Creating Web Pages with PHP, CMS, and Joomla

For those who need to design and create their own web pages, whether for personal use or for business purposes, there are few terms you should become familiar with. A few of those terms are "PHP," "content management system," and "Joomla." The following article is a brief description of these three terms and tools and how you can use them to create, manage, and enhance dynamic web pages.

PHP

PHP originally stood for "personal home page," as that was what it was designed to help create; however, today, PHP is used to create a variety of different types of web pages. Essentially, PHP is a scripting language that people need to know in order to design and produce dynamic web pages. PHP is free software, and because it is compatible with most web servers and almost every operating system and platform, it is widely used for general web page purposes and can even be embedded into HTML. In using PHP, a web server takes a PHP code as input and creates web page content as output.

Content Management System

A system that utilizes PHP codes is a content management system or CMS. CMS software uses the PHP scripting language to create and manage HTML content as well as other documents and images. And this software not only helps you create web content, but also allows you to control and edit that content.

Essentially, a CMS makes creating and managing web pages simpler and more understandable. In fact, most content management systems are designed so that users that have little or no knowledge of programming languages can create and manage their own web pages. These systems store content in databases and offer a variety of web page templates for the user to choose from.

Joomla

Joomla is a content management system that users around the world use to publish content on the web and internet. Like many other content managing systems, it is written in the PHP programming language and uses a database to store information. Some of the features that the system includes are page caching, RSS feeds, printable versions of pages, news flashes, blogs, polls, website searching, and language internationalization. Joomla extensions and templates are typically distributed as a zip file or other compressed format that must be installed before implementing. With this set of basic functions and the countless other free Joomla extensions available, creating a dynamic web page to improve businesses (or to enhance personal pages) is easy to manage in-house.

As a content management system, Joomla offers a variety of great benefits for those looking to create their own web pages. First of all, and perhaps most importantly, Joomla is free. And as new versions and updates of Joomla are released, new features and improvements also become available. Joomla is fast growing and offers limitless possibilities for future applications.

Another major benefit of Joomla is how easy it is to add or modify content. With Joomla, you can add images and other multimedia elements, and you can also organize and manage important data with relative ease.

And as Joomla has gained increasing popularity, it has won many awards for its features and services. Joomla's popularity offers another often-ignored benefit to users. Because so many users are familiar with Joomla, there is a plethora of forums, web pages, and directories centered on how to use Joomla and to help those who have questions or experiencing problems with the software. And the software is also well supported by developers and service providers. Hence, if you have a question about Joomla, chances are that with very little effort, you can find the answer.

One of the other advantages of Joomla is that it offers a variety of free Joomla extensions. Some extensions are called "plugins" which are background extensions that extend Joomla with new functionality. "Components" are also Joomla extensions that allow users to expand the number of features on their web page, backup their websites, translate content, and create URLs. "Modules" also expand a web pages' functionality by adding features such as a calendar display or Google AdSense.

In fact, these extensions offer perhaps the biggest benefits of using Joomla. Some of these extensions include dynamic form builders, image and multimedia galleries, e-commerce and shopping cart engines, forums and chat software, calendars, blogging software, email newsletters, data collection and reporting tools, banner advertising systems, subscription services, and more. And there are a host of other free Joomla extensions that can enhance any webpage.

Specifically, there are five Joomla extensions that are arguably the most popular. "Community Builder" allows users to extend profiles, enhance registration workflows, user lists, and much more. "FireBoard Forum" is a forum that is both stylish and powerful and will allow visitors of the web page to engage in discussion and commentary. "Expose Flash Gallery" is an extension that creates slide shows from your own uploaded images. And Joomla's "Events Calendar" is a classic that informs viewers of important dates and events.

And even though Joomla is simple to use, these many extensions allow a person to create the most complex of corporate websites. In fact, Joomla is used for a variety of applications including corporate websites, small business websites, non-profit and organizational websites, government applications, school and church websites, personal or family homepages, community-based portals, magazines and newspapers, and online commerce. Essentially, if you need to create a webpage for any purpose, Joomla has the reliability and outstanding features to help you create the webpage you need.

Once you understand the basic concepts of PHP and content managing systems, you are ready to start creating your own web page. And with a reliable, free CMS such as Joomla, you will soon be on your way to creating and managing a web page that directly meets all of your needs.