While we are talking about editing the data structures and backend layout options, we need to look at where TemplaVoila is going in the future. TemplaVoila 1.4.2 introduced static data structures as a new way of working the DS XML files, and the current workflow that we have been using for this chapter may be deprecated at some point. As of this writing, this feature is still experimental.
In fact, it is the experimental aspect of static data structures that made me almost not talk about it. It is well tested in several environments, though; it's just not going to be turned on by default for a few more versions of TemplaVoila.
For simple websites, you can skip this section. If you build enterprise websites or build a lot of websites with the same template elements, static data structures can be very helpful. I am including it in this chapter because it will change the way we build backend layout files, but it is not necessary for many simple...