Make Joomla Templates?
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- Andrzej Adamczyk
- Sr. Rocketeer
- Posts: 102
- Thanks: 0
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I think that it is truth, but:
1. I remember the template building addon for Kompozer and for Dreamweaver (for Joomla 1.0.x) and it was quite simple to make some template this way. Just a matter of making a table and inserting module positions and making necessary files for a template.
2. The template in Joomla 1.5 seems more complex.
3. Rocket templates are very comlex, sometimex maybe too complex
4. Joomla goes into an interesting phase of development and template making too.
a. many new addons / advanced tools to boost the capabilities of both Joomla and templates
b. some addons like Joomla Templater or RokCandy or other to make it possible to implement some snippets of custom code which can give a considerable freedom in making what we want and need with templates.
3. Joomla seems to give much more tools and possiblilities to create great websites and portals than it was practically realised in the form of some examples where we could see any really big website where those tools would be practically used to the extreme.
4. Knowing HTML, CSS, PHP. A very interesting thing. Most handbooks and courses seem to be too much encyclopaedic: lists of commands, very theoretic and not much interesting. I think that the future can be in some interesting practical propositions to guide people from the state of lack of knowledge to the state where they can use and know much.
5. Let us assume for a while that there is no gravity. :cheesy: We know that Andy and You James and many other people have their time occupied to the extreme. But ...
6. There are many ideas which make great business in the Internet: Twitter, Community portals. I think that probably when some future idea based on Joomla would make some great succes in the Internet, that would be a breakthrough. ( I still wait for the results of Jentla project
)
7. The people can be occupied totally but, in turn, the brand is the brand and being the best in the world in something, template making for Joomla for instance, always gives some potential to use the brand in new ways.
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- Aurora
- Elite Rocketeer
- Posts: 903
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have you guys check media65.net this sweet extension for dreamsweaver
www.m65.net/articles-products-the-joomla...-template-kit-1.html
i have used before converting templates from templatemonster.com, i do agree with james it takes time. but its also best to try different solutions. when i started here i never knew much about modifying joomla templates. and such i have use it before and installed simple templates. but never modifed them. came here and learned alot. i mostly learn some of my skills from james S. and using fire bug, web developer yslow. and other firefox addon tools to modified template css codes. and much. media65.net, has an dreamweaver extension you can use. i have used it plenty of times. to make templates. and convert templates try. just get comfortable with RT templates learn how modules are setup, create new ones. style them and such. its not so easy but youl get there. only took me less than 6 months to understand how things work. you can do it too.
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- Aurora
- Elite Rocketeer
- Posts: 903
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Andrzej Adamczyk wrote:
I think that it is truth, but:
1. I remember the template building addon for Kompozer and for Dreamweaver (for Joomla 1.0.x) and it was quite simple to make some template this way. Just a matter of making a table and inserting module positions and making necessary files for a template.
2. The template in Joomla 1.5 seems more complex.
3. Rocket templates are very comlex, sometimex maybe too complex
4. Joomla goes into an interesting phase of development and template making too.
a. many new addons / advanced tools to boost the capabilities of both Joomla and templates
b. some addons like Joomla Templater or RokCandy or other to make it possible to implement some snippets of custom code which can give a considerable freedom in making what we want and need with templates.
3. Joomla seems to give much more tools and possiblilities to create great websites and portals than it was practically realised in the form of some examples where we could see any really big website where those tools would be practically used to the extreme.
4. Knowing HTML, CSS, PHP. A very interesting thing. Most handbooks and courses seem to be too much encyclopaedic: lists of commands, very theoretic and not much interesting. I think that the future can be in some interesting practical propositions to guide people from the state of lack of knowledge to the state where they can use and know much.
5. Let us assume for a while that there is no gravity. :cheesy: We know that Andy and You James and many other people have their time occupied to the extreme. But ...
6. There are many ideas which make great business in the Internet: Twitter, Community portals. I think that probably when some future idea based on Joomla would make some great succes in the Internet, that would be a breakthrough. ( I still wait for the results of Jentla project )
7. The people can be occupied totally but, in turn, the brand is the brand and being the best in the world in something, template making for Joomla for instance, always gives some potential to use the brand in new ways.
i gurantee 95% of users here that knows now how to modify edit develop and design templates did little reading and much doing while the other 5% is reading then doin. working hands on and learning different stuff which ever makes you feel comfortable works best for you. in the end you will know how to develop templates. trying reading a little and doin. or the opposite and see where your weekness are. you will find yourself want to know more.
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- Andrzej Adamczyk
- Sr. Rocketeer
- Posts: 102
- Thanks: 0
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That is ritht. But I have not seen any website that could be compared to BBC for example or other great websites where there are many subsites on different templates and with lots of features and plenty of content that would be made on Joomla.
I agree that there is a need to read much and to experiment much. But I give one example. Some time ago an editor of some local website related with local radio and newspaper in my country asked me if he could think about changing Joomla for something "professional". The matter was that they had some problems at times and their site is not visible. There are about 6 000 articles on the websute, about 10 000 visitors a day, radio and printed addon. Quite a big project. And they have lot of experts on servers (site based on own server). I said that the problem does not seem to be related with Joomla. But the Joomla they use is J 1.0.x and quite deprived of any addons. I had an impression that they not quite know anything much about Joomla.
So, I think, many projects use Joomla as it is, just download and install and feed with content, and after time they hear that they should change for something expensive and they change. Without doing anything possible with Joomla.
Maybe an ironic view, but some people are eager at making Joomla templates and addons, making Joomla as complex and versatile as possible. Other people make portals, big websites. But they are not the same people. And they too rarely meet. :cheesy:
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- James Spencer
- Preeminent Rocketeer
- Posts: 46340
- Thanks: 50
- A Dreamweaver tool is nothing compared to hand coding it yourself once you have the expertise. Creating a template using said tools will most likely produce a buggy, badly coded template. it is not work it.
- James Spencer / Developer & Support / Hull, UK
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- Andrzej Adamczyk
- Sr. Rocketeer
- Posts: 102
- Thanks: 0
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That sounds interesting. Hand made template. Just open the empty html file, write HEAD and then start writing. From time to time use some Mysql, fantastic. And then, two weeks or so, and we have a template that is comparable to Andy's Versatility 4 or Solar Sentinel. :cheesy:
No, just a joke. But, being serious, just I think it is good time for learning by making some alterations of ready templates. Rocket templates seem a very good initial point. Well coded and better and better. And now RokCandy and Joomla templater. There would be fine if we had some component allowing to publish custom modules on the component/ content position. There is M2C component, but not quite good. I found after installing com_rokmodules there was a notice explaining that the component is to facilitate the publishing of modules on the component position. But still I could not find any trace of the component in Joomla admin nor when we assign a menu item to a component. Seems to be a notise telling something about future? Really, publishing on component position can be fantastic solution. Using RokCandy and whatever possible it would be possible to have component zone available to everything. Any plugins from Joomla are possible in this zone, it is possible to make bites of custom layout and make it all free to any kind off imagination. For example, we can use or not left and / or right position, and inside there can be purely custom zone. With the use of all possible modules for Joomla and any custom modules plus plenty of plugins. :cheesy: We open in FF the BBC layout, open the new tab with our project, and step after step make it possible that we can not see much difference when we change tabs. Really not much work with php.
I know that php is for many people something very attracting when one anderstands that is is a very mighty tool. But it is also repelling because all possible free courses of PHP seems too boring. Hello World !!! What for I need it. I need some effect in minimum time. And the internet generally isolates people. And PHP is a bit of mathematic and logic, quite a comlicated. In this isolating atmosphere of the Internet. A barrier hard to overcome.
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- BeAsT
- Jr. Rocketeer
- Posts: 30
- Thanks: 0
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Wow, thanks for all your replies guys!
Those links are really helpful. I've been playing around with Joomla and trying to learn some of the coding.
PHP looks similar to Java actually, like same basic concepts.
I'm having on problem though, and that is editing the images. I mean what is the best way to edit them. I have trouble editing the smaller files, but even when I use the source files, its not easy. What's the best way to make/design those images?
EDIT: I'm not talking about the actual designing of the images, but actually exporting the correct size files, so they align correctly etc
Thanks for your help so far
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- Aurora
- Elite Rocketeer
- Posts: 903
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Randeep Agarwal wrote:
Wow, thanks for all your replies guys!
Those links are really helpful. I've been playing around with Joomla and trying to learn some of the coding.
PHP looks similar to Java actually, like same basic concepts.
I'm having on problem though, and that is editing the images. I mean what is the best way to edit them. I have trouble editing the smaller files, but even when I use the source files, its not easy. What's the best way to make/design those images?
EDIT: I'm not talking about the actual designing of the images, but actually exporting the correct size files, so they align correctly etc
Thanks for your help so far
this is where css comes into to play to align your images try the firefox addong web developer. and firebug. and play around with margin, margin-left, margin-right, left. and so on in your css file for that image.
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