Joomla!® User Group Milton Keynes

Firstly, if you want a business website then you should choose Joomla.  You can rest assured that Joomla is oftern your better long term decision. If you have not used Joomla before then I would hold off going to version 1.6 at this time. Download the latest version 1.5.23 or above and go with that.

Why do I say this?

As a newcomer, when you get everything going, you will want to add or pick your own features. You need to do this using the widest possible base of choices or sources.  At this time this makes for using version 1.5.x not 1.6.x.

It is generally better to be second place and let others, with more experience and development tools, discover any problems with the new 1.6.x version. Now don't get me wrong here, I am not saying that the 1.6.x version will have any bad problems in its code code.  Code stability in the core will likely be better in 1.6.x,  it's just that the ported plugins and extension components will need time to become as robust and stable as their 1.5.x versions.

My advice is simple: If you have a small level of funds then purchase a Synology Linux box and test/trial and even develop on that. The cost is very minimal and you get extra handy features for a very low overhead of time to install the system. If you do not have funds then you can sign up for one of the many free Joomla hosting accounts. You should always have in mind that 'nothing in life is free':

• Open Source is powerful and is 'freedom' not 'free' so you use it freely under licence with responsibilities and benefits.
• Free hosting normally comes with links and page rank draining features which give away your search engine relevance to others and leaves a trail of your unique content on the web.  This trial 'free' use may block your true long term goals when using the Internet.  The trial content would be duplicate content.  You may end the trial but by then the content has been copied and ripped so you have no effective control over your trial content.  It stands as your original duplicate content.  Let's just say 'I would never publish what I would want to say unless I can also have control over it.'

Don't do a Windows trial install because it makes your development system more foreign to the live hosting platform you may end up choosing. Linux is better loved by Google than Windows servers due to overall reliability.  Did I just open up a can of worms? Everything in life is relative so if you are a good windows hosting administrator and can keep your server really stable, high performing and free from viruses then great - it will rank well else get it wrong you will suffer. Back to the main point 'getting your Joomla website hosted and the stages to deploying it....'

What you need to do is get the hosting then implement a backup to transfer from local trial to live.  This is so easy with Joomla and normally it amounts to one file change after the data has been ported/replicated in your live server.

This Milton Keynes JUG group stands as a point of help for anyone in Milton Keynes who wants to use Joomla and get themselves on the web.

You can choose to avail yourself of my 25+ years IT, in the deep stuff of IT contracting, or gain from the advice of others regarding the practicalities of Joomla installations and small business websites. Some local business owners have benefited greatly from using Joomla on their business websites.

You are only a small step away from being published on the web when you use Joomla 1.5.x or 1.6.x.

Come along to a meeting or simply give me a call and I often can help people with 'just that little nugget of knowledge which makes things clear and easy for you...'

Anton Hinxman, Tel: 01908 880777