Product Description

Many types of websites can be built and maintained more easily using a content management system (CMS). A CMS provides a web-based interface for creating and organizing content. The content is stored in a database, then consistently presented according to a set of templates and preferences, which eliminates the need to handcraft each page in HTML. Joomla! is a popular, easy-to-use, open-source CMS built in PHP. It has near-limitless functionality, thanks to its community of extension developers. In Joomla! 1.5 Essential Training, Joseph LeBlanc uses Joomla! to build a small-business website from scratch with no programming at all, from installation to launch. He demonstrates how to create and organize content; add menus, sidebars, and other features; change the look with templates; install plug-ins and extensions; and much more. Exercise files accompany the course.

Topics Include:

• Installing Apache, PHP, and MySQL to support Joomla!
• Setting article access, ordering, icon, and metadata display parameters
• Using the login, breadcrumb, and syndication modules
• Inserting contact, poll, and search components
• Managing users and permissions
• Adjusting templates with the HTML Editor
• Managing languages on the site
• Understanding search engine optimization (SEO)

Duration: 3.25 hours
On 1 CD-ROM

System Requirements

Macintosh Requirements

• OS 10.3.9 or higher
• DVD-ROM drive
• 1024x768 resolution
• 24-bit video support
• QuickTime 7 or higher

Windows Requirements

• XP or Vista
• DVD-ROM Drive
• 1024x768 resolution
• 24-bit video support
• PC sound card/speakers
• QuickTime 7 or higher (included)
• .NET 2.0 or higher (included)

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #502861 in Books
• Published on: 2008-06-27
• Binding: CD-ROM

From the Publisher
Each lynda.com CD/DVD course offers hours of training movies that you watch on your computer. The movies are recorded in pixel-perfect quality, and include the authors' narration and movements as they teach the subject matter. Courses include the same project files that the instructors use, so you can follow along at your own pace. lynda.com tutorials are great for visual learners and people who like to learn by doing. Topics include software applications, workflow optimization, tips and techniques, and much more. Play, fast-forward, and rewind for easy learning.

About the Author
Joseph LeBlanc began programming when he was eight years old. Since then he has become a computer programmer in Washington, DC, and an active member of the DC tech community. In 2004, Joseph wrote a programming tutorial for Mambo, and he is the author of Learning Joomla! 1.5 Extension Development. Joseph is an advocate for the Joomla! community, and he enjoys working with end users to help them solve problems using custom code and household computer science. He can be found on the web at jlleblanc.com.

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Customer Reviews

Basic information, but thorough
This DVD video is thorough and gave me the confidence that I wasn't missing anything. It's a little basic for the steep price, but it is done well and does cover everything I wanted to know. It probably deserves 5 stars, but I just expected more for the money. I thought it was a book when I bought it, which may be the reason I'm a little disappointed. I think it could have been done as a book. I would recommend this DVD video, if you can afford it.

Joomla 1.5
Vary poor on installing Joomla, and you need the Joomla installed to run the rest of the course. Poorly laid out, but does have a lot of training once you figure out how to use the program.

Excellent resource but incomplete
Without a doubt, this is the best quality video tutorial on Joomla that I have come across. Each subject is broken down to bit sized nuggats of imformation that makes it easy to understand. It is well written and produced with quality audio-that demarks a professional quality instruction from amatuer or enthusiast attempts.

I am a rank amatuer with no web experience so I have many questions. The tutorial goes through the example of building a simple restaurant website. Very informative but he left out the important step of customizing it with graphical content. How do you customize the header if you want it to say the name of the restaurant instead of "Joomla"?. Shockingly this basic video doesn't go into to change the graphic elements of joomla and only addresses the content portion. In my opinion the graphic "look and feel" of the site are about 50% of a sites success

Most of the other books I have read on the subject make the same mistake of concentrating on the "nuts and bolts" of content and completely overlook the graphic design elements. Even if you purchase a pre-built template, you need to customize it.

I don't regret spending money on this video, I just wish it were more complete.