Can’t Add Child Block to Product List in Magento – How to Fix

blockslayoutlayout-update

I'm trying to add a block to the product listing:

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<layout version="0.1.0">
    <catalog_category_view translate="label">
        <reference name="product_list">
            <remove name="product_list_toolbar"/>
            <block type="core/template" name="helloworld" as="helloworld" template="helloworld.phtml"/>
        </reference>
        <reference name="footer">
            <block type="core/template" name="helloworld" as="helloworld" template="helloworld.phtml"/>
        </reference>
    </catalog_category_view>
</layout>

In catalog/product/list.phtml I have this:

<?php Zend_Debug::dump($this->getSortedChildren()); ?>
<?php echo $this->getChildHtml('helloworld'); ?>

In page/html/footer.phtml I have this:

<?php Zend_Debug::dump($this->getSortedChildren()); ?>
<?php echo $this->getChildHtml('helloworld'); ?>

Note that I only added <remove name="product_list_toolbar"/> so that I can test if my reference to product_list works correctly, by seeing if product_list_toolbar is removed from the sorted children list. It is.

So what I now have is identical code in the product list and the footer, and it only works in the footer. After doing some digging, I can't find any instance of a block being added to product_list other than product_list_toolbar. So, is there something about this block that makes adding children not work?

Best Answer

The issue here is the order in which the blocks are specified in the layout XML.

catalog_category_view is technically the right handle, BUT in that handle the product_list block doesn't exist (yet!).

The product_list block only gets created in the catalog_category_default and catalog_category_layered handles. (And those handles are specified later in the XML than catalog_category_view.)

In short, when all the layout XML gets merged, your reference to product_list won't get executed, because it doesn't exist yet at that point.

The solution is to add your block in both catalog_category_default and catalog_category_layered, OR, create your own custom handle, add your block in that handle, and use the <update> directive to include your handle in catalog_category_default and catalog_category_layered.

Hope that worked for you.

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Magento – what should be in type attribute of block

You are correct that the type defines the block class that is used to render the display of your associated template file.

The reason why using 'page/html_header' is working, is because it is a child class of the base magento template block Mage_Core_Block_Template

class Mage_Page_Block_Html_Header extends Mage_Core_Block_Template

Since your template file is not calling methods not in the class Mage_Page_Block_Html_Header (or parents thereof), it will render fine, as ultimately you are dealing with the base core/template class which has all the needed base methods to allow a template to load, and render (for example protected function _toHtml())

You could just as well (and should have) used 'core/template' as your type, since you template required no special functionality to render.

Let say, for exmaple your template file had a call to a method to determine the answer to life, the universe, and everything :

<?php echo $this->whatIsTheAnswer() ?>

then your rendering of the template would have failed. $this is the type defined in the block definition, thus Mage_Page_Block_Html_Header in your case/example.

Thus type = the class that contains your methods, as called from your template file. ($this in the template) If you have no custom calls/methods in your template file, then core/template will suffice. If you need custom methods, then you need to create that block, in your custom module, and use it as the type, but your custom block must ultimately lead to 'Mage_Core_Block_Template' via inheritance.

I hope that helps you understand it a bit more, if not, ask away and I will try and explain more.

Magento Layout Update – Unable to Add a Child Block in Layout XML by Reference

If its a module loading issue, I think you should add a tag in your module declaration file. like below

<depends> <companyname_modulename/> </depends>

This will insure that your module will be loaded after companyname_modulename

Best Answer

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