Joomla can be tricky when it comes to search engine optimization. You need to purchase extentions, modules etc. to achieve the desired results in terms of SEO.

Optimizing URL of a Joomla site should be the first step while setting up a Joomla website. The good news is you can have SEF URL structure while keeping your money in the pocket. Here is how it’s done:

First, go to the global configuration page at your Joomla website. There you will see SEO settings section. You need to configure Search Engine Friendly URLs and Use Apache mod_rewrite as yes. Before you click on the save or apply button, do the following changes in your htaccess.txt file:

Connect to your server and download htaccess.txt file to your computer. Open it using a  text editor then check for  “Options +FollowSymLinks”  and put a # before it. At the end  it should look like this:
# Options +FollowSymLinks

Save the file and upload it again to your web space.  Then rename the file as .htaccess (Dot should come before htaccess and nothing else )

Now you are ready to save your global configuration. Check out your website and enjoy your SEF URLs. Works like a charm isn’t it?

Joomla is one of the most popular open source content management systems (CMS) over the internet. Many website designers and owners use it once they understand how it works as it might need a little knowledge about website structure and maybe some HTML.
I have been using Joomla for a short period of time. In the beginning, I found it time consuming to chase after all those modules, extensions and plugins but once I got used to it, I am satisfied and confident to bring any Joomla website to the next level.
I need to say Joomla has drawbacks in terms of SEO but there are solutions for that issue so let’s create a pros and cons list for Joomla.

Joomla Pros:

- Fast and easy to use once you understand how it works.
- There are hundreds of support extentions, plugins and modules.
- It is very easy to create and operate a multilingual website with Joomla.
- It is an open-source platform and the website can be extended easily.
- It is free.

Joomla Cons:

- Joomla is not SEF in terms of URL’s. You need to purchase SEO plugins in order to optimize your URL’s or do some hacking in with code. I will tell you how to optimize your URL’s effectively without using any plugin in my next post about “Joomla SEO Steps”.
- It is not very easy to understand the section, category structure in the very beginning. You might need to read some Joomla lessons to overcome this issue if you have enough drive.
- You need to rearrange your modules etc. when you change the template so it is better to decide your template before you create the whole website.
- You need to spend some money if you want continious support for most modules, extentions and plugins.
- Those are what I’ve already thought about Joomla. I would love to hear your comments on this issue so the list could be extended with your support.