Outline for Template Tutorials
From Joomla! Documentation
Suggested outline for the new template tutorials. This suggests a breakdown into numerous smaller tutorials.
Introduction to Joomla! templates
- What is the purpose of a template?
- What can you do with a template?
- Templates supplied with Joomla!
- How to switch templates
- How to install templates
Understanding Joomla! templates
- Where are templates located?
- What is the typical template directory structure?
- What is the purpose of the templateDetails.xml file?
- What is the purpose of the index.php file?
Upgrading a Joomla! 1.0.x template
- New features introduced in Joomla! 1.5 templates
- Legacy mode
- Upgrading your index.php file
- Upgrading your templateDetails.xml file
- Changes to CSS classes
- Replacing patTemplate
Customising the default Joomla! templates
- Pros and cons of table layout
- Understanding the Milky Way template
- Understanding the Beez template
- Understanding the JA_Purity template
- Customising the Milky Way template
- Customising the Beez template
- Customising the JA_Purity template
- Troubleshooting modified templates
- What to avoid when modifying a template
Creating a basic Joomla! template
- Setting up a directory structure
- Verifying permissions
- How to edit the files
- Creating a basic templateDetails.xml file
- Creating a basic index.php file
- Testing the template
More advanced Joomla! templates
- Quirks mode and how to avoid it
- Which DocType header to use
- Setting up page width
- About CSS page layouts
- Source ordering
- Horizontal and vertical centering
- PHP essentials (eg. echo, if-then-else)
- Adding images
- Changing image paths of default system images
- Declaring module positions
- Finding module positions on any given page
- Changing the site favicon
Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)
- Where to put CSS files
- Using multiple CSS files
- List of Joomla! generated core CSS classes (with explanations)
- Suggested CSS methods to introduce new declarations or alter generated ones
- Page class suffixes
- Module class suffixes
- Supporting multiple browsers
More on Joomla! modules
- Counting modules in a given module position
- Counting modules in multiple module positions
- Collapsing columns
- Creating rounded corners
- What is module chrome?
- Applying custom module chrome
- Cascading module chrome styles
Web Standards
- What are web standards?
- Why follow web standards?
- Considering future browsers and new devices
- Considering backwards compatibility
- Web standards resources
Web content accessibility
- Introduction to web content accessibility
- Section 508 and other laws about disability access
- Accessibility standards
- Validating against accessibility standards
- Source ordering
Template parameters
- Introduction to template parameters
- Defining a parameter in templateDetails.xml
- Standard parameter types
- Storing parameter values
- Retrieving parameter data in a template file
- Creating custom XML parameter types
- Regular expressions in parameter arguments
Fonts and typography
Template overrides
Template translations
- Introduction to template translation
- Location of template language definition files
- Creating a language definition file
- Amending the templateDetails.xml file
- Embedding translatable strings in the template
- Formatted fields in language translation strings
- Debugging a translation
Distributing Joomla! templates
- How to choose a suitable license
- How does template installation work?
- File structure for packaging
- Creating a thumbnail preview image
- Packaging the template
Advanced topics
- How are templates executed?
- System error pages
- Custom error pages
- Adding JavaScript
- Mootools JavaScript library
- Adding stylesheets for other output devices
- Enhancing template performance
- Administrator (back-end) templates
Appendix
- What jdoc:include types are available?
- Standard module chrome styles
- Default CSS classes
- Configuration variables deprecated in Joomla! 1.5
- Where can you learn about HTML?
- Where can you learn about CSS?
- Where can you learn about Javascript?
- Where can you learn about Mootools
- Where can you learn about PHP
- Where can you learn about MySQL?
- Where can you learn about server configuration
- Where can you learn about Unix?
- Operators for use with the countModules function
- Objects methods and properties available from your template
- AJAX
- Where to find diagnostic tools
- Where to find design tools
- Glossary
