Using the Menu Settings in Gantry 5

Welcome to the fourth post in our 5-part series on the Gantry 5 framework from RocketTheme.

In the previous tutorial, I showed you the layout options that Gantry offers. I demonstrated how to build a site using Joomla modules, and also Gantry-specific items such as Particles and Atoms.

In this week's tutorial, let's see how Gantry's menu system works.

Read more: Using the Menu Settings in Gantry 5

Combine Multiple Joomla User Groups into One Access Level

Create a Single Access Level For Several User Groups

The access control levels (ACL) is one of my favourite features in Joomla.

ACL is an essential feature for sites with many users because it allows you to restrict to access to articles, menu items and more.

One of our members has a site with multiple user groups and they wanted to combine them into a single access level. A good example from OSTraining might be combining Video Members, Personal Members and Pro Members into a single "Members" access level.

In this tutorial, I'll show you how to make it possible.

Read more: Combine Multiple Joomla User Groups into One Access Level

Redirecting Old URLs in Joomla with ReDJ

Redirecting in Joomla

Joomla has a Redirect extension built into its core. However, it's only for redirecting 404 URLs (in plain English: URLs that can't be found).

If you'd like to redirect existing pages, Joomla's Redirect Manager won't work.

This tutorial will show you how to redirect any kind of URL in Joomla. We're going to use a component called ReDJ.

Read more: Redirecting Old URLs in Joomla with ReDJ

Gantry 5: Particles, Atoms and the Layout Manager

Welcome to the third post in our 5-part series on the Gantry 5 framework from RocketTheme.

In the previous post, we learned how to build a simple website using Gantry and the Hydrogen template.

Now that we've created our first website, let's look at creating a more advanced layout.

Normally, as a Joomla user, we would now add some modules to the site. However, Gantry 5 introduces a few other ways of adding modules.

Read more: Gantry 5: Particles, Atoms and the Layout Manager

How to Build a Joomla Site With Gantry 5

Welcome to the second in our 5-part series on the new Gantry 5 framework from RocketTheme.

In the first post, I gave you a general introduction to Gantry 5. Now it's time to start using Gantry 5 and building websites.

The best way to learn a framework is to work with it, so in this tutorial I'm going to show you how to build a simple Joomla site using Gantry 5.

Read more: How to Build a Joomla Site With Gantry 5

Joomla: Some update sites are disabled

Joomla: Some update sites are disabled

Sometimes error messages on websites are clear. Other times they confuse users.

One Joomla error message that has confused several OSTraining members is this:

Read more: Joomla: Some update sites are disabled

Joomla 3.4.4 Removes "Manager" from the Administrator

joomla manager word

Joomla 3.4.4 was released today.

Mostly version 3.4.4 aimed at fixing some small bugs, although there was one low-level security fix.

However, there was one noticeable change that will impact our videos, books and blog tutorials. The Joomla team removed the word "Manager" from all administrator links.

Links that were "Article Manager" and "Category Manager" now read simply "Articles" and "Categories". Here's a visual overview of the changes, thanks to the Joomla team on Github:

Read more: Joomla 3.4.4 Removes "Manager" from the Administrator

An Introduction to Gantry 5 from RocketTheme

The Gantry 5 framework was recently released and I have a series of five blog posts coming up to help you get familiar with it.

Gantry 5 is the successor to Gantry 4, which has been around for quite a while. Gantry is a free template framework that is very popular among Joomla and WordPress users. It is also used (and actually maintained) by the RocketTheme team.

While Gantry 4 was very popular, it was time for a big overhaul. For this reason, the team behind Gantry decided to rebuild it from the ground up. While this had the disadvantage of losing backward compatibility, it offers the possibility of a really modern framework, ready for the future. A few facts about Gantry 5:

Read more: An Introduction to Gantry 5 from RocketTheme

How to Redirect non-WWW to WWW in Joomla

How to Redirect non-WWW to WWW in Joomla
For SEO reasons, it's best to redirect your non-www site URL to www or vice version.

For example, when trying to access our site via https://joomlashack.com, it redirects to https://www.joomlashack.com. Note the "www" in the second URL.

Technically, the non-www version and the www version are two different domains. So redirecting one to the other improves our SEO. Google and other search engines won't have to worry about two different domains.

Read more: How to Redirect non-WWW to WWW in Joomla

OSpam-a-not: A User-Friendly Alternative to CAPTCHA in Joomla

OSpam-a-not

CAPTCHAs do a great job of keeping bots away, but many times it's at the expense of users. They are often difficult to read, slow to complete, and a frustrating experience.

In this tutorial, we'll show you a user-friendly alternative in Joomla. It does a great job of keeping bots away, while adding no extra steps for users.

The solution we'll use is OSpam-a-not. It's a free plugin that adds hidden checks for bots. Real users won't have to do anything extra and won't see it on the site.

If you're new to Joomla, I would recommend reading "How to create a Joomla contact form" before attempting this tutorial. Also, if you want to see a wide range of Joomla forms extensions, check out this guide: .

Read more: OSpam-a-not: A User-Friendly Alternative to CAPTCHA in Joomla