Joomla! 1.5 Beginner's Guide 74
TimKrause writes "I just recently received Packt's new Joomla! 1.5 Beginner's Guide by Tiggeler. If you're new to Joomla!, this is one of the best titles out there in terms of helping you get started with your first (perhaps second or third) Joomla! site. Tiggeler does a nice job covering all of the basics: everything from downloading and installing Joomla on a server, configuring it, and confirming the installation to working with and then removing the sample data that Joomla provides. The book lives up to its promise by including a chapter that promises the reader they'll have a site up and running in about an hour. Based on my own experiences, I suspect that, for most intermediate developers, Tiggeler is right; for beginners, expect to take a little more time." Read on for the rest of Tim's review.
One of the challenges that I observe with many new Web developers is struggling to understand how to develop enough sample content for one's site in order to make adjustments to the site template, and define it's structure, before adding remaining content and functionality. Tiggeler actually does a nice job carefully moving back and forth between creating content, and giving it structure. In doing so, it's also important to note that this book isn't about theory, or just reading, it's about doing. Every section includes a "Time for action" that walks site owners through doing what was explained on their own site. For more adventurous site owners, there's also a "Have a go hero" activity that is much less directed, and which provides additional (but appropriate) challenges.Joomla! 1.5: Beginner's Guide | |
author | Eric Tiggeler |
pages | 380 |
publisher | Packt Publishing |
rating | 9/10 |
reviewer | Tim Krause |
ISBN | 1847199909 |
summary | If you want to build and maintain your own web site, the Joomla! Beginner's Guide is perfect for you. |
Tiggeler starts out with the basics of downloading and installing Joomla. If you're going to use this book, you'll either need Web hosting (preferably Linux) or the expertise to install a flavor of XAMPP on a local computer. Either aren't necessarily difficult (most Web hosting offers 1-click installation of Joomla, making it as easy as a click of a button), but require thinking about Web design differently than with static HTML pages.
In any Joomla! book, there are a couple of must-haves for me, and Tiggeler does a nice job discussing them. The include: SEO, metrics and site security. Under site security note that JoomlaPack has been replaced with Akeebo Backup. It's the same great functionality, but with a new name (and a new subscription-based version that offers enhanced options). It's important to note here that Tiggeler is not only thorough in covering the basics, but often provides more advanced direction, and discusses any of the more technical issues which a developer might run into when installing a component, for example.
The book also includes screenshots that make it very easy for the reader to follow along. In fact, I found myself trying out a number of things on my own site as I read. The screenshots and directions were all accurate and correct.
Once you get comfortable with everything Tiggeler has to offer, including the very basics of component and module installation and configuration, I'd recommend that you turn to some of Packt's other titles, like Joomla 1.5 — Multimedia by Walker for additional guidance on learning the more detailed ins and outs of specific types of components. Joomla Cash is another option, and discussions key e-commerce components like VirtueMart.
Nevertheless, what sums this title up best for me is Chapter 4: Web Building Basics: Creating a Site in an Hour. I was suspicious at first, but am confident that with Tiggeler's guidance, it's quite possible to build your first basic Joomla! Web site in about an hour. That's an excellent premise, and the book delivers on it well.
If you're looking for a beginner to intermediate book, there aren't many other alternatives available. O'Reilly has a titled called Using Joomla! by Severdia and Crowder, that was published earlier this year. At the time, I was pretty impressed with it, but I think readers will find Tiggeler to be both more direct and more focused in his approach. For example, Severdia and Crowder devoted a chapter in their book to Joomla 1.6. It was interesting, but largely academic given that 1.6 is still in beta and not something most of us will be working with.
I teach Web Design, including a course on Web Content Management Systems (Drupal, Joomla and WordPress) and have literally read dozens of these types of books in the past year or so. I also teach a capstone course where my students create Joomla-based sites for local non-profit organizations. We have completed sites for nearly 100 clients in the past two years. Currently, Joomla 1.5 Beginner's Guide is what I recommend to new Joomla! site owners. As a result, I also will begin using the same book in class starting next semester so that students are familiar with what their clients will be reading.
Tim Krause is an Assistant Professor of Computing and New Media Technologies at the University of Wisconsin — Stevens Point. He writes regularly about Joomla and Web Content Management systems.
You can purchase Joomla! 1.5 Beginner's Guide from amazon.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.
I thoroughly enjoy the Joomla (Score:4, Informative)
Nevertheless, what sums this title up best for me is Chapter 4: Web Building Basics: Creating a Site in an Hour. I was suspicious at first, but am confident that with Tiggeler's guidance, it's quite possible to build your first basic Joomla! Web site in about an hour. That's an excellent premise, and the book delivers on it well.
Even less than that: install with default data, write up some menus, install a logo and delete all the default articles.
Bada bing bada boom.
always include a WTF is ? (Score:4, Informative)
Should have including a phrase stating Joomla! is a combined content management system (CMS) and web application framework in PHP using MySQL back end.
Seriously, I've used several such systems over the past 12 years but never heard of Joomla!, so I know I can't be the only one who would have appreciated a phrase defining the thing
obsolete already - joomla 1.6 is almost ready (Score:4, Informative)
this book is already obsolete, joomla 1.6 is almost ready to be released as stable, currently it's in a state of public beta testing (beta 2).
there are enormous differences between 1.5 and 1.6, menus are in different places, API has changed a lot (templates for 1.5 won't work for 1.6 without major changes) and so on.
A little late (Score:3, Informative)
Version 1.6 is in beta testing and should be stable in a few months (or less). Judging from the activity on the Joomlacode site, I'd bet sooner.
Anyone considering buying this book should wait a few months for it to be made obsolete by the release of version 1.6.....that way they can get it at a discount.
Seriously though, anyone considering buying this book should wait until they write the beginners guide for 1.6 which has radical changes and completely eliminates the legacy layer, as well as single level depth section/category organization.
Joomla is great! (Score:2, Informative)
Joomla is simply some of the best FOSS available.
I am an 'Average Joe C programmer' and have used Joomla to create at least 4 simple sites in under a weekend of work (including writing my own templates, and components).
My only complaint with Joomla has been that the CMS does not have automated way to download and install CMS/component/template/module updates (e.g. something like apt-get update/upgrade). Unless you keep on top of security patches your site is very likely to be cracked within a year in my experience. However, that said, if you keep on top of the updates the you're likely to save yourself a whack of work by using Joomla.
Joomla 1.0.x, and 1.5.x, have both been amazing and keep getting better IMOP! I look very forward to 1.6!!
Re:always include a WTF is ? (Score:1, Informative)
Wow seriously, you've never heard of i?. I believe Joomla! is either the most popular or second most popular PHP based CMS (next to drupal).
Have you been sleeping for the past 6 years?
I agree though they should have stated what Joomla! is
Re:always include a WTF is ? (Score:3, Informative)
Seriously, I've used several such systems over the past 12 years but never heard of Joomla!...
Seriously!?! Joomla! is the number one non-wikipedia result on Google for the search "content management system" (followed by Drupal, opensourceCMS and Alfresco). I've only been working with various CMS for 7 years (started with PHP-nuke/postNuke) and yet I don't know a single web developer/programmer who hasn't at least read about (if not tried out) Mambo/Joomla! and Drupal.
For crying out loud, there have been five slashdot articles [slashdot.org] about Joomla! since the beginning of 2010. I, for one, don't feel that slashdot readers need to be told such details when speaking about industry-leaders in a tech field. I fully accept that some slashdotters will be lost if an article mentions AMD without the phrase "the semiconductor and microprocessor manufacturer" - I just don't think it's that much effort for those who are lost to JFGI.
Re:always include a WTF is ? (Score:4, Informative)
Symfony and Zend are php frameworks, not CMS's.