Joomla! : Visual QuickStart Guide

Joomla! is one of the fastest growing Open Source Content Management Systems on the market today and has won multiple awards since it's release in 2005. Currently, Joomla! has the largest 3rd party developer and designer community, with over 160,000 current registered users, over 2,000 templates, and 3,000 extensions. This task-based guide to creating, customizing, and maintaining a dynamic Joomla! 1.5 web site starts with the fundamental concepts and advantages of a Content Management System and then walks the user through setting up a server environment, downloading and installing Joomla!, adding and structuring content, using components, modules, and plugins, and administrating from both the back and front-ends. The book finishes with more advanced topics, including CSS, search engine optimization (SEO), and customizing templates and the Joomla! framework itself. It's the perfect guide to getting started with Joomla or for those users that want to expand their skills. Cover......Page 1 Table of Contents......Page 6 Introduction......Page 10 What is a Web Content Management System?......Page 11 Joomla Requirements......Page 12 Companion Web Site......Page 13 Chapter 1: Installing Joomla......Page 14 Downloading Joomla......Page 15 Running the Joomla Installation......Page 17 Chapter 2: Getting Started......Page 22 Starting Joomla......Page 23 Using the Control Panel Page......Page 24 Viewing Site Information......Page 25 Using the Toolbar......Page 27 Using the Site Menu......Page 28 Using the Menus Menu......Page 33 Using the Content Menu......Page 35 Using the Components Menu......Page 37 Using the Extensions Menu......Page 38 Using the Tools Menu......Page 44 Using the Help Menu......Page 45 Chapter 3: Adding Your Content......Page 46 Designing a Web Site......Page 47 Creating and Managing Sections......Page 48 Linking Sections to the Main Menu......Page 56 Creating and Managing Categories......Page 60 Using the Media Manager......Page 67 Writing Articles......Page 70 Assigning Items to the Front Page......Page 88 Chapter 4: Making Your Site Dynamic with Menus......Page 90 Creating Menus......Page 91 Menu Module Parameters......Page 100 Adding Menu Items......Page 102 Selecting Menu Item Types......Page 104 Modifying Menu Items......Page 118 Creating Registered User Menus......Page 123 Creating Submenus......Page 130 Chapter 5: Working with Modules......Page 132 Creating Modules......Page 133 Creating an Archived Content Module......Page 134 Creating a Breadcrumb Module......Page 137 Creating Custom HTML Modules......Page 139 Creating a Feed Display Module......Page 142 Creating a Footer Module......Page 144 Creating a Latest News Module......Page 145 Creating a Most Read Content Module......Page 149 Creating a Newsflash Module......Page 150 Creating a Random Image Module......Page 152 Creating a Search Module......Page 154 Creating a Who’s Online Module......Page 156 Creating a Related Articles Module......Page 157 Creating a Section Module......Page 158 Creating a Syndicate Module......Page 159 Chapter 6: Extending Your Site......Page 162 Adding Banners......Page 163 Adding Contacts......Page 169 Adding News Feeds......Page 175 Creating Polls......Page 179 Using the Search Component......Page 181 Adding Web Links......Page 183 Using Third-Party Extensions......Page 186 Adding a Forum......Page 191 Plugins......Page 195 Chapter 7: Modifying Global Settings......Page 198 Modifying Site Settings......Page 199 Making the Web Site Search Engine–Friendly......Page 204 Modifying System Settings......Page 207 Allowing User Registration......Page 209 Defining System Media Settings......Page 211 Debugging Joomla......Page 213 Configuring Server Settings......Page 215 Using the Language Manager......Page 218 Using the Tools Menu......Page 219 Using Private Messaging......Page 220 Using Mass Mail......Page 223 Checking In Content......Page 224 Cleaning Your Web Server’s Cache......Page 225 Chapter 8: Engaging Your Users......Page 226 Adding Front End Users......Page 227 Modifying User Content from the Front End......Page 231 Using the PDF, E-mail, and Print Icons......Page 239 Chapter 9: Creating Joomla Templates......Page 240 Joomla Template Requirements......Page 241 Creating the index.php File......Page 244 Adding the jdoc:include Statements to the index.php File......Page 254 Creating the templateDetails.xml File......Page 260 Adding the PHP Functions......Page 265 Creating the Stylesheets......Page 269 Joomla Base CSS Style Tables......Page 272 Appendix A: Local and Remote Servers......Page 276 Installing a Local Server (Windows)......Page 277 Installing a Local Server (Macintosh)......Page 279 Uploading the Test Site to a Remote Host......Page 280 The configuration.php File......Page 281 Appendix B: Resources......Page 282 What’s New in Joomla 1.5.x......Page 283 Web Links for Joomla Resources......Page 284 Web Sites Using Joomla......Page 285 A......Page 288 C......Page 289 F......Page 290 I......Page 291 M......Page 292 N......Page 293 R......Page 294 T......Page 295 Y......Page 296