Wordpress is a greet blog tool that I have been using for some time. The new version 2.5 has some improvements, specially on design.

1. Default color. By default the old WordPress interface used to come with a horrible strong blue. The new one comes with a web2.0 pastel palette. This is something that our eyes can be happy about.

2. Wording. If a feature or button is not labeled properly users are going to have a hard time finding it or discovering what this feature is for. An example is the "Presentation" tab on the old wordpress administration that was hiding the design-related features of the blog. I remember having some trouble to find this features the first time I used WordPress. Now the tab is called "Design". Great!

3. Organization. A good little move to improve usability was to reorganize the menu. Write, Manage, Design and Comments are on the left, the rest was move to another corner. This puts the important stuff together and makes the administration page look simpler.

Organizing your website template in content modules will make your site look more organized and will make it easier to update if you are displaying a lot of information that has to be changed regularly.

"define modules where the information is going to be displayed and link them to the database…"

Insert information into databases through a content management system, then define modules where the information is going to be displayed and link them to the database. This way users know where to expect the information they want as the general look and feel will be more organized.

A web design example could be Sky Sports, the online version of the TV channel. They have a loot of content that is organized in boxes and modules that are connected to a special part of the database. This also help journalists to know exactly where their articles and pictures will be displayed. Read here more  Design vs Art articles about Content Management. 

I got to Joomla when I was trying to find a way of having my personal web page updated all the time. I knew about several Content Management Systems (CMS) but I didn’t want to pay a license, you know, it’s for my personal web page, not a commercial site. A CMS is a software system used for content management, including text files, image, audio and all kinds of web content. You can use a CMS for several proposes, like in-company documentation, file sharing and as a wiki.

I was interested in publishing my personal information and keeping it updated easily, so I decided to install Joomla! on my server and give it a try. Joomla! is an open source project and it can be downloaded and installed for free. You can additionally download several extensions and templates for your site.

The installation
Installing the software on my server was extremely easy, no problem at all. Just put the file on my server and called the installation file from the web browser.

Using it
Well, it could take you some time until you get used to it. I have installed the last version, the 1.5, which has an extremely limited documentation – almost nothing -. Here is my biggest complaint about this project, I understand that Joomla! is a free software but if you don’t give the users a proper manual to give the software a try they might get confused and frustrated before they discover the great features this system has.

Customizing
I downloaded a nice template, then I installed and modified it. It was easy to install it but a little bit too messy to modified it. Basically, some things can be changed through the administrator’s interface and others directly on the code.

Finally…
At the end I got what I wanted, a good looking online CV that can be updated from every computer. You can check it here: www.alexisbrion.eu

I totally recommend this CMS. Remember that Joomla! is an open source project and needs support to survive, on money or helping with the project. Have a check, install it, play with it: www.joomla.org