Using Joomla as a content management system (CMS), enables you to create and manage websites in a very simple way. Thanks to its licensing conditions (GPL), you do not need to pay for the software itself. Because of its open source nature, it is also possible to customize the code to best suit your needs and requirements. The flexibility comes from add – on modules provided which can be easily installed.

Joomla! is written in PHP, uses object-oriented programming (OOP) techniques and software design patterns, stores data in a MySQL database, and includes features such as page caching, RSS feeds, news flashes, blogs, polls, search and many more .

The Model-View-Controller (MVC) framework was built so that anyone with the knowledge could override the core of the CMS without actually modifying the original code.

Joomla can be use to create a wide range of websites such as

• Portals or corporate websites
• Online shopping websites, ecommerce applications
• Small or large business websites
• Organizations websites
• Government applications
• School and church websites
• Personal blogs or family homepages
• Online community portals
• Online newspapers websites or magazines

and with over 7,000 extensions available on the Joomla official website extension directory, one of the most daunting aspects could be deciding which Joomla extension is right for the job.

At Websoftnet, we provide a control panel which automates the deployment of a basic Joomla web site. Joomla is beneficial to both website owners and web developers.

You can view or download the latest collection of Joomla templates here

A few years ago, shopping was an activity that primarily took place in stores and over the phone. These days, e-shopping has come to reign supreme. Although most stores still have physical locations, carving out a well-recognized presence in online communities is vital. With a bit of creativity and skill, your business can benefit from today’s technology by devising a strategy that adeptly integrates your domain name and presence online.

When you are starting a business, you might be tempted to begin by relying on free internet tools such as email, Facebook, and Twitter to reach out to clients. These are all valuable resources for non-profit organizations and businesses alike. However, when you begin depending on them to reach out to customers, it is difficult to establish a unique image without a business website. It’s important to secure a domain name related to your business the moment you go into business.

Selecting the right domain name takes a bit more thought and effort than you might think, but the investment will pay off for years to come. A significant portion of common, everyday words have already been snapped up by businesses so it is useful to maintain a flexible attitude to avoid getting frustrated. As an initial step, it is a good idea to jot down keywords and short expressions that describe the business. If you get stuck, ask a friend or business partner to help brainstorm. Look through brochures and materials you have around the office and think of words that epitomize the goods and services being offered to your clients.

A short and easy to recall name is best. Lengthy names or those with unusual punctuation or numerals may be difficult for your customers to remember.

Naming your domain can be the inspiration for you entire web presence. Make sure you do it right the first time. Rebranding a mistake can be costly in any number of ways.

We have added a new feature to eXtend called ‘Check Site Permissions’. This new feature has been added to let you bulk check your websites file permissions without having to go through them all manually one by one. It will:

1. Check that the permissions make any sense at all, e.g. that a directory is accessible or that a script is executable

2. Check for conditions which would make the web server refuse to run a script for security reasons

3. Check for permissions which are likely to lead to security problems on your site

4. Where appropriate, recommendations for changes to the existing permissions will also be given to make your website more secure. You can then agree to the recommended permissions through this page (or choose to ignore them).

Customers who have ‘File Manager’ enabled as a feature will automatically get access to this in their control panel.

bbPress  – a  streamlined, fast, and easy-to-use forum program, it integrates easily into WordPress.

We’re now offering one-click installs of bbPress. Using as a message board, it’s a great way to promote visitor interaction and also to discover what your visitors are interested in, who they are, and what else they want to see from your site.

bbPress is open source and focused on speed and security, meaning you don’t have to worry about slow loading pages or the risk of being hacked. The streamlined software is also lightweight and efficient for better use of space and bandwidth. bbPress is easy to install thanks to our one-click install solution, and the user-friendly control panel also means less work for admins and moderators once you’re up and running.

bbPress enjoys many similar customisation elements to WordPress so you can develop and install themes and plugins (e.g. for ratings, video and private forums) to customise your forums. Furthermore, bbPress can be integrated with WordPress so it has access to your blog’s functionality and users signing up to your message boards can also be users on your blog. This is especially useful for multi-author blogs, blogs with regular commenters and those looking to build up integrated site communities from an existing WordPress blog.

If you have a Premium hosting plan, you can now install bbPress just like any other one-click install. Go to your eXtend control panel, scroll down to one-click installs and install from there.

To find out more about what bbPress has to offer, check out bbpress.org.