Organizing Your Content
Written by Cory |
September 13, 2006
| 
(71)
Although it can do so much more than manage content, Joomla! is, at its core, a Content Management System (CMS). It is important for aspring Joomla! site developers to have at least a basic understanding of how Joomla! is set up to organize content. Proper content organization can greatly improve the flow and usability of your website. This article is meant to provide that basic understanding, and give steps to successfully organizing your content.
Joomla! Content Structure
Joomla! was designed to organized content in a Section-Category-Content Item structure. A basic structure might look like this:
- News (Section)
- Weather (Category)
- Sports (Category)
- Italy wins the World Cup! (Content Item)
- #1 Ohio State defeats #2 Texas 24-7 (Content Item)
- Politics (Category)
- Recipes (Section)
- French (Category)
- Italian (Category)
- How to bake lasagna (Content Item)
- How to cook spaghetti the right way (Content Item)
- Chinese (Category)
Hopefully you get the idea. It is important to understand this structure before proceeding to actually developing the structure for your site.
Step 1: What is your site about?
I know this usually goes without saying, but please know what your site is about before you create your first section or category. Many people get so wrapped up in the idea that they can just enter content as easily as they create documents in a word processor that they lose site of the fact that the site should have a purpose.
Your content structure should stem from the overall purpose of your site. It is not the other way around.
Step 2: Design your structure on paper (or in a word processor)
Resist the temptation to start creating Sections and Categories as soon as you have successfully installed Joomla!. You will be glad you did months from now when you realize that you created a category out of a topic that should really be a section. This is relatively easy to fix, but why not just do it right the first time?
Create a hierarchy of major topics and sub-topics. Soon, you will start to see the organization of your site take shape. Once you are satisfied that you have your structure designed, then you can start crating Sections and Categories.
Step 3: Create all of your Sections
The top level in the Joomla! content structure is called a "Section". Sections are used to differentiate between groups of content Categories. Now that you have all of your Sections and Categories defined on paper, it is time to start creating Sections in your Joomla! administrator control panel.
Section Creation Steps
Follow these steps for each Section you want to create.
- Log in to your administrator control panel.
- Click on "Content->Section Manager".
- In the Section Manager, click "New" in the toolbar.
- Fill in the necessary information. The only thing you need is a title. The other fields are optional.
- Click "Save" in the toolbar.
Step 4: Create all of your Categories
The second level in the Joomla! content structure is called a "Category". Categories are used to differentiate between groups of content items. Now that all of your Sections are in place, you can start adding Categories.
Category Creation Steps
Follow these steps for each Category you want to create.
- Log in to your administrator control panel.
- Click on "Content->Category Manager".
- In the Category Manager, click "New" in the toolbar.
- Fill in the necessary information. The only thing you need is a title. The other fields are optional.
- Click "Save" in the toolbar.
Step 5: Start adding content
Now you're ready to start adding content. Just remember to put each content item in the correct Section/Category.
What about static content items?
Static content items are basically just uncategoriezed content items. You should have relatively few static content items in your site. Any content item that you have that does not fit into one of your pre-defined categories should be a static (uncategorized) content item.
Other Content Management Options
Simple sites without dynamic content
Your website might be a simple, 5-10 page site that will never have dynamically updated content. In that case, you should just make each page a static content item and bypass the "Section-Category" structure altogether.
Tags/Folksonomy
Tagging is a new way to organize content. Simply put, you organize it as you go. There is little to no need to create sections and categories, because you categorize content items as you create them. The way it works is, you apply key words to your content items, and those key words act as categories. Your user then has the ability to look through those key words in something called a "Tag Cloud" or a key word list, and select content items based on his or her interest in a particular key word.
Social tagging, also called "Folksonomy", takes the concept of tagging one step further by allowing your users to add their own key words, or tags, to your content items. That way, your user base organizes your content for you based on what they think your content is about.
Tagging is now available for Joomla! with Phil Taylor's "Tags" component. If you are interested in this type of content organization, I recommend you check out this component.
Let's sum this up
Joomla! is an advanced content management system, but unless you understand how to properly organize and manage your content, you render many of Joomla!'s advanced features useless. Take the time to develop your content structure first, and you will save yourself a lot of headaches later.
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written by BTOS, September 30, 2006
Confusing at best. The heirachy of one's plan cannot be deployed without understanding how it relates to the convoluted plan of Joomla...for instance, what is the difference between a section and a menu? How to link a menu to a section. The more I read here, the more confused I get. Where's the screen shots?
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written by Cory, September 30, 2006
If you were confused by my tutorial, you might find the one I linked to in the first comment more helpful. It contains diagrams which you might find more useful. That's why I linked to it 
.
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written by Ricardo, October 17, 2006
Hi,
I´m trying to develop a website in Joomla! Is it possible to insert a news item inside a static page content?
I´m trying to develop a website in Joomla! Is it possible to insert a news item inside a static page content?
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written by Cory, October 17, 2006
@Ricardo... Sure, it's possible to do that. But, if you are planning on creating news items regularly, it is a good idea to use the section/category/content item setup along with something like the latest news module to make it more dynamic.
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written by John-Joseph, January 13, 2007
I am a professional Developer and This is an Excellent Tutorial !!!!!!!
Just one reading and I was off and running.
Excellent Job !
Just one reading and I was off and running.
Excellent Job !
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written by jomlaturk, January 18, 2007
The way it works is, you apply key words to your content items, and those key words act as categories. Your user then has the ability to look through those key words in something called a "Tag Cloud"
I have a question.
how do you create a content item without choosing a section or category in joomla ???
I have a question.
how do you create a content item without choosing a section or category in joomla ???
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written by Cory, January 18, 2007
@joomlaturk: The only option in Joomla! 1.0.x is to create static content. You could just create a "Miscellaneous" section and a "Miscellaneous" category, then put everything in there, but you have to select a section and a category.
In Joomla! 1.5, static content is no longer called "static". It is called "uncategorized", which gives you the option to create content without choosing a section or category.
In Joomla! 1.5, static content is no longer called "static". It is called "uncategorized", which gives you the option to create content without choosing a section or category.
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written by jomlaturk, January 19, 2007
something like this ha !! http://www.joomla-components.co.uk/tag/cloud/
I give you open source meta tag cloud URL
first register to site and go here and download
http://phlooid.com/joomla_downloads/Download/JoomlaModules/mod_metatagcloud1.0-Beta2.zip/
I give you open source meta tag cloud URL
first register to site and go here and download
http://phlooid.com/joomla_downloads/Download/JoomlaModules/mod_metatagcloud1.0-Beta2.zip/
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written by Mark, March 01, 2007
There is also a module called tags who can do this. You can find it at the joomla extention search on joomla.org
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written by joomlajunkie, April 11, 2007
hi do you know if its possible to have an article published under latest news but not have it published on the front page. I mean having(ONLY) the title of an article under latest news on the front the contents of it should not show on the frontpage though.
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written by Cory, April 11, 2007
Yes, that is possible. When you create your article, make sure that the "Show on Frontpage" box is unchecked. That way, it will not be published to the front page. The latest news module should automatically display the article's title even though it is not published to the front page.
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written by serverwala, May 22, 2007
Very useful tutorial for beginners with Joomla.
moderated to remove spam
moderated to remove spam
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written by Eriks, June 26, 2007
How can I have the "latest article" from a given section appear in "user1" area of the page? I am trying to get the main section's article be the "front page article", then the newest stories from two other sections appear in user1 and user2.
Thanks!
Thanks!
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written by Khalid, July 20, 2007
This is a question similar to Ricardo's .. is it possible to add a contact category (table) to a static page? if yes, how? any help would be much appreciated
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written by pd, August 10, 2007
Great info. I have a question on this topic. I am still new w/ joomla but when surfing I come upon many different joomla sites that are pulling in content from joomla and their front page looks like joomla's front page (article wise)
How is this done?
I have figured out how to add an rss to a position but not to a category or section.
Thanks for the help/
How is this done?
I have figured out how to add an rss to a position but not to a category or section.
Thanks for the help/
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written by Brian Ashe, August 13, 2007
what about a user manual??? tried to open de the actual link but its blank. they need to fix up their website.
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written by Joomla Newbie, August 22, 2007
Thanks Cory,
I was puzzling how to build my site but you summed it up perfectly.
Static Content Items! - The way to bypass Joomla's hierarchical structure.
I am interested as to why you mentioned you should have relatively few static items. Surely this is a good way to simplify sections of a site where categories are not needed?
Anyway thanks for your post. Keep up the good work!
I was puzzling how to build my site but you summed it up perfectly.
Static Content Items! - The way to bypass Joomla's hierarchical structure.
I am interested as to why you mentioned you should have relatively few static items. Surely this is a good way to simplify sections of a site where categories are not needed?
Anyway thanks for your post. Keep up the good work!
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written by Cory, August 22, 2007
Hi Joomla Newbie,
You are absolutely right about the Static Content Items. I have built entire sites before using nothing but Static Content Items. It really just depends on the needs of the specific site you are developing. There is no set way of doing things in Joomla, and it is flexible enough to work how you need it to work.
Thanks for stopping by!
Cory
You are absolutely right about the Static Content Items. I have built entire sites before using nothing but Static Content Items. It really just depends on the needs of the specific site you are developing. There is no set way of doing things in Joomla, and it is flexible enough to work how you need it to work.
Thanks for stopping by!
Cory
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written by yoshita, September 07, 2007
hi
i want to use this joomla cms in my new project. kindly let me know how to use it in my .net project.i am a dot net programmer and unable to know php.
i want to use this joomla cms in my new project. kindly let me know how to use it in my .net project.i am a dot net programmer and unable to know php.
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written by yoshi, September 07, 2007
hi
i want to use this joomla cms in my new project. kindly let me know how to use it in my .net project.i am a dot net programmer and unable to know php. 20
i want to use this joomla cms in my new project. kindly let me know how to use it in my .net project.i am a dot net programmer and unable to know php. 20
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written by Cory, September 07, 2007
Hi Yoshita,
You do not necessarily need to know php to use Joomla. It helps to know php if you want to customize things, but you should be able to install it and use it without knowing php. The only requirement is that your server supports php and mysql.
I'm not sure if it is possible to integrate .net with Joomla. That is beyond my expertise.
You do not necessarily need to know php to use Joomla. It helps to know php if you want to customize things, but you should be able to install it and use it without knowing php. The only requirement is that your server supports php and mysql.
I'm not sure if it is possible to integrate .net with Joomla. That is beyond my expertise.
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written by DJS, September 16, 2007
Great tutorial. Simple and clear. Maybe you'll open to a suggestion? After adding my section, and then my category, what I wanted to do next it get these appearing on the page. It would be lovely to see that appended to your article.
Darren
Darren
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written by Leigh, September 25, 2007
Nice tutorial. However, I am interested to know whether it is possible to have sections and content but not categories. Thanks
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written by Cory, September 25, 2007
Hi Leigh,
I do not believe that is possible. Why do you want to do that?
Cory
I do not believe that is possible. Why do you want to do that?
Cory
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written by Leigh, September 25, 2007
Thanks for quick reply Cory.
It is ok now, I have it sorted. I never properly looking into the menu configurations and now realise that it is possible to link to virtually everything through the menu manager e.g. component-frontpage, blog-content section etc..
Thanks anyway.
Leigh
It is ok now, I have it sorted. I never properly looking into the menu configurations and now realise that it is possible to link to virtually everything through the menu manager e.g. component-frontpage, blog-content section etc..
Thanks anyway.
Leigh
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written by Chunga, October 16, 2007
Thanks for the tutorial and the great site Cory. I'm a photographer, new to Joomla, and wanting to create a website for my business which means I'll primarily be having picture galleries.
I figure my site would have this kind of structure:
Welcome (Section)
Galleries (Section)
- Fashion (Category)
-- fashion photos (Content items)
- Portraits (Category)
-- portrait photos (Content items)
Contact (Section)
Does that seem correct? For my photo galleries, do you have recommendations for those? I've heard Expose4 mentioned. And would that be a single "Content item"?
Thanks!
I figure my site would have this kind of structure:
Welcome (Section)
Galleries (Section)
- Fashion (Category)
-- fashion photos (Content items)
- Portraits (Category)
-- portrait photos (Content items)
Contact (Section)
Does that seem correct? For my photo galleries, do you have recommendations for those? I've heard Expose4 mentioned. And would that be a single "Content item"?
Thanks!
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written by Cory, October 16, 2007
Hi Chunga,
When I talk about organizing your content, I am talking about the content created within the core content component. For a photo gallery, you do not want to use the core content component because there are so many great photo gallery components available for Joomla.
Here is the galleries page in the Joomla extensions directory. I have heard Expose is good, and I have also heard good things about RSGallery2.
Good luck!
When I talk about organizing your content, I am talking about the content created within the core content component. For a photo gallery, you do not want to use the core content component because there are so many great photo gallery components available for Joomla.
Here is the galleries page in the Joomla extensions directory. I have heard Expose is good, and I have also heard good things about RSGallery2.
Good luck!
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written by joe, October 25, 2007
hey cory,
Just want to say thanks for having such a clear and helpful site. I finally got the picture of what a static content item is thanks to your explanation.
Just a heads up on a typo, you spelled creating wrong in the paragraph:
"Create a hierarchy of major topics and sub-topics. Soon, you will start to see the organization of your site take shape. Once you are satisfied that you have your structure designed, then you can start CRATING Sections and Categories."
Hope that helps,
joe
Just want to say thanks for having such a clear and helpful site. I finally got the picture of what a static content item is thanks to your explanation.
Just a heads up on a typo, you spelled creating wrong in the paragraph:
"Create a hierarchy of major topics and sub-topics. Soon, you will start to see the organization of your site take shape. Once you are satisfied that you have your structure designed, then you can start CRATING Sections and Categories."
Hope that helps,
joe
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written by Adodis, October 26, 2007
This is a very good piece of information, for someone who really wants to begin....
very good beginner guide..
very good beginner guide..
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written by Nathan, November 02, 2007
Hi Cory!
My site is a consumer reivew site, where browsers can submit their own product reivews. It's not quite ready yet. I get the whole static content part, and I have managed to create the basic constructs of the site (eg home page, about section, terms and conditions etc), but ironically I currently am in the position where I have a review site, without the reviewing part!!! :-
I must admit, I had never heard of joomla until I came up with the idea of randomly creating a website to satisfy my quest to cure boredom - so I feel I have completely jumped in at the deep end here with the whole 'review' thing!
I have chosen a site template, and it looks great, and I have just installed the most daunting looking script ever - jreviews. As far as I understand, it uses the basic core management of joomla and builds up from this. If you have any advice on how to set the whole category/section bit up, I would really appreciate it.
Its a site that reviews numerous categories, not just one. For example, users could expect to see dvd reviews, stereo reviews, ipods, mobile phones - pretty much anything!
Would I have this kind of structure:
Review (section)
DVD (category)
Troy (content item)
iPod(category)
nano (content item)
60gb iPod video (content item) ?
Sorry to waffle on, Im just keen to learn as much as I can, and this seemed the place to come!
Kind Regards,
Nath
My site is a consumer reivew site, where browsers can submit their own product reivews. It's not quite ready yet. I get the whole static content part, and I have managed to create the basic constructs of the site (eg home page, about section, terms and conditions etc), but ironically I currently am in the position where I have a review site, without the reviewing part!!! :-
I must admit, I had never heard of joomla until I came up with the idea of randomly creating a website to satisfy my quest to cure boredom - so I feel I have completely jumped in at the deep end here with the whole 'review' thing!
I have chosen a site template, and it looks great, and I have just installed the most daunting looking script ever - jreviews. As far as I understand, it uses the basic core management of joomla and builds up from this. If you have any advice on how to set the whole category/section bit up, I would really appreciate it.
Its a site that reviews numerous categories, not just one. For example, users could expect to see dvd reviews, stereo reviews, ipods, mobile phones - pretty much anything!
Would I have this kind of structure:
Review (section)
DVD (category)
Troy (content item)
iPod(category)
nano (content item)
60gb iPod video (content item) ?
Sorry to waffle on, Im just keen to learn as much as I can, and this seemed the place to come!
Kind Regards,
Nath
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written by Cory, November 02, 2007
Hi Nathan,
I would try to be as generic as possible with your categories. Here's how I would do it:
Reviews (Section)
- Movies (Category)
- - Troy (Content Item)
- Portable Media Devices (Category)
- - iPod Nano (Content Item)
- - iPod Video 60 GB (Content Item)
- - Zune (Content Item
- - etc.
I hope that helps.
Cory
I would try to be as generic as possible with your categories. Here's how I would do it:
Reviews (Section)
- Movies (Category)
- - Troy (Content Item)
- Portable Media Devices (Category)
- - iPod Nano (Content Item)
- - iPod Video 60 GB (Content Item)
- - Zune (Content Item
- - etc.
I hope that helps.
Cory
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written by Nathan, November 02, 2007
Thanks cory, have you ever used jreviews before? If so is there any advice you could give?
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written by Cory, November 02, 2007
Hi Nathan,
I have never used jreviews. I am not familiar with that product.
Cory
I have never used jreviews. I am not familiar with that product.
Cory
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written by Slimjim, November 07, 2007
Hi
I think your tutorial is very good as it helps people to understand how joomla structures content not intructions just how to build sections etc.
I'm trying to build a website that is to be a sort of online encylopedia of outdoor sculptures (for those interested in the subject). It will list upward of a thousand locations around the world where people can see good examples, with maps, directions, photographs, rating and related into. But here's my problem area.
I want users to navigate to examples of sculptures in a variety of ways using this great teg cloud that you have shown us , but also through a directory system, e.g a directory of locations, or a directory of historical periods or a directory of scultpure typres, e.g. figurative , abstract, bronze, etc.
My problem is that in order to do this i need each content item to be ordered in several different ways so committing to one singe category/section thread isn't possible.
My question is: would creating a thousand or so static content items with tags and then installing directory/tree components, and tag clouds etc. be the way to go?
Any ideas?
I think your tutorial is very good as it helps people to understand how joomla structures content not intructions just how to build sections etc.
I'm trying to build a website that is to be a sort of online encylopedia of outdoor sculptures (for those interested in the subject). It will list upward of a thousand locations around the world where people can see good examples, with maps, directions, photographs, rating and related into. But here's my problem area.
I want users to navigate to examples of sculptures in a variety of ways using this great teg cloud that you have shown us , but also through a directory system, e.g a directory of locations, or a directory of historical periods or a directory of scultpure typres, e.g. figurative , abstract, bronze, etc.
My problem is that in order to do this i need each content item to be ordered in several different ways so committing to one singe category/section thread isn't possible.
My question is: would creating a thousand or so static content items with tags and then installing directory/tree components, and tag clouds etc. be the way to go?
Any ideas?
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written by Terion, December 03, 2007
Thanks for a nice site with easy to find information...now I know why my menus were all messed up , I did category, section, content..oops...you didn't mention if this can be fixed , I'm tempted to delete all of the menus I've made but dont know if it will cause issues...I am not all that web savy..I just wanted a little website and Joomla looked fun ....so far (2 days now) it hasn't been fun at all.....LOL...
so how does a person fix their menus if they really mess them up.
so how does a person fix their menus if they really mess them up.
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written by Ajit Abraham, December 10, 2007
I am trying to create a church website with the following concept.
The church has different sub divisions within for eg Youth Wing, Ladies Wing etc.
I will create Sections for each of these divisions and there will be specific people (authors) appointed to submit contents to their respective Sections.
I want to restrict an author of Youth Wing, to submit content only to the YouthWingContent. The author of LadiesWing should be able to submit content only to LadiesWingContent.
Is this possible in Joomla?
Regards
Ajit
The church has different sub divisions within for eg Youth Wing, Ladies Wing etc.
I will create Sections for each of these divisions and there will be specific people (authors) appointed to submit contents to their respective Sections.
I want to restrict an author of Youth Wing, to submit content only to the YouthWingContent. The author of LadiesWing should be able to submit content only to LadiesWingContent.
Is this possible in Joomla?
Regards
Ajit
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written by Cory, December 10, 2007
Hi Ajit,
Unfortunately, this is not possible with core Joomla functionality. You could try looking into some of the ACL components available for Joomla which add this functionality. You can find a list of them here: http://extensions.joomla.org/c...Itemid,35/
Good luck!
Cory
Unfortunately, this is not possible with core Joomla functionality. You could try looking into some of the ACL components available for Joomla which add this functionality. You can find a list of them here: http://extensions.joomla.org/c...Itemid,35/
Good luck!
Cory
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written by Ajit Abraham, December 10, 2007
Thanks for the super fast reply, Cory.
I will dig into that link that you gave.
Thanks once again
I will dig into that link that you gave.
Thanks once again
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written by Sharon, February 13, 2008
This seems basic, but I can't find a way to do it - I have created my heirarchy. Now, I want something like a menu item that displays a page listing my sections, with descriptions. Section Names would each link to a page that lists the Categories for that Section. Categorie Names would link to a blog list of Content Items assigned to that Category. Alternately one page with all these links in an outline format would be great. But all I can figure out how to get is the blog list of content for a category or for a section. There must be a way...?
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written by Rodrigo, February 16, 2008
First of all, thanks for helping us!
I have a site (www.revistaautor.com) and I want to separate the content on the front page based on categories. I would like to do something like that:
CATEGORY 1
Article A
Article B
CATEGORY 2
Article C
Article D
and so on.
The point is that I want to put the words CATEGORY 1 and 2 and...
Is there any component to do that?
Thanks a lot
I have a site (www.revistaautor.com) and I want to separate the content on the front page based on categories. I would like to do something like that:
CATEGORY 1
Article A
Article B
CATEGORY 2
Article C
Article D
and so on.
The point is that I want to put the words CATEGORY 1 and 2 and...
Is there any component to do that?
Thanks a lot
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written by Cory, February 16, 2008
Hi Rodrigo,
You might want to check out the iJoomla Magazine component. It is not free, but I think it will do what you are asking for.
Cory
You might want to check out the iJoomla Magazine component. It is not free, but I think it will do what you are asking for.
Cory
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written by Paul Davies, May 13, 2008
Thanks for this article. I wish I had read it earlier!
I am new to Joomla (about 6 weeks ago) and I did realise that the decisions I made at the outset regarding sections & categories could critically affect the ease of developing the site, however I did get into a fundamental stalemate with myself as to which of two basic approaches was best. I think I made the right choice but would welcome guidance as to pros/cons of either. The best way may be obvious to more experienced people.
Basically I run 3 junior footbal clubs and the basic types of information reported for each is the same so I felt I could have structured sections & categories in either of the following two ways:
FIRST WAY:
Team1 (section)
T1 Results & Fixtures (category)
T1 Photos (category)
T1 News (category)
Team2 (section)
T2 Results & Fixtures (category)
T2 Photos (category)
T2 News (category)
SECOND WAY
Results & Fixtures (section)
T1 results & fixtures (category)
T2 results & fixtures (category)
T3 results & fixtures (category)
Photos (section)
T1 photos
T2.photos
T3 photos
News (category)
T1......etc
I struggled to understand whether it would make any real difference to the ease of developing the site. In the end I decided to follow the first approach and created a section for each team largely because it just felt a bit more logical but I would welcome your view on whether Joomla Sections/Categories is best suited to one approach or the other. I have not gone live yet so am prepared to change my approach if significant benefits.
Thanks
Paul.
I am new to Joomla (about 6 weeks ago) and I did realise that the decisions I made at the outset regarding sections & categories could critically affect the ease of developing the site, however I did get into a fundamental stalemate with myself as to which of two basic approaches was best. I think I made the right choice but would welcome guidance as to pros/cons of either. The best way may be obvious to more experienced people.
Basically I run 3 junior footbal clubs and the basic types of information reported for each is the same so I felt I could have structured sections & categories in either of the following two ways:
FIRST WAY:
Team1 (section)
T1 Results & Fixtures (category)
T1 Photos (category)
T1 News (category)
Team2 (section)
T2 Results & Fixtures (category)
T2 Photos (category)
T2 News (category)
SECOND WAY
Results & Fixtures (section)
T1 results & fixtures (category)
T2 results & fixtures (category)
T3 results & fixtures (category)
Photos (section)
T1 photos
T2.photos
T3 photos
News (category)
T1......etc
I struggled to understand whether it would make any real difference to the ease of developing the site. In the end I decided to follow the first approach and created a section for each team largely because it just felt a bit more logical but I would welcome your view on whether Joomla Sections/Categories is best suited to one approach or the other. I have not gone live yet so am prepared to change my approach if significant benefits.
Thanks
Paul.
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written by Chetan Chopkar, May 19, 2008
Hi
I am reading your tutorial and working on them. I create section and category. But problem that that section and category is shown into menu item i will fail to do that.
And you also tell about create the section and category but do not going ahead of that tutorial. So please tell in next tutorial that, how to create menu item after creating section and category
Thanks and Regards
Chetan Chopkar
I am reading your tutorial and working on them. I create section and category. But problem that that section and category is shown into menu item i will fail to do that.
And you also tell about create the section and category but do not going ahead of that tutorial. So please tell in next tutorial that, how to create menu item after creating section and category
Thanks and Regards
Chetan Chopkar
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written by Christian Sweningsen, May 19, 2008
Hi Cory,
Many thanks for an excellent overview. I see you have recently written an article on how to get a particular template/page relationship - very valuable!
And so I wonder if you might be the person to take on what I have not seen any one else do - explain "pages" in Joomla, and how to construct a site with varying templates.
Almost every writer on Joomla at an early point declares, "A key to understanding Joomla is that it has *no* pages!" - and then goes on to use the word "page" over and over again!
I understand what they are getting at with the "no pages" declaration - but, in the real world - as evidenced by the continued use of the word - all websites are *experienced* as made up of pages - even if they have been dynamically created before being assembled on the screen!
So, once I have my *content* organized; and I've determined what *functions* I want on the site, e.g. VirtueMart, CommunityBuilder, a gallery) how to place them on various pages? I may want several functions on a given page.
What I am doing to date, is hand-writing "planning pages" and identifying the functions for each; then blocking out screen space for each. Several templates fall into place, that can be used with various extensions to yield the pages.
What's next? (I think a very, very badly needed article could result!!)
Many thanks in advance,
Christian Sweningsen
[By the way, to subscribe (I hope this is to this thread, I'm referring to options underneath the comment entry box) I must be registered - I am - but I assume this also means logged in, and I don't find a log-in form on this page (the Organizing Your Content page).]
Many thanks for an excellent overview. I see you have recently written an article on how to get a particular template/page relationship - very valuable!
And so I wonder if you might be the person to take on what I have not seen any one else do - explain "pages" in Joomla, and how to construct a site with varying templates.
Almost every writer on Joomla at an early point declares, "A key to understanding Joomla is that it has *no* pages!" - and then goes on to use the word "page" over and over again!
I understand what they are getting at with the "no pages" declaration - but, in the real world - as evidenced by the continued use of the word - all websites are *experienced* as made up of pages - even if they have been dynamically created before being assembled on the screen!
So, once I have my *content* organized; and I've determined what *functions* I want on the site, e.g. VirtueMart, CommunityBuilder, a gallery) how to place them on various pages? I may want several functions on a given page.
What I am doing to date, is hand-writing "planning pages" and identifying the functions for each; then blocking out screen space for each. Several templates fall into place, that can be used with various extensions to yield the pages.
What's next? (I think a very, very badly needed article could result!!)
Many thanks in advance,
Christian Sweningsen
[By the way, to subscribe (I hope this is to this thread, I'm referring to options underneath the comment entry box) I must be registered - I am - but I assume this also means logged in, and I don't find a log-in form on this page (the Organizing Your Content page).]
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written by Cory, May 19, 2008
Hi Christian...
All good points. I think the use of the term "page" is so ubiquitous across the web that it just makes sense to people. That's why I used that term rather than "dynamically generated content item", which makes very little sense to the average user.
To get multiple functions on the same "page", you need to use modules. On a given page, the template will load a component and several modules depending on how you have it set up. For example, if I want to display an article from the core content component along with recent events form Eventlist and new member profiles from Community Builder, I would create a menu item for the article (loads the core content component to view the selected article) and publish a latest events module for Eventlist and a latest members module for Community Builder. The tough part is finding good modules to accomplish the functions you want to accomplish.
I hope that makes sense. That is really a big topic, since it is fundamental to how Joomla works.
I added the login form to every page. Thanks for the suggestion.
All good points. I think the use of the term "page" is so ubiquitous across the web that it just makes sense to people. That's why I used that term rather than "dynamically generated content item", which makes very little sense to the average user.
To get multiple functions on the same "page", you need to use modules. On a given page, the template will load a component and several modules depending on how you have it set up. For example, if I want to display an article from the core content component along with recent events form Eventlist and new member profiles from Community Builder, I would create a menu item for the article (loads the core content component to view the selected article) and publish a latest events module for Eventlist and a latest members module for Community Builder. The tough part is finding good modules to accomplish the functions you want to accomplish.
I hope that makes sense. That is really a big topic, since it is fundamental to how Joomla works.
I added the login form to every page. Thanks for the suggestion.
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written by JMac, May 29, 2008
I have been looking at Joomla for some time and have read many of your posts. Very helpful, thank you.
The link you put into the first comment spot is broken as CompassDesigns has upgraded from 1.0 to 1.5 here's the new link http://www.compassdesigns.net/...omla.html. Thanks Again!
The link you put into the first comment spot is broken as CompassDesigns has upgraded from 1.0 to 1.5 here's the new link http://www.compassdesigns.net/...omla.html. Thanks Again!
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written by Zee, June 10, 2008
I have a gripe with this section/category setup. Lets say you are on the site and you are viewing the contents of a section (a list of items). You click on one of those items, and Joomla takes you to the root of that category. Lets say the section was "About our church." And within it you see things like "faith statement," "vision statement," etc. Okay, then you click on vision statement (from that list of items). And Joomla doesn't take you to the content, but to a page that is right before the content. Why must people click a link just to get to where they need to go? Hope I'm making sense.
> Section
> Category 1
> Category 2
> Category 3
You click on Category 1 and you end up on a page that just says "Category 1" again. Then you have to click a link to get to that categories content. Why? Or am I setting something up wrong?
Thanks in advance.
> Section
> Category 1
> Category 2
> Category 3
You click on Category 1 and you end up on a page that just says "Category 1" again. Then you have to click a link to get to that categories content. Why? Or am I setting something up wrong?
Thanks in advance.
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written by Kay Aubrey-Chimene, June 21, 2008
I am fairly new to joomla and recently converted my site over to 3.0. I have a lot of pages which people will want to print or email and I can't figure out how to add a disclaimer and copyright to what they send to pdf or the printer. Any suggestions?
Thanks - your site has been a lifesaver
Kay
Thanks - your site has been a lifesaver
Kay
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written by Rob, July 23, 2008
Great article. My brain was fried after finally getting my site looking good. I needed to start thinking about how to organise my content and after reading many complex articles on modifying modules/components/templates your straightforward guide to content was just what I needed.
Double thumbs up!
Double thumbs up!
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written by Dave, October 19, 2008
Great! Now I'll be able to divide all these conspiracy videos I have posted into sections, so people wont be so overwhelmed ;-)
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written by Jose, November 12, 2008
Site in Construction...
I need to be able to make the following structure, please advice...
Section 1
Category A
Category B
Sub Category B1
article
article
Sub Catebory B2
article
article
Actually, a multi-level category branching..
I need to be able to make the following structure, please advice...
Section 1
Category A
Category B
Sub Category B1
article
article
Sub Catebory B2
article
article
Actually, a multi-level category branching..
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written by Cory Webb, November 12, 2008
Hi Jose... Unfortunately, that cannot be done with Joomla out of the box. You would have to use a 3rd party application to get nested categories like that.
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written by Juliana, November 15, 2008
Respected Sir
Mr. Cory I have seen ton of pages for joomla.But you have made a unbeatable website very neet simple.I appriciate your work and ask the visitor to atleast make a purchase from yoru referal link.that would be a kind of donation to howtojoomla.
Sir.I am in need of a solution. i have seen many joomla websites which providing softwares downloads, walpapers, e-books etc. i am not sure which component they are using for this purpose.are they using joomla article or joomla blog or other third party component.I noticed most of these websites using html pages.Hope you will guide me in detail. please look at the folowing structure if you have a good sugession for me.
Software (Section)
- Utilities (Category)
- - IDM (Content Item)
- Anti Virus (Category)
- - Norton (Content Item)
- - Avg (Content Item)
E-Books (section)
-joomla book (category)
-cooking book (category)
I hope you will explain in detail the matter coz majority of joomla users looking for this.
Thanks again for such nice and usefull website.
Will be waiting for your reply.
Mr. Cory I have seen ton of pages for joomla.But you have made a unbeatable website very neet simple.I appriciate your work and ask the visitor to atleast make a purchase from yoru referal link.that would be a kind of donation to howtojoomla.
Sir.I am in need of a solution. i have seen many joomla websites which providing softwares downloads, walpapers, e-books etc. i am not sure which component they are using for this purpose.are they using joomla article or joomla blog or other third party component.I noticed most of these websites using html pages.Hope you will guide me in detail. please look at the folowing structure if you have a good sugession for me.
Software (Section)
- Utilities (Category)
- - IDM (Content Item)
- Anti Virus (Category)
- - Norton (Content Item)
- - Avg (Content Item)
E-Books (section)
-joomla book (category)
-cooking book (category)
I hope you will explain in detail the matter coz majority of joomla users looking for this.
Thanks again for such nice and usefull website.
Will be waiting for your reply.
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written by Cory Webb, November 15, 2008
Hi Juliana... If you want to provide downloads on your site, there are a couple of really good components available:
RokDownloads from www.rocketwerx.com
DocMan from www.joomlatools.org
Good luck!
RokDownloads from www.rocketwerx.com
DocMan from www.joomlatools.org
Good luck!
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written by Juliana, November 16, 2008
Thanks you Cory for super fast response.and thanks for pointing me to the components.but still one confusion left that i asked.let me explain.
i want make a websie for software ebooks tutorials.the Main Menue will be like this.
Home
Softwares
E-books
Tutorials
Wallpapers
I mean that either i will make the above Software Ebooks Tutorials Wallpapers as a SECTION or as CATEGORY. and my second Question is that will I use BLOG or ARTICLE for the above purpose.what is the diffrent btwn core Blog and Article in joomla 1.5.
Thank u so much for answering me.
i want make a websie for software ebooks tutorials.the Main Menue will be like this.
Home
Softwares
E-books
Tutorials
Wallpapers
I mean that either i will make the above Software Ebooks Tutorials Wallpapers as a SECTION or as CATEGORY. and my second Question is that will I use BLOG or ARTICLE for the above purpose.what is the diffrent btwn core Blog and Article in joomla 1.5.
Thank u so much for answering me.
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written by Pras, January 01, 2009
I am not web savvy.. i am trying to setup a website on home pc before i decide to move it public domain. My home site name is"mysite". I hv installed joomla1.0.x using WAMP. I am able to go into the site using url: www.mysite.com/joomla. If I key in only www.mysite.com WAMP page is displayed. Pl guide me for correct setting so that I can avoid typing in "/joomla" after the base url 'www.mysite.com".
Appreciate if you advise me to setup email server on the same machine...I do not want to connect to internet...sounds strange... but i want to learn..
Thanks in advance
Appreciate if you advise me to setup email server on the same machine...I do not want to connect to internet...sounds strange... but i want to learn..
Thanks in advance
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written by James, January 13, 2009
We use Joomla to manage our employee intranet site in the office. Is there a way to allow individuals access to only one content item? For example, if I wanted to allow other employees authoring capabilities but limit those to one content page of their own. Can this be done?
James
Chicago
James
Chicago
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written by Cory Webb, January 13, 2009
Hi James... yes, this can probably be done, but it will require a third-party component to modify the access control level settings. You can find several at http://extensions.joomla.org.
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written by dax, January 16, 2009
"SECTIONS BUT NO CATEGORY"
Is there any way to arrange content in sections but no catergory ? I am moving an old site and the url structure is such that it has sections and pages inside it but no category. Is there a way out ?
let me explain further. If say glossary section is there and has pages 1, 2 ,3 ,4 the url are site.com/glossary/1.html ... 2.html ... now i search all over the web but it seem that it is not possible. I HAVE to have category and section together or simply uncategorized static pages.
Even in menu type if we select section blog or section article, it does not take content that way.
Your help would be appreciated. Thank in advance.
Is there any way to arrange content in sections but no catergory ? I am moving an old site and the url structure is such that it has sections and pages inside it but no category. Is there a way out ?
let me explain further. If say glossary section is there and has pages 1, 2 ,3 ,4 the url are site.com/glossary/1.html ... 2.html ... now i search all over the web but it seem that it is not possible. I HAVE to have category and section together or simply uncategorized static pages.
Even in menu type if we select section blog or section article, it does not take content that way.
Your help would be appreciated. Thank in advance.
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written by Mombo-Joomla, January 21, 2009
If you start from the beginning it makes it way easier then if you wait until you have lots of content.
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written by John Fambrini, March 03, 2009
Dear Cory:
Great site! It was very helpful to me.
I'm trying to convert an existing automotive site to Joomla and would love your guidance. Here is the scheme I have come up with:
Section 1: Dealership Info
About Us
Office Hours
Contact Us / Directions
Press Releases
Newsletter
Career Opportunities
Testimonials
Section 2: Meet Our Team
Management Team
Business Center
Service Team
Section 3: New Vehicles
Toyota
Nissan
Section: Used Vehicles
Section: Parts and Accessories
Toyota Vigo Accessories
Mitsubishi L200 Accessories
Nissan Navara Accessories
Toyota Fortuner Accessories
Section: Specials
Specials this week
Toyota Special
Section: Automotive Info
Auto Articles
Glossary
Section: Country Info
Now I'm creating Section in Section and categories in Categories. Is it possible to display two pages in both new and used vehicle section. For instance the info on new Toyota Hilux is the same as used Toyota Hilux so can I display the same article under two section.
I'm still confused about menu. Do I create a new menu for each Section item to display these pages. How do I create a page to display certain category and certain sections. I have over 500 static pages and want to convert them over. Some sections will be overlapping so I'm a little confused.
Thanks,
Regards,
John
Bangkok, Thailand
Great site! It was very helpful to me.
I'm trying to convert an existing automotive site to Joomla and would love your guidance. Here is the scheme I have come up with:
Section 1: Dealership Info
About Us
Office Hours
Contact Us / Directions
Press Releases
Newsletter
Career Opportunities
Testimonials
Section 2: Meet Our Team
Management Team
Business Center
Service Team
Section 3: New Vehicles
Toyota
Nissan
Section: Used Vehicles
Section: Parts and Accessories
Toyota Vigo Accessories
Mitsubishi L200 Accessories
Nissan Navara Accessories
Toyota Fortuner Accessories
Section: Specials
Specials this week
Toyota Special
Section: Automotive Info
Auto Articles
Glossary
Section: Country Info
Now I'm creating Section in Section and categories in Categories. Is it possible to display two pages in both new and used vehicle section. For instance the info on new Toyota Hilux is the same as used Toyota Hilux so can I display the same article under two section.
I'm still confused about menu. Do I create a new menu for each Section item to display these pages. How do I create a page to display certain category and certain sections. I have over 500 static pages and want to convert them over. Some sections will be overlapping so I'm a little confused.
Thanks,
Regards,
John
Bangkok, Thailand
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written by Kriskaitanid, March 10, 2009
Hi, nice tutorial for starters! As i am one too, i have a question: i downloaded a template which has left, right, user3, user4, debbug, positions for modules BUT i cannot select them (they do not even appear) when i create a poll module. I want it to the right but it has only left available. Please help
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written by Cory, March 10, 2009
Hi Kriskaitanid,
If you are using Joomla 1.5, you should just be able to type "left" or "right" in the box where you select module position in the module manager. In Joomla 1.0, you will have to go to Site->Templates->Module Positions and add the module position you want.
Good luck!
If you are using Joomla 1.5, you should just be able to type "left" or "right" in the box where you select module position in the module manager. In Joomla 1.0, you will have to go to Site->Templates->Module Positions and add the module position you want.
Good luck!
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written by Kyle, March 15, 2009
Hi Cory,
Thanks for the quick tutorial. What I am wondering is, how does one assign sections and categories to different menu options?
For example, I have a section called "recipes" and some sub categories. I want to be able to click on my top meny "recipe" tag and have it take me to all those articles which I assign.
Thanks,
Kyle
Thanks for the quick tutorial. What I am wondering is, how does one assign sections and categories to different menu options?
For example, I have a section called "recipes" and some sub categories. I want to be able to click on my top meny "recipe" tag and have it take me to all those articles which I assign.
Thanks,
Kyle
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written by juliana, April 12, 2009
Respected Cory
i want make a websie for software ebooks tutorials.the Main Menue will be like this.
Home
Softwares
E-books
Tutorials
Wallpapers
I mean that either i will make the above Software Ebooks Tutorials Wallpapers as a SECTION or as CATEGORY. and my second Question is that will I use BLOG or ARTICLE for the above purpose.what is the diffrent btwn core Blog and Article in joomla 1.5.
Thank u so much for answering me.
Hope you will reply me. or any expert.Thanks
i want make a websie for software ebooks tutorials.the Main Menue will be like this.
Home
Softwares
E-books
Tutorials
Wallpapers
I mean that either i will make the above Software Ebooks Tutorials Wallpapers as a SECTION or as CATEGORY. and my second Question is that will I use BLOG or ARTICLE for the above purpose.what is the diffrent btwn core Blog and Article in joomla 1.5.
Thank u so much for answering me.
Hope you will reply me. or any expert.Thanks
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written by Lisa Ketcham, September 16, 2009
I am using v 1.0. I have read a lot of comments about linking pdf to content but i am still encountering the 404 error. Can I make this work or will I have to type all new content?
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written by JerryV, September 27, 2009
You know its all about the Sil-oh!
Content silos are a great website structure.
The only thing that comes close to it is a static/flat structure.
Content silos are a great website structure.
The only thing that comes close to it is a static/flat structure.
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written by Jiny, October 04, 2009
great website structure now i still look for joomla interested to make booking hotel by joola
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Content is King::A Beginner's Guide to organizing content in Joomla