I'm trying to create my first Magento template from scratch. I created my local.xml file under app/design/frontend/default/my_theme/layout/
In it, I've referenced my preferred layout:
<new_layout translate="label">
<label>Medtech</label>
<reference name="root">
<action method="setTemplate"><template>page/home.phtml</template></action>
<!-- Mark root page block that template is applied -->
<action method="setIsHandle"><applied>1</applied></action>
</reference>
</new_layout>
My home.phtml template is located under app/design/frontend/default/my_theme/template/page/
But, it's not loading this layout file when I navigate to my home page. (It appears to be loading one of the default template layouts).
What am I doing wrong?