Understanding the Elements Tab in Modx

The Elements Tab of the resource tree houses the templates, template variables (TV), chunks, snippets, plugins and categories created for the Modx website. Each of these items can be created here and then quickly accessed using the interface of the resource tree.  The following article shows each part of the Elements tab and defines each resource type.

Defining the Elements Tab of the Resource Tree in Modx Revolution

The first three icons in the menu bar at the top of the tab include the options for the following: Collapsing and Expanding the files in the  tree view allows you to compact or expand the view so that you can see all of the containers. Refreshes the files in the resource tree

Each of the resource types that can be created and stored in the Elements tab are defined in the table below:

	Templates - makeup the structure of the webpages within Modx.
	Template Variables(TV) - custom fields for Modx reesources.  TVs can be used to extend default attributes available for a resource if an attribute is required beyond the default ones.
	Chunks - Chunks are simply defined blocks of text.  They can contain HTML.
	Snippets - portions of code that can provide customizable content.  Examples include menus, form-based functions, etc.
	Plugins - similar to snippets, but the main difference is when the code actually executes.  The  may be set to run during a system event.  An example of a system event may be the clearing of the cache.
	Categories - Simply a category option that can be used to further organize the resources that are created

Additionally, you can use your mouse to right-click on each of the files stored in the tree structure.  When you click on a resource file, you will see the options to edit, quick update, duplicate, remove, create and create a new category.  For more information on using the Resource tree, go to Understanding the Resources Tab and Understanding the Files Tab of the Modx Resource Tree.