It's easier for beginners, and surely that kind of methodology should be targeted towards the public templates even more so than the admin templates.
The screenshot in my first post, this is the code necessary to create that control unit in the admin template:
[HTML]
<xen:radiounit label="{xen:phrase show_image}:" name="showimage" value="{$notification.showimage}">
<xen:hint>{xen:phrase do_you_want_to_display_an_image_in_your_notification}</xen:hint>
<xen:option value="0">{xen:phrase no_image}</xen:option>
<xen:option value="avatar">{xen:phrase show_visitor_avatar}</xen:option>
<xen:option value="image" label="{xen:phrase specify_an_image}:">
<xen:textbox name="image" value="{$notification.image}" />
</xen:option>
</xen:radiounit>
[/HTML]
And this is how much code is necessary to create exactly the same thing in a public template:
[HTML]
<dl class="ctrlUnit">
<dt>{xen:phrase show_image}:
<dfn>{xen:phrase do_you_want_to_display_an_image_in_your_notification}</dfn>
</dt>
<dd>
<ul>
<li>
<label for="ctrl_showimage_0">
<input type="radio" name="showimage" value="0" id="ctrl_showimage_0" {xen:checked "{$notification.showimage} == '0'"}>
{xen:phrase no_image}
</label>
</li>
<li>
<label for="ctrl_showimage_avatar">
<input type="radio" name="showimage" value="avatar" id="ctrl_showimage_avatar" {xen:checked "{$notification.showimage} == 'avatar'"}>
{xen:phrase show_visitor_avatar}
</label>
</li>
<li>
<label for="ctrl_showimage_image">
<input type="radio" name="showimage" value="image" class="Disabler" id="ctrl_showimage_image" {xen:checked "{$notification.showimage} == 'image'"}>
{xen:phrase specify_an_image}:
</label>
<ul id="ctrl_showimage_image_Disabler">
<li>
<input type="text" name="image" value="{$notification.image}" id="ctrl_image" class="textCtrl">
</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</dd>
</dl>[/HTML]
32 lines of code vs 8.
Therefore, in that respect, the Admin Templates are easier to customise, and the syntax being available to public templates as well would therefore make them easier to customise.
And of course I'm not proposing all of a sudden the traditional way becomes unavailable, I'm just saying as an option, it certainly would make things easier.
It's ok for you to disagree, but I just feel this is a beneficial suggestion. One that shouldn't at all be tricky for the devs to implement and one that can make people's lives easier if they wish to use it, and make no difference at all if people don't want to use it who prefer the traditional way.
