What could be better than a great website? - Own high-quality site! Tens and hundreds of thousands of people daily actively ask the question. Some simply do not want to spend their own money, but even more - they get real pleasure from creating with their own hands. The main difficulty is choosing the ideal CMS (which doesn't really exist). Among the incredible number of systems, Joomla stands out noticeably.
Free, powerful, and secure, easy to learn, and with an almost endless array of both free and paid add-ons: modules, plugins, templates, and other essential goodies, it's the perfect choice for a website developer of any experience level.
Why did you choose this particular CMS? Creating a site on Joomla is an effective achievement of a guaranteed result of an unlimited level of complexity, whether it is a functional online store, a simple portfolio business card or, for example, a news site.
The instruction allows you to easily and quickly get used to all the stages of creation from 0% to an almost finished result - you only need a minimum level of PC knowledge and a certain amount of free time and diligence. And the screenshot below will spur desire! This is what you can get at the end if you put a little effort.
Preparing to install Joomla
As you know, the most difficult thing in any business is the beginning. However, Joomla pleases with its extreme undemandingness: it is enough to complete the sequence of actions described below only once - and this stage will no longer make you remember yourself, allowing you to fully focus directly on the site, content, design and promotion!
First of all, you need to download the joomla distribution, which is located at (for joomla 2.5): http://joomla.ru/downloads/joomla
But are you sure that you know how to make a website yourself, and such - so that you would not be ashamed to immediately put it on the Internet? ..
It is recommended to use the help of the truly invaluable Denwer program, which allows you to create a local server and browse sites exclusively within your computer, since installation takes only a few minutes. You can download Denver from the official website: http://www.denwer.ru
By clicking on the big and beautiful button that says "Download Denver 3" - we will be able to select the PHP version and download the program. To do this, you will need to provide some personal data - do not be alarmed. It is enough just to specify a real e-mail (the link will come there), the rest of the fields are secondary.
In case of any misunderstandings or an irresistible thirst for knowledge, the site also has detailed video tutorials. However, this no longer concerns the main task: to go through the instruction-training and learn how to make a site from scratch on joomla.
Installing Joomla on a local server
Have you downloaded and installed all the required files? – Then let’s move on to such a long-awaited and most interesting stage of learning – to revealing the answer to the exciting question of how to make your website for free. Open the folder " home" (C: WebServershome by default) and create a folder with the name of the site, for example: " site.ru". Inside the created folder, we create another one, with the name "www" - and unpack the downloaded Joomla sources there. Compare the result with the example in the screenshot.
We've almost created a website! To make the site yourself, the last effort left is to install the CMS. We launch " Start Denwer", Open any browser and write in the address bar: http://127.0.0.1/denwer/.
A page will open where our task is to find the line " phpMyAdmin - DBMS administration"- we click. A page will open from where you can go through the upper left tab to the address "Database". We carefully write in Latin letters the selected name of the site (site) and click " create». Congratulations! – The database required for the site to work has been created.
In a new browser window, re-enter the name of the site (http://site.ru) - a prompt for choosing a language will appear. We choose, we go further - we look through the license (the degree of zeal directly depends on personal perseverance), we go further. The page " Basic settings”- carefully fill in the fields: “Host name”, “User name and password”, “Database name”. The entered data should be saved - they will be needed to gain access to the site!
We do not have an FTP server, so you can safely skip the FTP settings with a clear conscience. Next, you will be prompted to enter: "Site name", "e-mail", "Administrator password". We fill in (it is highly recommended to install demo data for the first test) - click " next".
Would you like to make your website free? There is only one step left before the wish comes true - a recommendation to delete the installation folder. Delete it.
Follow the instructions in the instructions - this stage does not hide any difficulties. From now on you know how to make a site on joomla!
Type in the name of the site in the address bar and you can admire the result. To manage the site, follow the link (you will need the login and password specified during the installation process, as shown in the screenshot): http://site.ru/administrator
Installing a site template on Joomla
The CMS is installed, the admin panel is logged in: we continue to reveal the mystery of the topic, how to make a website for free. In our case, the standard template is replaced by a news "" containing a bonus: "ZT_News_III_template", "Plugin_System_ZT_Mega_Menu", as well as additional modules. To install, you need to download the files to your computer, unzip and find the "Extensions - Install / Remove" tab in the control panel.
The proposed version of the template is far from the only one! There are an endless number of paid and free templates on the web. Experiment! The only recommendation is to use trusted sources, in particular from official websites. Interested in how to add a template? Click " Select file", Find the template archive on the computer and click" Download file and install».
Setting up Joomla
Customizing the Template and Modules
Customizing Joomla starts with configuring the components.
The main thing in setting up Joomla is setting up components. To activate plugins and modules, go to " Extensions - Plugin/Module Manager". We control that a check mark is placed next to each desired item.
Next, you should use the installed site template. Go to " Extensions - Template Manager"And select the existing one (in our case" ZT_News_III_template") - set by default. The prevailing number of high-quality templates has its own settings, in particular, different color schemes (we have green, gray and red).
With regard to the attached modules, the following range is available:
- JV_G-Weather_module - a module that allows you to display weather from Google on the site. In the settings there is a choice of the region of interest.
- JV_Headline_module - Collects news from all categories to display in the page header.
- JV_News_module - Displays the article preview on the first page.
- JV_Tabs_Module - Presents the best content to users in the form of a dropdown content.
As for the attached modules, they are as follows:
- JV_G-Weather_module is a module that allows you to display weather from Google on your website. In the module, you can specify the region for which weather information will be displayed.
- JV_Headline_module - allows you to collect news of all categories for display in the page header.
- JV_News_module - allows you to display an article preview on the first page.
- JV_Tabs_Module - Presents the best content to users in the form of a dropdown content.
Any of the above modules are freely editable in the " Extensions - Module Manager". Let's go to the site selected site name and enjoy the result! Have you already made sure that making a website yourself for free is easy and fast?
Site setup
A strong foundation is the key to amazing longevity of the house. You should dig into the global settings of the site right away - it will be extremely troublesome to change anything at the global level later! They are located in the section Site - Global Configuration", breaking down into three subsections: " Site", " System", " Server".
Website . It is in these parameters that the text is set when the site is disabled. It is possible to specify the "Title", fill in the "Meta description" and the keywords available on the site (maximum correspondence to the subject matter of the materials is recommended).
Slightly to the right are the SEO settings:
- Enable SEO - Displays the URL as a human readable address, for example, a link like "index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5&Itemid=10" will be replaced with something like "pervaja-statja".
- Use mod_rewrite- used only on Apache servers, however, before enabling the option, you need to change "htaccess.txt" to ".htaccess".
- Add suffix to URL- adds html extension. For example, it was “pervaja-statja”, it will become “pervaja-statja.html”.
System and Server- are responsible for the settings of a deeper level, therefore, in the absence of experience, it is recommended not to touch anything, just view it for reference. They change at later stages as work experience is gained.
Getting started with Joomla
Until the information is added, the template looks empty and dull. To make your site competitive, attracting everyone's attention, fill it with high-quality and unique content that is interesting for users.
Before adding posts, draw the structure of the site:
In the section " Content"There are managers for editing each component of the structure. Let's start with the sections: go to the tab " Contents - Section Manager", In the upper right corner, select" New»- create a section.
Fill in the fields "Name" (indicate the name of the section in Russian) and "Pseudonym" (name in Latin, transliteration is recommended). For automatic transliteration of words, there is a very convenient (just enter the text in Russian to instantly get it, but in English letters) online service translit.ru- recommended for use!
We check if the publication is marked (should be “yes”) - and click the button “ Save»In the upper right corner.
Go to the tab " Content - Category Manager". We create categories in the same way. Created? - Then forward, to the assault " Content - Article Manager"! Here you, if you have enough zeal to bring the matter to the end, will be a very frequent guest. We correlate new articles with sections and categories, we monitor the availability of a publication choice so that the material is displayed on the main page.
Are you absolutely sure that you now know how to make a website from scratch? But no! At a minimum, you need to customize the appearance of the main page, set the display options for materials. Go to the section " Menu - Main Menu", Find the item" Home / (Home)"- select the type of menu item. It can be one page, blog, other options. For a news site, the blog option is ideal for displaying many different articles on the main page - and choose it! Additional options on the right side of the screen allow you to edit the posted content.
Well, now you are guaranteed to know how to make a website. Quite easy! The transformation of an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan takes a long time - but the first steps have been passed, it remains only to continue moving. Key roles for the success of a news site: high-quality, structured content, competent positioning of the site, a clear gradation of materials.
You can admire how the site will look after the appearance of the first few articles. Great, isn't it?..
Afterword… making a website is not a difficult task. Making the best of the best website in its field is a worthy goal. And an excellent site is always easy to monetize, but this is already a topic for a separate voluminous article. By the way, here it is: how to make money on your website. Do not put off plans for tomorrow: while we are standing still, we are moving back! Start today - and already this year you will thank your reflection in the mirror. Read the instructions, look for your own path - success is hiding somewhere nearby!
And now - forward! To conquer new heights. Wait ... what if you didn't succeed? Then we offer an alternative option just for you! You can choose the best online website builder in our review or use unique Wix constructor- so simple that absolutely does not require even basic knowledge.
Simple doesn't mean bad! Wix has amazing features for its lightness: built-in Drag&Drop editor, merge with social networks, tutorial videos and step-by-step instructions, 24/7 support center, free hosting. You don't even have to think about purchasing a domain - the constructor will give you your own, unique one!
The Wix Builder is a comprehensive solution for people who value their own time and all those who, for whatever reason, were not attracted to Joomla.
Good bad
Thank you for your interest in our site. The IT specialist company has existed since 2006 and provides IT outsourcing services. Outsourcing is the transfer of necessary, but non-core for the company, work to another organization. In our case, these are: creation, support and maintenance of sites, promotion of sites in search engines, support and administration of servers running Debian GNU/Linux.
Sites on Joomla
In the current age of information, the site de facto becomes at least the hallmark of the organization, and often one of the business tools. Already, websites are being created not only for organizations and individuals, but also for individual goods, services, and even events. Today, the site is not only a source of advertising for a huge audience, but also a tool for sales and making new contacts. We create websites using CMS Joomla! This content management system is simple and intuitive. It is very widespread and, therefore, there is a lot of information about it on the Internet. Finding a specialist working with Joomla is also easy. And you don't have to go far! Our IT specialist is engaged in the maintenance and support of sites on Joomla! We will carry out all technical work, take care of all correspondence with the hoster and domain registrar, fill the site and update the information on it. And although Joomla is easy to manage, it is intuitive. But will you yourself regularly perform the necessary work on the site? How long will they take you? If you want to concentrate on your business, then entrust the support of your site to us. We will do everything in our power to keep the site alive and beneficial to its owner.
If you are a commercial organization that advertises or sells its goods, services on the Internet, then you just need to promote your site in search engines. After all, in order to sell something, you need at least to be seen, to be known about it. And we will help you with this, we will promote your Joomla site in search engines. Depending on the competition and the budget allocated for promotion, your site will take worthy positions in the search results. The site will increase your profits!
Debian servers
Sooner or later, striving for openness and transparency of their business, many companies are faced with the need to ensure the purity of the licensed software used. However, the costs of license fees are far from always acceptable, especially for small and medium-sized businesses. The way out of this difficult situation is the decision to switch to Open Source technology. One of the areas of Open Source is the Linux operating system (Linux). Employees of our company specialize in Debian Linux (Debian Linux). It is the oldest and most stable distribution of the Linux operating system. We offer you services for the implementation of Debian Linux in your enterprise, configuration, maintenance and support of servers.
Information and advertising
I am glad to welcome you all dear friends! Max Metelev is with you and in today's lesson, or rather, even the whole guide, I will tell and show how to create a site on Joomla (Jumla) from scratch.
Creating a site on joomla is not a difficult and very interesting process, otherwise I’m talking about WordPress. Surely, among you there are fans of this one.
In the distant 2000, she (Jumla) stood at the origins and took over the innovations in the PHP / MySql space, which were later included in WordPress, Drupal, Magento and other content management systems.
You may have heard that the latest version of this Joomla 3 engine has been released. It is an exciting product that is responsive to visitors and satisfies the requirements of administrators.
It is also mobile responsive thanks to the use of the Bootstrap framework. That is why Joomla + Bootstrap is so attractive to front-end developers and designers and makes it easy to work with source code and interface for your code.
The installation process is fast, beautiful and comes with a range of illustrations. You can really quickly get a fully functioning site in a few minutes (I exaggerate of course, but the result will be).
Introduction to Joomla
After installing the files, you will see the installer screen in the browser. This is the first of 3 steps in the process.
If you do not use English on your site, you can change it to Russian. Enter the name of your site, as well as the details of the administrator account. Click "Next" to continue with the installation.
As we said earlier Joomla has support for databases such as MySQLi and PostgreSQL.
Enter your database hostname, username, password, and database name. You can get this information from your host. Joomla will automatically generate tables with prefixes to make life harder for hackers. Also click Next.
On the final screen of the installer, you can select the data type. Hover over each of the samples for an explanation. Below you will see an overview of the configuration settings. Joomla also checks if the server is configured correctly. If something needs correction, it will be highlighted in red.
For security reasons, after installation, we will have to delete the folder with the installer.
Creating a new site on Joomla
Because we have chosen the data type, our site is set up as a blog. It has 4 entries on the main page. Click on the heading title of any entry to view the full content. There is also a side column with typical blogging features such as recent posts, blogroll, . 
In the introduction, I mentioned that Joomla is already using the Bootstrap framework. By reducing the size of your browser, you can see how the joomla site reacts on different screens.
The site search goes under the heading - the logo, the images adapt effectively to the small screen, and the sidebar goes under the messages on the home page.
Login to your site
Now let's take a look inside the admin panel at the engine's interface. Add the word /administrator/ after the name of your site in the address bar. It will be something like this - http: //your-site.ru/administrator/
Login is possible by entering a name and password, like everywhere else that you created during the installation process.
The main toolbar, located at the very top, contains everything you need to manage your site.
You will see the control panel after the first login. It includes the most needed shortcodes and data based on the main dashboard. Thanks to Bootstrap, the admin panel is also adaptive, adjusting to any screen size.
Let's write our first article for the site. On the main panel, go to the Content section, and then to the Article Manager.
There will be three fields that are needed for writing and publishing:
Or something of your own.
You will now see your article at the top of the main page.
At the bottom of it will be pagination (pagination) so that you can return to earlier articles.
Let's go back to the admin panel and our article again so we can show you a couple more additional features.
You can also find your entry in the Recently Added Articles section or by clicking on Content then Article Manager on the main toolbar.
You can insert an image into the text by clicking on the image button below the text area.
Click on the image and you will see a pop-up window with existing images on your site.
To use a specific image, just click on it and then click on "Insert" (Insert)
Scroll to the very bottom of this window and you will see a section for uploading new images to the site.
The sidebar (Sidebar) contains the most important options for each article.
- Status: Publish article or leave in draft
- Access: If you check the "Registered" checkbox, then only registered users can see the content.
- Tags: Just like in WordPress, you can organize your content into hierarchical categories and free-form tags.
More advanced settings for publishing articles are available inside the tabs at the top of the screen.
- Publishing Options: Set a start and end date for posting an article
- Article Options: Control the display of your note.
- Editor settings configuration: Selects what users can see when editing an article on the main page.
- Internal metadata options: adding a meta description (description) and much more.
- Access to the article: access control and the ability to edit.
To view and organize the articles on your site, close the article you are editing and click on Content and then on Manage Articles.
You will see the entry text in the main area.
On the left sidebar, you can use filters, expand it and find the note text you are looking for.
Templates for Joomla
The design of your site is controlled by templates. In the toolbar on the main page, go to Extensions and then to Template Manager.
Click on "My Default style" and go to the Options tab.
You can change the color of the text, the background of your layout, upload a new logo, .
We call the main features in Joomla Components. They have their own links in the main admin toolkit.
3 of them are the most useful:
- Contacts: Allow you to create
- Joomla updates: the latest version of the engine and "core" in one click
- Tags: Organization of tags added to articles.
By adding any other component to Joomla, it will immediately be available in this list.
We have already seen that our Joomla site has a sidebar full of blogging features. Our system uses word modules for these items in the sidebar.
Click on Extensions, then Module Manager and there you will see a list of features for the blog: old notes, blog role, most popular articles and others.
You will notice them right away, they are in position – position 7
Now, finally, let's take a look at how to control the columns in the sidebar.
Go to Extensions - Template Manager - Options at the top of the screen.
Set the Preview module to Enabled.
Now add the following prefix to the url − ? tp = 1
You should get the following - http: //your-domain.ru/?tp=1
After that, you will be able to view the names of all the areas that you have placed on the site. By looking at the default modules, you can confirm that many of them are indeed position-7
Joomla Extensions
In this tutorial on creating sites on Joomla, we have only touched on the tip of the iceberg. In fact, there are 1000 of these options.
There is a place where you can find them all - this is the site extensions.joomla.org
This catalog was launched in 2006 and currently has over 9,000 of the most diverse and useful add-ons in categories ranging from Access and Security to Design and Style. Its full name is Joomla Extension Directory or JED for short. Let's call it Jeddah for simplicity and clarity 🙂
One of the main differences between JED category Joomla and WordPress is that any extension can be listed, no matter if it is free or paid.
The picture below is taken from the "Access and Security" section at the link - http://extensions.joomla.org/category/access-a-security
Going through the order of each extension, you will be pleasantly surprised by the number of comments. The most popular and trusted (credible) will be at the very top.
On the screenshot below you can see the main information about this plugin for Joomla:
- Extension name
- Download button
- Detailed Description
Only 14 lessons, a little attention and patience, and now you already know how to use one of the most flexible content management systems - Joomla. This is actually a universal engine that is suitable for all projects..
- 1 Introduction to Joomla
A small introductory part: about the possibilities, about the history, about the appearance - you will understand what you have to deal with.
- 2 Installing Joomla on localhost
Many webmasters start working on a site without putting it on the Internet, but placing it on local hosting. How to install CMS on it will be discussed in this article.
- 3 Installing Joomla on hosting
Step-by-step instructions with which any user can install Joomla on hosting so that his site works on this particular CMS.
- 4 Getting to know the admin panel and basic settings
In the article you will find a lot of useful information on setting up your resource. Starting from how to log into the admin panel and get comfortable with it, to how to change the session time, find help and delete some demo data.
- 5 Installing the template on Joomla
The lesson will tell you where to get themes for the engine, how to install them from a folder, archive or from a link, and then activate them so that the site design changes.
- 6 Create pages and menu item
About how to add a page to the site, and then place a link to it so that every visitor can read it. The lesson will teach you how to customize pages and add items to the navigation menu.
- 7 Create categories
- 8 Menu types in Joomla
Joomla is a fairly flexible system, which is reflected even in the work with menu items. There are a lot of menu types in Joomla, and the lesson will tell about them.
- 9 Creating a feedback form
If you want to maintain two-way communication with visitors, create a contact form after completing this lesson.
- 10 Modules, plugins, components
At first glance, they are synonyms, but in Joomla, it turns out that each type of add-on performs its functions in different ways. After reading the article, you will learn how to distinguish a component from a plugin, and a plugin from a module, where to find them and how to install them.
- 11 Create a photo gallery
Pictures on a site are always important, but not taking advantage of the opportunities offered by Joomla extensions is a big omission. The article deals with the Phoca Gallery component - the most popular and most functional of the free solutions.
- 12 Creating a template on Joomla
In order not to use third-party development, you can adapt your own (or any other) HTML template for Joomla. How exactly to do this, the lesson shows a good example. The structure of themes, the correct approach to archiving and customizing the templateDetails.xml file are revealed.
- 13 Transferring a site from local hosting to a server
An instruction that tells about the algorithm and steps for transferring a site from home hosting to a real one. Everything is illustrated, everything is described step by step.
- 14 Online store on Joomla
Creating an Internet project filled with goods, baskets and payment methods based on Joomla using the well-known VirtueMart extension. Read on and you will have an idea of where to start creating an online store and how this process is generally built.
The course contains a lot of useful information, illustrated with examples and pictures. After passing it, you will be able to create and administer sites built on CMS Joomla. You will understand their device and be able to configure them.
Let's first understand the very structure of building content (articles, photos, videos, music) in joomla. I think what is the material and category everyone knows? For those who do not know what material is, material is an article if it is an article site; material - video, if it is a video hosting site (for example, like youtube.com); material - photo, if it is a photo site or a portfolio site. In general, I hope it is clear what is meant by the word - material (in the future we will call it that, that is, just material, so remember this). A category is a kind of folder that combines similar materials, i.e. it's like how we create a folder on our computer and put certain files there.
It is worth remembering one thing - all materials must be in a certain category. In other words, the material cannot exist on its own, it must necessarily belong to a certain category. Categories, in turn, can have nested subcategories, and such nesting can be infinitely multiple. The material can lie both in a nested category and in a child one. This is the logic followed by many extensions for joomla. By default, when installing joomla, one category is created - uncategories. Usually, articles that do not have a category are added to this category. For example, pages like Biography or About Us, etc.
Article structure
Enable CNC in joomla
I will draw your attention to one important point - the inclusion of the CNC. What is CNC? CNC stands for human readable url, i.e. page addresses become more search engine friendly and look prettier. By default, addresses in joomla look like this, for example, http://site.ru/index.php/novosti/mir-novostei-zhivonogo-mira. In principle, this is already a friendly address, but the only thing that confuses is the insert - index.php, and I would also like the addresses to end with .html, as it should be in fact.
To implement our plans, we will perform a few simple steps. We go to the general settings of joomla - the system menu Site -> General settings and in the right part of the window we find the block " SEO Settings". Next, set the first three switches to the "Yes" position, namely: Enable SEF (NC), URL Redirection, Add Suffix to URL.
- Enable SEF (CNC) - activates the CNC,
- URL redirect - saves us from inserting index.php,
- Add suffix to URL - adds a suffix - .html to the end of the address.
- We leave aliases in Unicode in the “No” position, otherwise there may be problems with addresses.
Creating a material in Joomla: adding a category
Before you start creating categories and articles, prepare the structure of your content, you can write it all down on paper. You should immediately decide what categories and menu items you will have on the site (we'll talk about menu items a little later). Joomla is designed in such a way that special attention should be paid to this step when building content and it is not desirable to rebuild the structure in the future, because. this may entail a change of addresses, as a result of which the site may lose its positions in search engines, as well as TIC and PR.
Adding material I advise you to start by creating categories. We go to the site control panel and go to the system menu Materials -> Category manager -> Create category. Or go to the category manager and then click on the yellow button "Create". A form for adding a category opens in front of us.
header(marked with an asterisk, this means that this field is required) - enter the category title. Make sure your titles are not too long or it will look ugly.
Alias- you can not fill in, it will be generated automatically. Aliases form page addresses, but there are some subtleties here. If a category is bound to a menu item, the menu item alias will be substituted into the address, and the category alias will be ignored. If a parent category is attached to a menu item, then the addresses of child categories will be formed from this Alias field. It is advisable to enter aliases manually and make sure that they are not too long, because long addresses are not good.
Parent- here we select the parent category, if this category is at the top level, then we do not touch anything.
State— the following options are available to us here: published; not published; in the archive (you can put the entire category in the archive); in the basket (you can delete a category by moving it to the basket)
Access- here we can choose which user group our category will be available to (leave it as it is by default). We will talk about user groups and rights in other articles.
Rights- sets certain rights for the selected group
Language- select the language of the site (only for multilingual sites). We leave it as is.
Description- here we enter the description of our category. It is advisable to write two or three paragraphs of description. because this is very useful for SEO site optimization.
Now let's take a look at the right column. The following tabs are available here: Publishing Options, Basic Options, Metadata.
Publish Options- in this tab, we are asked to select the author of the category. We can select any registered user by clicking the "Select User" button.
main parameters- here we can choose an alternative layout (alternative layout is a topic for a separate article, so we leave it as it is), an image to describe the category and enter some note.
metadata- enter a short description and keywords. We also enter the author's name and select the Robots meta tag (using this option, it can allow or prohibit this category from being indexed), but I advise you to leave it by default.
When I create categories, most of the time I fill in only: Title, Parent, Description, Metadata. I leave everything else as default. But, sites are different, so everything else is up to you, if necessary, fill in or mark.
After all the actions, click on one of the three buttons - Save, Save and Close, Save and Create. All of them save material. I hope you don't need to comment on each button. From the names, the purpose of each of them should be clear.
Creation of material (articles)
We have learned how to create categories, now let's move on to publishing material, namely articles. First of all, to make it convenient for us to work with our visual editor, we need to switch it to the extended version. This is done as follows - Extensions -> Plugin Manager -> Editor - TinyMCE, open it and in the right column at the very top switch the editor mode to advanced. After that, click "Save and Close". Now go to Materials -> Material Manager -> Create Material. A similar form for adding material opens, but here it is more advanced.
Here we fill in the fields familiar to us, everything is the same as when adding a category, there is nothing complicated. The only thing to pay attention to is the "Favorites" switch. With this switch, we can mark any material as favorite. What is it for? We can, for example, mark important articles with this radio button and display them on the main page. We can also use modules to display only selected materials on the internal pages. In a word, "Favorites" is just a mark for the material and that's it.
We will assume that you have entered the title, the category has been selected, now you need to insert text and pictures. I want to draw your attention to the fact that as usual, copy-pasting is not desirable here. Those. you copy the text to the clipboard as usual - ctrl + c, but you need to paste it through the button on the toolbar. With this action, we insert only text, discarding all unnecessary tags. The fact is that when copying text from Microsoft Word or from any site, along with the text, we copy a lot of unnecessary characters to the buffer that we absolutely do not need. Be sure to remember this moment. In general, I recorded a video tutorial on this topic - how to add articles to the site correctly. I advise you to look.
Pay attention to the buttons that go under the visual editor. The first one is Material. What is she for? With this button, we can insert a link to any article we have created. Put the cursor in the right place in the article and click on the button. Select the title of the required article from the list.
Now let's insert an image into the article using the "Image" button. In order for the picture to be present and in the announcement of the article, put the cursor at the very beginning of the text, i.e. before the first letter and press the button "Image". In the modal window that opens, we will see the images directory of our site. All images of our site, or rather our materials, will be stored here. It is desirable to distribute all the images into folders. By default, two folders have already been created here - banners and sampledata. Folders are created through the media manager, from where you can also download and generally manage media materials. Well, let's not complicate things now. You can upload an image to the root of the images folder for now, or to one of two folders. There are already demo images in the sampledata folder, I advise you to use them for now.
When choosing an image, the path to the image is automatically substituted in the "Image Address" field. We just have to fill in the fields - Image Description and Image Title. These fields are optional, but I still recommend that you fill them out. Align the image - left or right, and then click on the "Insert" button.
Starting from version joomla 2.5, it became possible to set a general picture for the material, both for the announcement and for a full description. Of course, we can also set a picture for the article using the above method, but still this method will be more correct. To set a picture, look in the right column for the "Images and Links" tab. Here you can set a picture for the announcement of the material and a full description.
To upload or select an uploaded image, click on the "Select" button, and then a familiar window will open in a modal window. Make sure the image size is not too large. For a teaser (short description), add a smaller image, and for a full description, you can add a larger one. You can also choose text wrapping - left or right, or centered (but this depends on the template, i.e. these styles must be included in the template).
Let's look at a button under the editor, like "Page Break". What is she for? With this button, you can split a large article into several parts. Links to all parts will appear at the top of the article, as well as a link to the full article. Sometimes this will be very useful, for example when writing long reviews. Here again, put the cursor in the right place and click on the "Page Break" button. In the modal window that opens, enter the title of the part of the article and the title of the page in the content.
After filling in the fields, click on the "Insert page break" button, after which we will have a gray separating line, and the article will be divided into parts on the site. At the top of the article you can see links to all parts of the material.
Moving on and now let's separate the main text from the announcement. To do this, insert the cursor at the end of the first paragraph and click on the button "More". A red separator line is inserted immediately after the paragraph. It will just separate the announcement from the full content.
Button "Turn off editor" - with this button you can turn off the visual editor, if for some reason it bothers you.
And the last thing we need to fill in is the metadata fields. Description and keywords. Although, they say that these fields for ranking sites in search results no longer work as they used to, but it’s still better to fill them out. In the right part of the window for adding material, we find the last tab "Metadata". Usually, in the "Meta Description Tag" field, I insert several sentences from the first paragraph with an entry of the key query. In the "Meta-tag Keywords" field, insert the keywords that characterize the article. From 5 to 10 words will be enough I think. Don't forget keywords.
In addition to the “Metadata” tab, I think you have already noticed that there are also other tabs with settings, but we will talk about them in another article, because. The article has become quite lengthy. Well, after all the actions done, click on one of the three buttons: Save, Save and close and Save and create.
At first, I advise you to save the material through the "Save" button, the material will be saved, but will not close, and in case of errors you can quickly correct it.
And with that, I end this article. There will be more articles on creating a site on joomla, wait. See you soon!
