Joomla! explained : your step-by-step guide

Joomla! now powers tens of millions of websites of every size and type. But many beginners find it confusing, and most Joomla! books are too complex to help. Joomla! Explained is the solution. Top Joomla! trainer Stephen Burge teaches everything beginners need to know--and nothing they don't need to know!

Joomla! Explained requires absolutely no experience with Joomla! content management, website construction, programming, scripting, or even HTML. Stephen Burge has taught thousands of beginners--and thousands more who've experimented with Joomla! but haven't mastered it yet. Nobody knows more about guiding Joomla! users up the learning curve--from confusion to results!

You'll master Joomla! one easy step at a time, through a complete hands-on case study. Burge presents crystal-clear visuals, explanations, and analogies--all extensively tested with real Joomla! beginners.

Author Notes

Stephen Burge has split his career equally between teaching and web development. In 2007 he merged the two by teaching web development with Joomla!. His company Open Source Training teaches Joomla! classes around the world and online. Stephen travels widely, helping people learn and thrive with Joomla!. He has been involved with many aspects of the Joomla! community, most recently as board member of Open Source Matters, which provides Joomla! with financial and legal support.

Preface	p. xv
Acknowledgments	p. xvi
About the Author	p. xvii
Chapter 1 Joomla! Explained	p. 1
The What, When, Where, and Who of Joomla	p. 2
Why Joomla?	p. 2
How Much Is Joomla?	p. 3
What Does the Joomla Name Mean?	p. 3
How Many Versions of Joomla Are There?	p. 4
Who Uses Joomla?	p. 5
This Book Explained	p. 8
What You'll Need	p. 8
What This Book Covers	p. 8
This Book Is Concise	p. 10
This Book Is Active	p. 10
This Book Uses Specific Examples	p. 10
What's Next?	p. 12
Chapter 2 Joomla! Installations Explained	p. 13
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 14
Choose the Best Place to Install Joomla	p. 14
Your Computer	p. 14
A Web Server	p. 15
Choose the Best Way to Install Joomla!	p. 16
Install Joomla Automatically	p. 16
Install Joomla Manually	p. 22
Step 1 Create a Database	p. 23
Step 2 Download the Joomla Files and Upload Them to Our Web Server	p. 26
Step 3 Complete the Joomla Installation by Connecting the Database and Files Together	p. 29
Get Help If You're Stuck Installing Joomla!	p. 36
What's Next?	p. 37
Chapter 3 Joomla! Sites Explained	p. 39
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 39
Understand the Two Areas of a Joomla Site	p. 39
Visitor Area	p. 40
Administrator Area	p. 40
Understand the Administrator Area of Your Joomla Site	p. 41
Things You'll See All the Time in Joomla	p. 44
Language	p. 44
Page Layouts	p. 44
Individual Page Layouts	p. 46
Understand the Visitor Area of Your Joomla Site	p. 49
Make Your First Joomla Site Changes	p. 50
Changing Your First Article	p. 50
Changing Your First Template	p. 53
What's Next?	p. 55
Chapter 4 Joomla! Content Explained	p. 57
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 57
Step 1: Categorize	p. 57
Step 2: Add	p. 61
Step 3: Show	p. 66
The Joomla CASh Workflow--Why Do It This Way?	p. 71
Practicing the CASh Workflow	p. 72
Step 1 Categorize	p. 73
Step 2	p. 73
Step 3	p. 73
What's Next?	p. 76
Chapter 5 Joomla! Content Editing Explained	p. 77
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 77
Formatting Your Text	p. 77
Bold, Italic, Underline, and Strikethrough	p. 78
Aligning Your Text	p. 80
Bullet Points and Indentation	p. 82
What if I Made a Mistake?	p. 84
Adding Images to Your Content	p. 85
Categorize Images	p. 86
Add Images	p. 88
Show Images	p. 90
What If I Made a Mistake?	p. 92
Adding Links to Your Content	p. 94
Internal Links	p. 94
External Links	p. 96
What If I Made a Mistake?	p. 97
Internal Article Links	p. 98
What If I Want to Remove a Link?	p. 101
Choosing Your Article Options	p. 101
Publishing Options	p. 102
Article Options	p. 103
Global Options	p. 104
Metadata Options	p. 106
Practicing Joomla Content	p. 108
Airport	p. 108
Bus Station	p. 110
Train Station	p. 112
What's Next?	p. 114
Chapter 6 Joomla! Menus Explained	p. 115
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 115
Why Do you Need Menus?	p. 115
Step 1 Categorize Your Menu Links	p. 116
Step 2 Adding Your Menu Links	p. 118
If You Already Have the Links	p. 119
If You Haven't Already Created the Links	p. 120
Step 3 Showing Your Menu Links	p. 121
Practicing the CASh Workflow with Menus	p. 123
Transport Menu	p. 124
Festivals Menu	p. 126
About Joomlaville Menu	p. 127
More Advanced Layout Options Using Menus	p. 128
Putting It All Together in a Blog Layout	p. 129
Categorize	p. 130
Add	p. 130
Show	p. 131
Selecting the Options	p. 132
Putting It All Together in a List Layout	p. 134
Categorize	p. 135
Add	p. 135
Show	p. 136
Selecting the Options	p. 136
What's Next?	p. 138
Chapter 7 Joomla! Components Explained	p. 141
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 141
Banners Component	p. 142
Setting Up an Advertising Banner	p. 142
Contacts Component	p. 146
Categorize	p. 147
Add	p. 148
Show	p. 149
Options	p. 149
Messaging Component	p. 151
News Feeds Component	p. 154
Categorize	p. 154
Add	p. 155
Show	p. 155
Redirect Component	p. 157
Search Component	p. 158
Options	p. 160
Web Links Component	p. 161
Categorize	p. 161
Add	p. 161
Show	p. 162
Banners	p. 163
Contacts	p. 166
News Feeds	p. 170
Web Links	p. 172
Cleaning Up the Menu Links	p. 175
What's Next?	p. 181
Chapter 8 Joomla! Modules Explained	p. 183
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 183
Understanding Modules	p. 183
Creating New Modules	p. 188
Changing the Order of Modules	p. 192
Changing Which Pages Modules Appear On	p. 196
Change When Modules Appear	p. 202
Practice	p. 205
Categorize	p. 205
Add	p. 205
Show	p. 205
Position	p. 207
Order	p. 207
Menu Links	p. 207
Time and Date	p. 209
What's Next?	p. 211
Chapter 9 Joomla! Plug-ins Explained	p. 213
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 213
The Plug-in Manager	p. 213
Authentication Plug-ins	p. 214
Content Plug-ins	p. 216
Editors and Editors-XTD Plug-ins	p. 220
Search Plug-ins	p. 223
User Plug-ins	p. 224
Extension, System, and Other Plug-in Types	p. 226
What's Next?	p. 228
Chapter 10 Joomla! Templates Explained	p. 229
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 229
Understanding Templates	p. 229
Changing Templates	p. 233
Changing Template Options	p. 236
Different Designs and Layouts for Different Pages	p. 240
Different Templates on Different Pages	p. 240
Different Template Styles on Different Pages	p. 241
Practice	p. 244
What's Next?	p. 246
Chapter 11 Adding Joomla! Extensions Explained	p. 247
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 247
Research Components, Modules, and Plug-ins	p. 247
Find the Right Category	p. 248
Evaluate an Individual Extension	p. 255
Install Components, Modules, and Plug-ins	p. 259
Install a Module	p. 259
Install a Plug-in	p. 264
Install a Component	p. 267
Find and Install Templates	p. 273
Find a Free Template	p. 273
Find a Commercial Template	p. 281
Practice	p. 284
Install a Component	p. 284
Install a Module	p. 285
Install a Plug-in	p. 285
What's Next?	p. 286
Chapter 12 Putting It All Together: Personal Site	p. 289
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 289
Step 1 Installation	p. 290
One-Click Installation	p. 290
Manual Installation	p. 291
Step 2 Content	p. 293
Categorize	p. 293
Add	p. 294
Show	p. 296
Step 3 Components, Modules, and Plug-ins	p. 298
Default Component: Contacts	p. 298
Installed Component: Photo Gallery	p. 299
Default Module: Most Read Content	p. 303
Installed Module: SP Weather	p. 304
Default Plug-in: Load Module	p. 305
Installed Plug-in: ITPSocial Buttons	p. 307
Step 4 Templates	p. 308
What's Next?	p. 314
Chapter 13 Putting It All Together: Business Site	p. 315
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 315
Step 1 Installation	p. 316
Step 2 Content	p. 316
Categorize	p. 316
Add	p. 318
Show	p. 319
Step 3 Components, Modules, and Plug-ins	p. 321
Default Component: Contacts	p. 321
Installed Component: Zen Portfolio	p. 321
Default Modules: Most Read Content	p. 324
Installed Module: GTranslate	p. 325
Default Plug-in: User Profile	p. 327
Installed Plug-in: JPlayer	p. 327
Step 4: Templates	p. 330
What's Next?	p. 335
Chapter 14 Joomla! Users Explained	p. 337
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 338
What People Can See: Joomla's Access Levels	p. 339
Method 2: What Users Can Do: Joomla's User Groups	p. 347
Method 3: Creating Your Own Access Controls	p. 350
Setting Up a New User Group	p. 350
Creating a Chief Editor for Our Site	p. 356
What's Next?	p. 360
Chapter 15 Joomla! Languages Explained	p. 363
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 364
Step 1 Installation	p. 364
Step 2 Content	p. 372
An Example of How Translation Works	p. 372
Categorize	p. 373
Add	p. 375
Show	p. 375
Step 3 Extensions (Components, Modules, and Plug-ins)	p. 377
Components	p. 377
Modules	p. 378
Step 4 Templates	p. 379
What's Next?	p. 380
Chapter 16 Joomla! Site Management Explained	p. 381
Things You Can Do After Reading This Chapter	p. 381
Updating Your Site	p. 381
An Overview of Joomla Version Numbers	p. 382
What Version Do I Have?	p. 384
How Do I Get Notified About Updates?	p. 384
How Do I Update?	p. 385
Updating Your Extensions	p. 387
Disabling or Uninstalling Your Extensions	p. 391
Additional Measures to Protect Your Site	p. 392
Backing Up Your Site	p. 396
Backups Made by Your Hosting Company	p. 396
Backups Made by You	p. 396
Global Configuration	p. 400
Taking Your Site Offline	p. 401
Metadata Settings	p. 402
Changing Your Site's URLs	p. 403
Making Your Site Run Faster	p. 407
Staying Logged In for Longer	p. 409
What's Next?	p. 409
Index	p. 411

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