Template for my directory

free templates

[penfold25]

Should i bother to buy a template or is there any free templates i could use for my niche portal/directory?

[mack]

It all depends on what software you are using to run the directory. A lot of the developers sites have resource areas where you can download ad-ons or modifications.

To be nonest I would say go for modified templates because it makes your directry look different from the "out the box" version thousands of others are running.

Mack.

[rogerd]

Penfold, there are plenty of sites that offer free templates. A search will lead to quite a bit of spam (and cascading popups), but if you wade through the garbage you should find some that suit your needs. The better ones have graphics and text that are easy to modify so you can customize your appearance. There are also sites that offer really cheap templates (say, $5 - $25) - you'll likely find a lot more diverse selection.

The downside? Many templates, particularly free ones, have a tendency to look a bit dated. Few are really eye-catching, high quality designs, but there are certainly many that fall into the "adequate" range and are better than what a graphically-challenged non-designer could do.

Templates often come in flavors like FrontPage or Dreamweaver to make them even easier to work with.