Joomla! 1.5_ Beginner's Guide

Chapter 1: Introduction: A New and Easy Way to Build Websites 7
Join the CMS revolution 8
Why would you choose Joomla!? 8
What kind of sites can you build with Joomla!? 9
Learning to use Joomla! 14
What you'll learn using this book 14
About the example site 15
Summary 17
Chapter 2: Installation: Getting Joomla! Up and Running 19
What do you need to start? 20
1. Hosting space 20
2. FTP software 21
3. A great browser (think Firefox) 22
Installing Joomla! in four steps 22
Time for action – step 1: Download the Joomla! files 22
Time for action – step 2: Place the files on the web server 23
Time for action – step 3: Create a database 25
Time for action – step 4: Run the Joomla! installation wizard 27
Got stuck? Get help! 36
Summary 38
Chapter 3: First Steps: Getting to Know Joomla! 39
Making the switch: Building websites the Joomla! way 40
Sorry, web pages have ceased to exist 40
Why is this a good thing? 41
A website built of blocks 42
Introducing frontend and backend: The Joomla! interface 43
Your workspace: The backend 44

And what's that frontend thing, then? 44
The frontend: The website as the user sees it 45
Time for action – tour the example site 47
Taking control: Administering your site in the backend 51
Time for action – log in to the backend 51
Taking a closer look at the Control Panel 53
Understanding backend tools and controls 54
Getting your feet wet: Start administering your site 56
Three types of backend actions 57
Content actions example: Let's create some content! 58
Time for action – publish your first article 58
Extension actions example: Managing modules 60
Time for action – rearranging page layout 61
Site actions example: Configuring basic site settings 64
Time for action – set Joomla! preferences 65
Summary 67
Chapter 4: Web Building Basics: Creating a Site in an Hour 69
What you will be making 70
SRUP's the word 71
Cleaning up: Removing the sample data 71
Step 1: Hide the unnecessary stuff 72
Time for action – hiding modules 72
Step 2: Remove sample content 74
Time for action – deleting articles, categories, and sections 74
Building your site is a three step process 76
Step 1: Customize the layout 77
Customize the color scheme 77
Time for action – choosing a color variation 77
Time for action – preparing a new header file 79
Time for action – display the new header image file 82
One last thing: Clean up a little whatchamacallit 84
Time for action – remove the whatsis 84
Step 2: Add content 85
Create a foundation first: Make sections and categories 86
Time for action – create a section and some categories 86
Add articles to the categories 87
Time for action – create an article 87
Making content visible: Create a menu link 91
Time for action – add a menu link 91
Add some individual content pages: Uncategorized articles 94