Joomla! How-To's: Components

Quick Tip: Use JoomlaXplorer to modify your template.

Written by Cory | March 17, 2007 | (13)

I often find that the template manager is not very useful in terms of making modifications to a template. When you click "Save" in the template manager after editing the template HTML (index.php) or CSS (template_css.css) file, the manager takes you back to the list of installed templates. If you need to make another change, you have to re-open the Edit CSS or Edit HTML screen, which adds an extra step.

Another drawback of the template manager (in Joomla! 1.0.x) is that it only allows you to edit the "index.php" and "template_css.css" files. For some of the more advanced templates, there are more files that you may need to modify. You might also need to upload some more images for your modification.

That's where JoomlaXplorer comes in. It is a file manager that enables you to upload, modify, and delete files from your Joomla! installation via the administrator control panel. I use it every time I want to make a change to a template. For one thing, when I make a change to the HTML or CSS, it stays on the editor page. That way, I can check to see if the change I made produced the desired outcome or if I need to make more changes, and I can quickly go back and make more changes if necessary. It also allows me to edit any file in the template's folder and not just "index.php" and "template_css.css". Finally, it gives me the opportunity to replace images by uploading or deleting images based on my requirements.

So, if you haven't done so already, head over to the Joomla! Extensions Directory and get yourself a copy of JoomlaXplorer. It is the most useful component for web administrators available for Joomla!, and it will help you make changes to your site's template.

How to use the syndicate (RSS) component in Joomla!

Written by Cory | November 30, 2006 | (51)

Website content syndication has been around for a while in the form of RSS, or "Really Simple Syndication." If you want to know more about RSS, you can either ask the source of all knowledge (search for "RSS"), or read about it at Wikipedia. For the sake of brevity, I will only discuss how to use Joomla!'s Syndicate component and third-party RSS services, and I will try to provide a list of other RSS components for Joomla!

NOTE: This "How-to" only applies to Joomla! 1.0. It does not apply to Joomla! 1.5.

How to find the right tool for the job

Written by Cory | November 03, 2006 | (2)

One of the most common questions I see in the forums is, "Is there a component/module/mambot/plugin that does (insert your function of choice here)?" Whenever I see a question like that, I head over to the Joomla! Extensions Directory (JED), perform a quick search, and find a list of components that either meet the person's need, or come really close to what the person wants. At the time I am writing this, the JED lists 947 Joomla! extensions.

My point is, if you ever find yourself needing a specific function, head over to the JED and do a quick search. Chances are, if you can't find it there, you can't find it anywhere.

How to display a component's output and nothing else

Written by Cory | October 28, 2006 | (7)

I know it sounds weird, but I came across a situation in which I needed to see a component's output and nothing else. That allowed me to better debug the HTML that was coming from the component.

Special thanks to Dean Marshall for showing me this nifty little trick.

It's pretty simple, just follow these steps:

• Create a menu item that links to your component.
• Once you have created your menu item, click on that menu item in your Menu Manager like you were going to edit the menu item.
• Next to "URL", you should see something like "index.php?option=com_yourcomponent&...". Copy that URL.
• In the browser address bar, type the domain name and path to your website along with the URL information you copied in the previous step.
• Change "index.php" to "index2.php", and voila! You are now looking at just your component's output.

Must-have Components

Written by Cory | September 08, 2006 | (7)

It is little secret that Joomla! has a thriving 3rd party developer community.  Any function you can think of is probably already available in one of the many 3rd party extensions. It is sometimes difficult to wade through all of the choices that are out there to determine what you need, so I have put together a short list of components that I feel are must-have components. So, without further adieu, here is my list: