Please help a nearly-frustrated newbie!!!

[gingerol]

Hello,
First off, thank you for your patience.
I´ve tried several content management systems before now, and recently I stumbled on Phpwcms (well, decided to use it, cos it's always existed on my web host packages). And I think I like it. That, is where the problems began.

I have spent several hours trying to learn it... and I´m almost giving up. First, I didn´t know where to find templates (it took a while to understand the role of templates). Eventually, I found one on the internet (this forum), but my site remains quite ugly (I´ll give you my site link soon). I see many beautiful sites made by others on this forum.

Now, my VERY BIG question is this: does anybody have any ready-made site I can just simply copy and change the internal contents? I know that's asking a lot... And while I'm being daring in my requests, would there be a kind soul who would volunteer to get into my site admin and help me set it up?

I'm a journalist and Media Relations guy, and I want to create a site, both to record my thoughts, as well as a serve as a resource base for other writers, etc, etc. It should have plenty pictures, image effects, etc.

My no-effort is at http://www.writingpad.org

Thanks a trillion!
Now who dares!!!

Gingerol

Sorry, I remember more questions and problems:
- there doesn´t seem to be any images in the folders. Am I to put them myself? How then do I reference them?
- The "onload" java link in page layout. How is it used?

[cyrano]

hi gingerol,

have a closer look at http://www.phpwcms-docu.de there is an english part for mostly all stuff.

and check also http://www.peperkorn-online.de/index.php?warum (german)
but you will find some prepared parts you can use and start.
here: http://www.peperkorn-online.de/quick-start_tuning.phtml

to mention:
phpwcms comes without any settings for layout, templates and site content.

so the steps are in short description:
go to admin section and make structure levels first under "home".

Each structure level is/ can be later a menue topic

then setup layout: create a new layout, name it as you like and setup with parameters.

then in next step go to templates and make a new one. name ist as you like, choose "fontend.css" for css file (there you make later most of changes for look-a-like)

then you can switsch to articles section and add a new article (same as pages) and name it as you like.

hope this gets you a bit more further....

all best

[Pappnase]

hello

or look here!!

http://www.phpwcms.de/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2776

[gingerol]

Thank you Cyrano and Pappnase for your replies and your suggestions. I will now look at them and try again. By the way, is there any English equivalent of the "Quick Start Tuning" link provided by Cyrano?

So you mean there's hope for me here?

I appreciate all your help,

Gingerol

[The Doc]

Hello @gingerol,

I just saw that you are using the Release: 1.1-RC4 27-08-2004, why don´t you use the newest one phpwcms 1.2.6 you will find it here:

http://www.phpwcms-docu.de/index.php?cvs_info_en

Best reguards

[cyrano]

hi gingerol,

we have also italian spoken users in wms, may be they can help you faster...

so on peperkorn it is only in german language.

first with starting there are some steps to go further but then with experiences you can work faster - try it and ask again or search forum - it's full of inspiration and hints too.

[gingerol]

Thanks everyone. In addition to the posts here, I've received private messages offers for help. This solidarity is humbling, and makes me wish to learn this soon, so that I cuold possibly be of help to others in the future. I'll be back to ask more questions as they arise.

Gingerol

[gingerol]

I'll to express here my thanks to DF6IH who has helped me A LOT in this last week to get going on phpwcms. He has all this while taken my problem to be his, spending hours and hours helping me fix the site. If that was already a lot, he has now surpassed it by helping install the newest version of the cms. This is the stuff of a great guy. We have never met but I am humbled by this experience. Keep up the good work fellows!