I Joomla, therefore I am …

As I continue my quest to be the number one search result for the phrase the “best web designer in Canada”, I realized that I had not explained why I build websites using the Joomla content management system (CMS). In my opinion, the Joomla CMS is the best option for today’s website for many reasons. I will try and touch on as many as possible over the next few days.

1. There are over 3,000 programmers actively developing Joomla worldwide. This is more manpower than any commercial software corporation has working on a single project, yet Joomla is free. It was not until I had built and rebuilt 3 websites for myself, that I really began to appreciate what a great CMS Joomla is. It was not until I built my second website for a client that I decided to donate funds to the project. The concept of open-source software was strange to me, but the more I have worked with Joomla, and other open-source software, that I have really come to appreciate the power of this phenomena. Today I look for ways that I can support the project.

I will work on adding to this list over the next few days, so the you can understand why I believe so strongly in this system as a base for any website.

Well today I am stuck again at the 11^th spot in the search results for the “best web designer in Canada”. My initial reaction was disappointment, but this turned around, once I noticed that the previous 10 are the same, and I am still the 11^th. Now that I have knocked out 132, 999,989 sites/pages to get here, I am happy to still be here. This is especially so, as I have passed many other “SEO specialty companies” to get here. I may just need to do some more research and get more creative to move the last 10 places.

Today I want to talk about templates some more. I realize I may have bashed this to death yesterday, without really explaining what templates are and how they work in the Joomla CMS.

Templates are not the rigid structured designs that attempt to cookie cutter a site into a preset design. Today templates are a system that manages the presentation of a website, allows site-wide changes to be managed easily, and allows sophisticated customization to the page by page display and arrangement of content.

Templates are a group of files that manage the overall look of the site. There are 2 main files in a template, the index.php file that handles the code and the ordering of the modules on the page, and the css file that handles the content placement, site images and colors. These can be broken down into a number of subfiles, and better template companies do this to further group and segregate functions.

The best type of templates map out a web page into a large number or areas, that the designer or site owner can activate or deactivate simply by inserting an extension into them. Typically these are modules that provide information or functions to the user. Here is an example of a great web page layout. Each module position automatically collapses if there is nothing put in it, and the page adjusts to provide or use the space. The module containers are identified in the index file, and then positioned and designed in the css file.

This is a pretty general explanation of the template system, but my goal is simply to help you understand that templates and template design are very important in what they offer that you can do with them. In a well designed template, changing the colors and images can easily be accomplished if needed.

Well, today I maintained my spot in the 11^th result under the search phrase the “best web designer in Canada”. Although I didn’t advance, the fact that I remained the same makes me very happy.

Yesterday I started a hub on HubPages, to add to my blogs on Blogger, WordPress, Blog.ca and TheSignWorx. This should add another set of links to help build my ranking.

To continue yesterday’s blog, let’s look at what I do to build a Joomla CMS based website.

Depending on the client, and the level of involvement that they want to have during their website construction, I will send them to my favorite commercial template companies or I will search for one for them. I try and find out as much about their business, and what they want to use the website for, so I can determine a template design I think goes with their plans. Once I have a design in mind, I may get them to review it before I proceed. This can be tricky, just like sending the client to the template sites, because they can spend an awful lot of time picking the perfect one, when it is not as crucial a decision as most people make it.

Whatever template is chosen for the site, will become the look that site visitors associate with the site. As long as the company’s logo blends well with the site look and feel, then basically that is all that matters. The rest is just personal taste of the person selecting the template, and not the end user. I am amazed at how much time and money are spent on template selection and customization. My feeling is, as long as it looks good (opinion, I know), is easy to navigate and is customizable, then get the site up and running. If people are attracted to the content of the site, then they will tolerate tweaks to the site to improve or even dramatically change it.

I remember my daughter hating the new Facebook after their last major change, yet I haven’t heard a bad word in months now. (She has obviously gotten used to the new version, as she still spends a lot of time on it!)

The look and operation of a site aren’t written in stone. Everything is fluid on the web, so don’t spend a bunch of time on picking a template because you like the buttons, get your website up and active, then tweak it. With Joomla, you can change the template in about 30 seconds, without any down time. Only when you change from one design company to another will you need to reposition modules, in most cases.

Don’t get me wrong. Template selection is important, with regard to look, feel and operation, but it can be changed, so find the first one you like and get your site going. This to me is more important than delaying it to tweak the template. Your site visitors will not see your site through your eyes, each be looking at it with an open mind.

My favorite commercial template companies:

1. JoomlArt
2. Shape5 templates
3. YOOTheme
4. Template Monster

This is one of my secrets to being the “best web designer in Canada”, although it’s not a secret anymore.

Well, after ensuring that I continue to post regularly, I am climbing the ladder, so to speak, on my quest to be ranked #1 under the search phrase “best web designer in Canada”.

I hit spot #11 this morning, although I am still on page 2 of the search results, still not bad I think given that just 2 weeks ago I wasn’t listed in the top 1,000 results.

To further my current blog discussion on website design, today I will discuss customizing Joomla CMS based sites.

As I designer I encounter websites built by other programmers, designers and individuals. Most of these sites have been really messed up as the creators attempt to rewrite Joomla to do what they want it to do. This would appear to be the simplest or traditional approach in website building, code, code, code.

This is not the way to build a Joomla CMS website. Joomla is a content management system, that handles this task in a very good way. In addition to this, it includes a framework, where extensions can be installed to extend what Joomla can do. Joomla or an extension can be “hacked” (meaning the the code is altered) to provide a desired change.  This method of website development has the following negative long (and short term) effects:

1. Other designers/programmers need to figure out what the original creator did, before they can make additions, changes or upgrades,
2. Adding new extensions can have questionable results, especially if Joomla core presentation files have been modified,
3. Updating Joomla and extensions can have questionable results. Joomla as well as all extensions are regularly updated to improve, fix bugs and address security issues. These updates can remove customized coding and cause websites to stop working,
4. Coding costs more as the site owner is paying 100% of the website customization.

The proper way to customize a Joomla website is through the use of extensions. The following steps should be pursued when designing/building a website:

1. In all cases, currently available extensions should be sought that addresses the web function requirement. Extensions may be found in the Joomla JED, as well as through searches with Google, Yahoo , Answers or your favorite search provider. Should the extension design not blend with the site template, a new extension template should be created (where possible).
2. Should an extension not be available that can be configured to suite the website requirement, an extension should be created that addresses the need, then released to the open-source community in return for using the Joomla CMS and other open-source extensions.

Every aspect of Joomla and extensions can be customized in this manner to produce the desired website look and operation. These steps eliminate the risk of core files being changed, add to the extensions available to the community and create a website that can be maintained and updated by anyone.

Knowing and following these steps in designing a website are some of the reasons that I should be listed as the best web designer in Canada.