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Detailed below is information about how to use the Joomla CMS as well as examples of Web Guidelines and Standards for managing your Web site.
 Joomla Content Management System (CMS)
We build many of our Web sites using the open source Joomla CMS enabling our clients to update and create pages simply by using a Web browser. If you can use word processing programs like Microsoft Word then you can change Web site content with Joomla.
Joomla Documentation, Tutortials & Help
Get started using Joomla by downloading and glancing through the Joomla User Manual (PDF) and taking a few minutes to review the visual tutorials. Learn about adding/editing content, managing user permissions, creating new pages, and much more.
Adding Graphics
One of the most common tasks for managing content on your Web site is
learning how to upload and insert graphics. The Joomla CMS makes it
easy to add graphics to spice up your Web pages.
How to upload graphics:
- Log into the Joomla Administrator and navigate to Site > Media Manager.
- Click on the folder named "stories". All graphics for you site reside in this folder.
- In the File Upload box select the Browse button and locate the graphic file on your computer that would like to upload and then click Open.
- Next, click the Upload button. Your graphic is not stored in Joomla and is ready to be placed into a content page.
How to insert graphics into a content page:
- Navigate to the content page you would like to add the graphic to.
- Place the cursor in the text where you would like the graphic to appear and then click Insert Image button below.
- Next, click on the Images tab in the right column.
- Select the image from the Gallery Images list and click the arrow to move it over to the Content Images list.
- Click on the image in the Content Images list. The image now shows up as the Active Image.
- Now set the alignment, enter ALT text (a short description of the image for blind users), your caption (if any), and click Apply.
- Remember to click Save or Apply buttons at the top of the page to save your changes.
To resize (and optimize) your graphics for use on the Web you should
use a graphic editing program such as Photoshop or Fireworks. Ideally,
graphics should not be wider than 250 pixels so that your pages load quickly.
NOTE: You will notice that there is also a way to insert graphics via the content toolbar. This is another way to insert a graphic but it does not support adding a caption so it is not recommended for use.
Easy FAQ
For those sites with an FAQ page we use the Easy FAQ component specially designed for the Joomla CMS. Access the Easy FAQ component by logging into your Joomla Administrator and then navigating to 'Components > Easy FAQ'. You can download the Easy FAQ documentation for complete instructions on how to use this component.
JCal Pro
Some Web sites that we develop use the JCal Pro calendar component for managing event information via the Joomla CMS.
Managing Event Categories
Categories are used to group your events and control their publishing and display options. Before adding events, decide what categories will be appropriate for your site and add them with the Category Manager in the Joomla Administrator.
Categories may also be published/unpublished in the JCal Pro Category Manager.
Managing Events
Events can be managed in the Joomla Administrator by users with the appropriate permissions.
To create a new event:
- Log into your Joomla! Administrator using an account with permissions to submit new events.
- Select the JCal Pro component from the appropriate menu 'Components > JCal Pro > Manage Events'.
- Click the 'Add new event' button and enter the appropriate information for your event.
- Click the 'Submit' button.
Event approval depends on two factors...whether or not the user's credentials are sufficient to approve events. If sufficient privileges are present, the event is automatically approved. Otherwise the event is added to the approval queue and must be manually approved by a user with appropriate credentials.
> Visit the JCal Pro site for more information.
Other Formatting Tips
- Use Shift+Enter for inserting a single line break.
- When pasting content from MS Word be sure to use the "Paste from Word" icon in the top row of the toolbar.
- Do not add any custom styles, fonts families, or font sizes. These are all set via the style sheet for the site.
Web Standards & Guidelines
The following documents are examples of Web Guidelines and Standards that we developed to help manage Web site content, design, and code. Depending on the specific standards and guidelines being discussed, some guidelines relate to content providers and editors while others pertain to programmers.
NOTE: The following PDF documents require the Adobe Acrobat Reader for viewing.
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