Managing the Folder Tree
The Template Explorer folder tree shows your template folders. Folders can contain subfolders, templates or both.
Selecting and expanding nodes
One node in the tree is always selected, and the selected node is highlighted.
- Select a node: click it, use the Up and Down arrow keys, or type the first letter of its name.
- Expand a folder: click the arrow to its left, double-click the folder, or select it and press the Right arrow key or the plus key on the numeric keypad.
- Collapse a folder: click the arrow to its left, double-click the folder, or select it and press the Left arrow key or the minus key on the numeric keypad.
Context menus
Right-click a node to see what you can do with it. The menu depends on the kind of node you right-click.
Tip
The context menus also include your usual File Explorer commands, such as Delete and Rename. To open a template folder in File Explorer, right-click it and select Open.
Folder context menu
Right-click a folder and select New to create one of the following:
| Item | Creates |
|---|---|
| CodeSmith Generator Template (CSharp) | A new template that uses C# as its code-behind language. |
| CodeSmith Generator Template (Visual Basic) | A new template that uses Visual Basic as its code-behind language. |
| CodeSmith Generator Project | A new Generator project file. |
| CodeSmith Generator map | A new blank map file. |
| File | A new empty file, with a .txt extension by default. |
| Folder | A new subfolder. |
Top-level folders are shortcuts to folders on your computer. When you right-click one of these, the menu also includes:
- Remove Shortcut: removes the shortcut from Template Explorer. The files on your computer aren't deleted.
- Include Subfolders: when checked, Template Explorer also shows the subfolders of the target folder. Otherwise it shows only the templates in the target folder itself.
Template context menu
Right-click a template to see these commands:
- Execute: opens the template's property sheet so you can execute the template.
- Edit: opens the template for editing (see below).
Editing templates
To edit a template, right-click it in Template Explorer or File Explorer and select Edit. The template opens in your default template editor. Template Explorer reuses an open editor session if it can; otherwise it starts a new one.