Lately, we have been getting some questions from clients wanting assistance with their Joomla site. There have been a few questions that are kind of specific to a certain situation but overall, a lot of them apply across the board on many Joomla web site designs. Here are 5 simple tips / points to keep in mind when using your Joomla web site:

1. The "pages" on your site are referred to as articles, the main content for each page. One of the first things you always want to do when creating a new page on your Joomla website is create a new article. Content Management Systems work by controlling how your site handles information, so it is natural that this should be your first step.
2. When working with menu (navigation) items, remember that these are just links that tell your site which article it is pointing to. The other thing menu items help you do, is assign modules to specific pages, rather than having to show them on every page or none at all.
3. "Modules" can be anything from text to pictures, forms or any kind of information you would need contained in a box that can be moved around to different sections of your site. A module lets you share more information on your pages without having to put everything in the main content (article) area.
4. When you want to work on new content on your site, but don't want everyone to see the content, there are a few things you can do. First, you can assign an "access level" to that page temporarily so that only registered users can see certain pages. Then when you are ready to show the world your new information, you can set the access level to "public" so everyone can see. You can do this in the menu item manager.
5. Sometimes, if you have multiple people working on the site, you can get locked out of a certain article or module because the web site thinks someone else is still editing that item. This is common and it isn't a big deal. Just go in the administrative side of your site and hover over the "Tools" menu item and select "Global Check In." Think about checking in books at a library. Now Joomla knows exactly what is being edited and if that article or section was locking you out before, but not really being modified, Joomla will unlock it so you can get back to business.

So there you have it -- 5 Simple Joomla How To tips to help familiarize yourself with your new web site. Our clients can always email us with any questions or troubleshooting needs. If you aren't one of our clients, we can still offer support packages and assistance at an affordable rate. Feel free to use our quick contact form to shoot us a message!