Top 5 Joomla Project Management Extensions

Joomla is another free and popular open source content management system written in PHP. According to their website, it has been downloaded more than three million times since 2006, with a new download every 2.5 seconds. As a CMS that uses modern programming standards such as object-oriented programming and model-view-controller software design architecture, it is used to build not only websites but also online applications. The Internet and private intranets, too, are populated by web sites made from this CMS.

History and Architecture

Joomla is an English language version of the Swahili word jumla, which means “all together ” or “as a whole. ” Its official name was adopted by its developers on September 2005, after the team had a controversial falling out with the Mambo project team being funded by Miro International Pvt. Ltd. To this day, the open source community has maintained the status of Joomla to be the only non-corporate community-driven CMS platform in the world. It also claims to be the most widely translated CMS supporting 64 languages. This particular CMS uses the model-view-controller architecture pattern to make it reusable and easy to use. These three components, namely model, view, and controller, separate how information is presented from how the user interacts with it. In a simplified description of MVC, a user uses a controller that sends commands to manipulate the model. The model notifies the view and the controller if there has been an update to the content. And the view is the component that requests content from the model, which is seen by the user.

Extensions

The Joomla core has many features such as user management, media management, polls, search, web link management, and more aside from content management. All these features can be used readily out of the box. In addition, it has extensibility coming from the community which has build over 9000 extensions. An extension is further classified as a component, a plug-in, a template, a module, or a language. Each type of extension has a different function, but some extensions have more than just one function.

The Top 5 Project Management Extensions

1. Projectfork ‚Äì Version 4.1 is compatible with core version 2.5 and 3x. It is described as a component, module, and plug-in. Projectfork is a suite of PM components and extensions that are configurable to different business needs. Some of its features include a project dashboard, unlimited projects, time-sensitive milestones, task and to-do lists, timesheets, and group discussions. 2. JForce ‚Äì Version 2.5 works with Joomla 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, and 2.5. It is also a component, module, and plug-in. JForce is described as a comprehensive PM system that allows the user to organize projects, provide specific access to clients for them to view the project, and add new information. Other features include a dynamic dashboard, milestones, tasks, calendar, and invoice. 3. JE Project Manager ‚Äì Version 1.2 is compatible with core version 2.5. It is a component and language extension. Some of its features include the ability to assign multiple users to a project. Tasks can be created and assigned per project. Once the tasks are completed by the people assigned with the tasks, payment processing can be triggered. There are nine different statuses that can be used to describe a task. This component also has message management and approvals management features. 4. BeestoWorkflow ‚Äì Version 1.2 works with Joomla 2.5. It is a simple component that allows the user to manage projects, collaborate with other team members and clients, as well as create their own workflows. It aims to increase productivity by allowing the user to manage workflows more efficiently. 5. JoomRoadmap ‚Äì Version 1.0 is compatible with the 2.5 core. It is a component that has PM features built in its backend and frontend. It can create unlimited projects and unlimited versions of each project. It can create unlimited tasks in each version of the project. Tasks can be categorized, and its progress can be assigned different states. In the frontend, it can display a progress bar for each task, with a progress state and description. The component also allows the display of all available projects, versions, and tasks per project. Although not mentioned in the Extensions webpage, JoomRoadmap’s own commercial site specified that it is available in English and German.

Featured Partners: Project Management Software

If you’re interested in learning more about top rated project management software, the editors at Project-Management.com actively recommend the following: