Building a Combined Component with F and Sweet CMS Library in Webflow: A Step-by-Step Tutorial
Building a Combined Component in Webflow
Webflow's CMS allows for the easy creation of dynamic content lists and makes it straightforward to display them on a website. In this tutorial, we'll explore a powerful feature in Webflow called the F and Sweet CMS library. This library enables the combination of multiple collection lists into a single, powerful component. We will walk through the process of building and implementing a combined component using the F and Sweet CMS library in Webflow.
Understanding the Combined Component
The combined component in Webflow's F and Sweet CMS library allows us to merge multiple collection lists into a single, unified list. This feature is exceptionally handy when you have a large number of items to display and want to manage them efficiently onto a single page.
Let's break down the process of building and utilizing the combined component in Webflow:
Structure in Webflow Designer
When working in Webflow Designer, the structure of the combined component is key. You'll typically have multiple collection list wrappers, and within each, you may have a set number of items to display. In the example, we have two collection list wrappers, one starting at "1" and showing 100 items, and another starting at "101" and displaying the next 100 items. This setup combines to display a total of 200 items on the page.
Visual Representation in Webflow Designer
In the Webflow Designer, you would visually see the clear border that separates the two collection lists. However, with the combined component, this border will not be visible, signifying that all the items are combined into one single collection list.
Functionality in Live Example
When the site is published, the combined component seamlessly merges the items from multiple collection lists into one dynamic list. This functionality is a powerful feature of the F and Sweet CMS library.
Building the Combined Component
Classes to Apply
In order to utilize the combined component, you'll need to apply a specific class to the collection list that you want to combine. The class to apply is collection-list. Please note that this is different from the collection-list-wrapper, which is the outer wrapper of the dynamic list.
Implementing JavaScript
To set up the combined component, you'll need to include the F and Sweet CMS library script in your Webflow project. This script allows you to run specific functions to combine the collection lists.
Steps to Apply JavaScript
Include the Library Script: Add the F and Sweet CMS library script just before the closing
<body>tag in your Webflow project.Project-Specific Script: In your project-specific script, you'll first need to create a new instance of the F and Sweet CMS library. This involves creating a new instance and storing it in a variable, such as
projectsGrid.Combine Multiple Lists: Once you have the instance stored in a variable, you can then use the
combinemethod to merge all the dynamic collection lists assigned thecollection-listclass into a single list.
Customizing the Combined Component
The combined component can be customized to best fit your project’s needs. You have the flexibility to customize the class applied to the collection lists and the variable storing the instance of the combined component.
Customization Options
Class Customization: You can apply any class to your collection list as per your project's requirements. This allows you to have multiple combined components with different classes assigned to them.
Variable Customization: The variable used to store the instance of the combined component can be customized to suit your project. Different variable names can be used for different combined components.
Conclusion
The combined component feature in Webflow's F and Sweet CMS library provides a powerful way to manage and display a large number of dynamic items efficiently. By following the steps outlined in this tutorial, you can easily implement the combined component in your Webflow projects. With the ability to customize classes and variables, you have the flexibility to tailor the combined component to meet the specific requirements of any project.
