| Many webmasters use Joomla for their websites | | | | extensions: |
| because it is open source, free to use, has a lot of | | | | TEMPLATE_NAME/html/EXTENSION_NAME |
| extensions and templates and is simple to use. It has | | | | VIEW_NAME/FILE_NAME.php |
| also a large community of developers. There are | | | | One example for the overridden display of frontpage |
| many components, modules and plugins for every | | | | managed by the com_content component: |
| possible task. In other words, Joomla is a universal | | | | Original file PATH_TO_JOOMLA/components |
| content management system suitable for simple home | | | | com_content/views/frontpage/tmpl/default.php |
| pages and complex websites. For most purposes it is | | | | Override file TEMPLATE_NAME/html/com_content |
| enough to install a template and few extensions for | | | | frontpage/default.php |
| common needs like displaying ads or Google Analytics. | | | | Joomla overrides are an elegant way to modify original |
| But sooner or later you need to modify the original | | | | functionality without modifying core files. Overrides |
| display or standard layouts. There are two ways to | | | | work for built-in and custom installed extensions. Many |
| make such modifications. You can either modify the | | | | times where you would like to change the blog display, |
| original code or to override Joomla core files. | | | | add advertising code between articles or change any |
| The first approach by modifying the core files might | | | | default layout, you don't have to look for a special |
| work but only until you upgrade Joomla. This process | | | | extension. All you need is to find the file in Joomla |
| may overwrite the modified files and destroy your | | | | directory where this page element is created and |
| hard work. The other approach is to create core | | | | create an override in the template/HTML directory. Of |
| overrides in the template directory. For every | | | | course, you need to be familiar with HTML and PHP |
| extension Joomla checks HTML directory in the | | | | code, but this is pretty easy because you will only |
| selected template directory where you can copy | | | | modify existing code. This way you can customize |
| original files and modify them to suit your needs. | | | | your Joomla website without installing any extension. |
| Extensions are not only those you have installed, | | | | The advantage of overrides is that they still work after |
| Joomla comes with many plugins, components and | | | | the Joomla files are updated, but the disadvantage is |
| modules that are needed for normal operation. | | | | that they are linked with template. If you change it you |
| Creating overrides is easy. You simply copy files that | | | | need to copy overridden files and modify them for the |
| need to be modified into template/HTML directory. | | | | new design. |
| There is a rule on how to create paths for overridden | | | | |