Also see: Making A Great Joomla Site: Part 1 on my blog

Well, I have to say that Joomla! has a fairly steep learning curve at first. The people who use Joomla! seem to have come from Mambo or are more technically adept at the backend php/mysql/apache thing than me. Me, I’m just a simple designer. I’m not overly technical. I know how to find information on how to do something when I need to do it (you use Google, right?).

For more information on running Joomla on your Windows machine, see my quick How-To.

My first exposure to Joomla! came when I noticed it as an option for a “One-Click Install” from Dreamhost.com. Dreamhost has been a great webhost for exactly what I needed - cheap hosting with a decent uptime and tons of service that is also cheap. Did I mention cheap?

I decided to play with a test install on my leecoursey.net domain one day just to see what it was all about. The next thing I knew I needed a CMS for RussellvilleMethodist.com and there Joomla! was - sitting there all free and stuff…

So, our love affair began there. If you want to know how it went, go back and read the blog. I started this version of LeeCoursey.*** about the time I started doing that new project.

Here’s the basis of what I learned.

Joomla! Works Like This

First, we’ll talk about Section>Category>Content - this is the way Joomla organizes articles/blog entries/whatever. Unless you’re doing Static Content (more later). Any content created in the hierarchy of this area can be seen in the Latest News, Popular, or Sections default modules in Joomla. They all can have a Intro or “teaser” text and can be published to the Front Page. This would be something like:

1. News (Section)
   1. Opinion (Category)
      1. Obama sucks. (Content Item)
      2. Hillary sucks. (Content Item)
      3. Daschle sucks. (Content Item)
   2. World (Category)
      1. United Kingdom sues Beatles. (Content Item)
      2. Japan sinks 4 feet. (Content Item)
      3. Germany renames kraut. (Content Item)
   3. Local (Category)
      1. Sheep strike at local plant. (Content Item)
      2. Local man makes good. (Content Item)

Or, like this:

1. Video Game Reviews
   1. RPG’s
      1. World of Warcraft
      2. Dungeons and Dragons
   2. Strategy
      1. Command and Conquer: Generals
      2. Warcraft III
      3. Supreme Commander
   3. FPS
      1. Quake 4
      2. Unreal Tournament

Then, there’s Static Content. Static Content are simply pages you have written that can use the same tools as a regular content item, but they can’t be displayed on the front page and can’t have “Teaser” text. They can have a menu link if you choose.

All of these items can be managed from the “Content” menu in the admin panel.

Modules

Modules are content, tools, menus, or other items placed in specific sections around the page and site. For example, the Main Menu is a module appearing usually on all pages. All modules can be placed on specific pages when editing the module, and their location and arrangement can be changed as well. You might have an “Upcoming Events” or “Newsletter Signup” Module showing on all the pages, or just on the main page.

Typical Module Positions (depending on template design)

• top
• Advert1, 2, 3
• Left
• Right
• Footer
• Banner
• User1, 2, 3 etc…

The best templates contain many module positions that hide automatically if not in use. Search around for the best or read one of the many tutorials on templates to make your own.

Useful Tools

Here are some of the most useful tools I have used. I use many of these on many of my sites at the same time. All of the components listed below are free!

Google Apps - Google Apps is a free service that allows me to give many email addresses and other features to clients and allows them the flexibilty of administration of email accounts without technical mumbo-jumbo and easy POP or WebMail access.

Google Analytics - Google Analytics goes so much further into tracing hits to a site that any other service being offered by a Joomla component. BSQSiteStats was my previous choice, but I spent too much time ignoring crawler hits and checking stats on multiple sites. Now I manage them all from one account and coupled with Google Apps I can grant access to primary users from my clients. Oh, it also can tell you how far in to the site each user is going and will integrate with Google AdWords to create a robust online marketing tool for even the smallest company.

Artio JoomSEF - A wonderful “Search Engine Friendly URL” module. It installs through the installer function on the backend and you probably need to edit your .htaccess file in the main directory to just be exactly what they give you. This gives you wonderful URL’s like “leecoursey.net/news/world/UK_Talks.html” instead of the standard crappy Joomla ones.

JCE - Joomla Content Editor replaces the defauly WYSIWYG editor in the Joomla environment and pretty much erases that annoying need to create and edit a custom stylesheet for your editor.

jCal Pro - This is a tremendously powerful calendar system with very few drawbacks. It offers a “Latest Events” module that show previous, upcoming, or both types of events in any module position on your site. Also, there are mambots to allow searching of calendar events and a “mini-cal” for use in module positions. Major drawbacks: like Google Calendar there is no “Third Tuesday” or “Fifth Sunday” date option which so many NPO’s use. Also, managing the required event categories is somewhat frustrating. What really qualifies a category?

LetterMan Newsletter - A robust newsletter component with availiable “sign up” module and editable stylesheet for email newsletters plus it’s component you can link to your site which allows people to search through past newsletters!

Fireboard - out of the ashes of jBoard comes a robust, easy to manage and well thought out forum option that integrates COMPLETELY into Joomla without any sort of “bridge” to make it work. Comes stocked with 5+ color templates and features typically only found in packages like phpBB and vBulletin.

reMOSitory - a complete and wonderful file and document manager for the frontend allowing you to push PDF’s and other files in straight-forward categories.

That’s all for now. Hope this helps.