Beginning Joomla!® Web Site Development

Chapter 1. Joomla! Jargon: Understanding the Language of Joomla!

Everything in life has a language of its own. If you want to speak intelligently about a subject, you first need to learn its language. For instance, if you want to talk to someone about baseball, you wouldn't say "I hit a touchdown over the fence!" because by doing so you immediately inform everyone within hearing distance that you know nothing about baseball.

Like any other product, industry, hobby, or niche, Joomla! has its own language (a.k.a. jargon). Seasoned veterans are fluent in Joomla! jargon, but if you are new to Joomla!, the jargon can often sound like gibberish.

Glossaries normally come at the end of a book, but understanding Joomla! begins with understanding its jargon. You cannot have a meaningful conversation about Joomla! without using words that are common in the Joomla! language. If you want to understand the rest of this book, you need to have a firm grasp on the meanings of the terms that are used. This list is grouped into the following headings:

• Framework: Joomla! is more than just a content management system. It is a framework for rapidly building web applications. This section covers terms associated with the Joomla! framework.

• Installation: This section first explains the difference between an installation of Joomla! and the installation of a Joomla! extension. Then, it covers common terms you will encounter during the process of installing Joomla!.

• Extensions: This section explains the meaning ...