images

As you can see, this page has also been given a custom header image. You can choose between four types of header image on your website:

  1. A static image - the same for every page
  2. A random image from a designated folder
  3. Custom header images a per-page basis
  4. No image

Get styling!