Joomla 101

Joomla! is an open source content management system (CMS). So what exactly does that mean? A CMS allows you to create and maintain your own website without the need to understand the technology used to put it together. You don’t require any special software or a degree in computer science; all you need is access to the internet.

The Joomla CMS provides all the tools you need to create and maintain your own website. Out of the box Joomla includes:

• content creation and revision tools
• customisable templates
• user registration capabilities
• controls on editing and publishing
• visitor polls
• simple contact forms
• public site statistics
• private detailed site traffic statistics
• site-wide search functionality
• email, PDF and print functions
• RSS syndication
• content rating system
• display news feeds

If you want to add new features to Joomla there are over 5000 extensions that can be installed. These range in complexity from a photo gallery all the way up to eCommerce and social media extensions.

Content management using Joomla

There are two sides to every Joomla website: a public side and an administration side. The public side is viewable by your visitors and the administration side is used to maintain your Joomla website. Logging into the administration section of your website allows you to do lots of things:

• add articles.
• create menus, sections and categories.
• upload images to support your content.
• allow other users to add, edit and publish content in parts of the site you choose.
• implement a site wide search feature.
• add new templates to change the look of your website.
• add extensions to include functionality such as shopping cart and photo gallery functionality.
• and so on...

 For more information of how you can benefit by using Joomla! for your website, go to the source...www.joomla.org.