Part 13: Website Structure- Working With Modules

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Part 13: Website Structure- Working With Modules

Written by Ray Shore

Sunday, 19 October 2008 02:19

Now, it's time to draw upon your creative side! You may want to rearrange the content on your website (from default) to provide a visual presentation that really grabs the attention of your site visitors.

Much of this will be a matter of moving the various modules around on your page. Reference Part 10: Joomla Extensions for introduction to modules.

Note: this assumes that you already have modules on your website. Chances are you chose to have sample data added when you uploaded Joomla to your website. If not, there will probably be a menu at least. This tutorial can be referenced after I show you how to create modules (later in the series) as well.

Module Position Layout

First, you need to reference the module position layout for your particular template. Since my series is based on the implementation of a RocketTheme template, I provide instructions below for finding your module position layout.

1. First, go to the RocketTheme website:

2. Click on the "Demos" tab.
3. In the drop-down field at the top of the page, click on the down arrow and select the RocketTheme template that you are using on your website.
4. When the demo template finishes loading, click on the "Features" tab.
5. You should find a link for "Module Positions". Click on this link.
6. You will find the module position layout for your particular template. As discussed in Part 10, each module position has its own name. See example below:

Joomla Module Position Layout

7. Leave this page open for reference later.

Module Manager

Now, I'll show you how to work with modules on your website.
1. Open a new browser window and login to your website per the instructions in Part 8: Logging Into Your Joomla Website.
2. Once you are logged in, you will be at your Joomla control panel. Click on the "Extensions" tab and select "Module Manager. Click on the image below to view full screenshot.

3. You should see a list of various modules for your website as shown above. Note the "Position" heading in the list. Look familiar? Yes, these are the module names from your module position layout. Switch to your RocketTheme page to see where these modules are located on your page.
4. Going back to the Module Manager on your website, note the heading "Enabled". If there is a green check mark, then your module is published and can be viewed by your website visitors. If there is a red circle with an "x" in it, then this module is not published and cannot be viewed. These can be toggled back and forth simply by clicking on the icon.
5. Click the "Preview" link at the top of the page and your website will open in a new window. Now you can identify the modules that are published in the Module Manager.

Menu Assignment

The last part I'd like to cover relates to the pages that your modules appear on. This is a very nice feature of a Joomla website. Any given module can appear on all pages within your site, no pages within your site, or select pages within your site. The process is simple:

1. Click on any module name in your Module Manager.
2. This opens the individual module for editing.
3. Scroll down to the Menu Assignment. See below:

Joomla Module- Menu Assignment

4. Note that you can choose from All, None, or, Select Menu Item(s) from the List.
5. The list is made up of those links that reside on the various menus on your website. For instance, you can make your module appear on a particular menu item such as the home page only. If this is the case, click on "Select Menu Item(s) from the List", scroll down to the menu item "Home" under the mainmenu items and select it. Now the module will only appear on your home page. If you want your module to appear on all pages, simply click "All" and all of the menu items will be selected. Thus, the module will appear on every page of your site.
6. Once the Menu Assignment has been established, click on the Save button on the top of the page. Be sure to confirm your setting by previewing your website.

Part 14: Joomla Articles

Table of Contents for this Series

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