Joomla Templates - Free and Custom Made

Not all templates are equal. Your template could be an important factor in

• Download speed - does it take forever to open different pages in the site?
• Scrip errors - resulting in things not workin.
• Usability - are people comfortable with the site & can they find things effortlessly?
• Flexibility of layout - can modules be turned on/off between pages without design & layout dramas.
• Economical to update/modify - is it well coded such that you (or your developer) can easily make changes when needed.
• General aesthetics - does it look ok?

Joomla comes with 3 templates already installed, and they are really quite sufficient for most situations. In fact, the default templates are quite exceptional - see JA Purity and Milky Way (the 3rd one - Beez - is something else entirely.)

Once installed (uploaded), switching the template is usually done in about 1 minute via a control panel, however some modules may need re-positioning - since the new template may not use the same module position names as the previous one. So it can take a bit longer to do properly. It can sometimes get really complicated, but for most sites the process is very simple.

When browsing templates, be aware that you are usually viewing it with everything switched on. The creators want to showcase all of its features, so they are all turned on.

Its quite likely that your site will not use even half of what is displayed. Sometimes people say "I dont like Joomla sites because they all look the same and are so busy". This usually indicates that they have not understood what they have seen.

Also, because Joomla is free, and powerful, it is now used by pretty much everyone who wants to put up a website in a hurry. So there are a lot of bad installations out there to be seen by all. The nicely designed templates are not usually easily recognised as Joomla sites.

It is useful to view the Module Positions that form the template. To do this, just add "/index.php?tp=1" after the main domain name of the site - eg http://www.fpmta.org.au/index.php?tp=1

Free Joomla Templates

... this page I'm still developing

Or try your luck in the jungle - almost anyone can design a joomla templat, so count on sifting through a lot of garbage.

ThemesOnline
www.themes-online.com/category/joomla/joomla-15-templates/
This site has (hundreds?) ... but its hard to find good ones without spending a lot of time.

About 100 here:
www.templates-royal.de/free-templates/joomla-15.html

The best way to find free templates is just to ask google ... its what I do!

If you have a serious business website to build, dont mess around with free templates - unless you can get it customised further. Instead go straight for a custom solution, or find a free or commercial template to use as a starting point, then customise from there.

Commercial Joomla Templates

Most commercial templates range in price between $50 - $100. Considering that I charge $600 - $2000 for a customised solution (which may take months to build), I think that buying a commercial template is a very good option. The quality of some of the leading solutions is outstanding.

YouJoomla - 'expensive' but outstanding.

Rocket Theme - have been around for years. Good quality and wide range.