What is Joomla? It is Open Source software available under the General Public License. Simply put, it is software that anyone can access and use. Joomla happens to be a great way to simply and easily create professional-looking websites and blogs.
The developers of Joomla create templates that can suit any website look that you need, some of these are offered for sale, but many of these templates are available to the user of Joomla free of charge. This article will give you a better understanding of how to use Joomla templates.
Some of you may have already downloaded a Joomla template, only to find yourself totally confused about how to use it. One of the first problems many people encounter is downloading a template that did not include the proper installation instructions. The good news is that these templates are pretty easy to install. If you want to learn how to use these templates, there are two main approaches. We’ll start out with the simplest one.
When learning the basics of Joomla templates using this method, make sure you have Joomla 1.5 or greater. Also make sure to remember that your Joomla template will most often come in a zip file. This is pretty standard and you probably won’t find many that aren’t compressed. Don’t worry about unzipping the file. Joomla will do this for you. Simply open up your Joomla interface and log in to the administrative area. Just look for the word “Extensions” on the main menu and click on that tab.
After this step, you’ll see a menu that includes an ‘Install/Uninstall’ option. Click on this, and give the next page a moment to load. You’ll now see a page entitled ‘Extension Manager Page’. Once this loads completely, select the ‘Choose File’ option. Next, simply locate the folder which you originally downloaded your template’s .zip file, and once you’ve highlighted it, click on the ‘Upload File & Install’ option. Once again, give this page a few moments to completely upload. When this completes, you’ll see a message that reads ‘Install Template Success’. Next, click over to the Template Manager function and choose your newly uploaded template.
The alternate method of how to use Joomla templates requires a bit more knowledge, as well as the use of an FTP program to transfer files. When you do this method, you’ll need up unzip your template file prior to installation, so make sure that your computer is capable of performing this function.
Once you’ve unzipped your template file, you’ll see a folder which contains the files which comprise your template. After the file is extracted, open up your FTP program and link it to your Joomla website. Find the ‘Templates’ folder using the FTP program’s interface within your Joomla website, and upload your unzipped template folder into this directory. This transfer may take a few moments. Once is has been completed, perform the same steps that were originally laid out and click over to the Template Manager, selecting this new template set.
Now, you should have a better understanding of using templates, and know how to use them to improve your own website.
If you are trying to figure out how to use Joomla template come on over and check out this video I have on how to use Joomla templates.
