Joomla Cool Tool Alert: XMap

As I mentioned at the end of 2008, I wanted to highlight some modules that I use regularly in Joomla. XMap is a tool I use often to create a site map for the Joomla websites I build. Site maps are very important for search engines. Google is big on making sure that you have a site map. XMap is very easy to install because it's a module. If you only have one main menu, you don't have to do anything with it because it automatically creates the site map. Go to the source and download.

Note that most of the modules can also be found on the Joomla website, in their Extensions area.

Content Management Systems (CMS)

You may have heard a lot of buzz lately about content management systems (cms). More and more companies and organizations are migrating to them for a number of reasons. With a CMS, you don't have to have any HTML experience to update it. So this makes it easier to keep your website up-to-date without having to pay a designer $100 to change a few words. So which CMS is the best? Again, there are tons out there. Some of the most popular are Drupal and Joomla. I lean more toward Joomla when setting up CMS tools with my clients. As a designer, I'm able to easily design a nice look and incorporate the needed Joomla elements to make the template work properly. Another great thing about Joomla is they have an active development community meaning developers are constantly creating little plug-ins that you can use with Joomla. You can have a simple site with Joomla or a more advanced site - it doesn't really matter. There are also many free templates out there that you can instantly use. As a non-profit, you of course would want something a bit more customized for your organization so it will likely take you contacting someone who is experienced in developing with Joomla to create a custom design. After that, it's pretty smooth sailing. With an id and password, you can start making you own changes. You can read more about Joomla by visiting www.joomla.org. Also, explore their "Extensions" to get an idea of what you can add to your site.