Some of the people who have visited this blog, have pointed out that I’m a weird fellow. Why? Because I’m talking about Joomla! , using a WordPress powered blog! Some of you even found it so hilarious, you had to rub it in. Is it really that silly? Okay, I’ll admit that it’s somewhat silly.
So, for the past three months, I’ve been thinking. I thought it was about time I left WordPress behind and finally start our “proper” website about Joomla. To show that I’m serious when I say I love Joomla!. I had it all figured out. I’d be using Joomla 1.5.22 and install K2 for our blogging / content purposes. I’d use a kick-ass Joomlart / Rockettheme template – or find the money for a Joomlabamboo template. Of course, I’d be installing the very same Akeeba tools I’ve been praising here for a long time. To top it off, I’d add a neat download section where you could download manuals I was planning to write. And let’s not forget the Ninjaboard Forum – I should write a review about that some time soon.
All I needed was content. I originally planned to name our new site “The Joomlaverse” and I was planning to cover interesting topics, like Molajo, Nooku Server and Joomla 1. What are they, why are they interesting for you? I was also planning to “contribute” to the community which has given me a lot – a well visited blog, an interesting job. Fortunately, my ‘Trademark request’ was turned down because the site wasn’t done yet. As it turns out, Claire saved me a lot of money by doing so. (Side note: she was right, the side didn’t meet the requirements.)
But I cancelled the project
That’s right, you read it here first. The site I just mentioned? Not going to happen. Giving back to the commnunity? Maybe, if a certain person asks me nicely on Skype. But the “Joomla” version of Joomla & More is cancelled completely. Not that you care, of course. You’re just here to find a quick fix. Can’t blame you, since this blog is a pretty good source of information 
Why would you do that?
Good question. Why would you invest time in planning a website, and then decide not to do it after all? I’ll tell you why.
In the past few weeks, I’ve seen too much shit happen in the Joomla! Community which I don’t like. For example, did you know that there’s sort of a mini-war going on around Joomla 1.6? Some claim that you must upgrade because it’s the latest and greatest. Others point out it’s flaws and tell you it’s better to “stay put” for a while. Confusing, right? And then, the “war” starts. Both sides seem to be pretty convinced that their opinion is the only valid opinion. As a site builder, I’ve read these post and wonder “WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?”
That is just one shining example. Another gem is the new release cycle. There will be two major versions of Joomla in the next year. OSM’s point of view is pretty clear: “Developers, deal with it.” Us,, non-site builders are still waiting for a good reason to upgrade alltogether. A confusing ACL system, and features we don’t give a damn about because 90% of them are developer oriented aren’t a selling point. We’ve got no choice but to wait until the developers catch up – and that might take a while. Talk about how “Business NEED to adapt, or they’ll get behind” aren’t really encouraging either. It’s not up to OSM to decide our Business strategy.
It’s not just because those two reasons that I’m cancelling the project. It’s the whole current “vibe” in the Joomla! Community we don’t like. I’m asking myself: How much time do I want to invest in a community that’s so bitter, angry even? When I get home from work, and I start my “time off” I don’t want to be confronted with even MORE politics, bickering and arguing than I find on the workplace. I don’t want to “pick sides”. I just want to have a good time, and for the moment I can’t.
Cancelling the project just makes sense
The past few weeks, I’ve lost a lot of time this week, trying to understand what’s going on in the Joomla! community. Even when I decided to “work on our project” it was hard not to be distracted. I could have used that (valuable) time to do other things. Like updating the current site. Working on things that aren’t related to this site. Doing fun stuff. But I cared too much about the Joomla! community to let it slide.
In order to stop myself from spending time I don’t have, on things I can’t change, I’ve decided to just pull the plug on the project alltogether. Someone asked me a few months back why I used WordPress to blog about Joomla!.
My initial answer was “Because I don’t want to think about work constantly.” (I’m paid to goof around with Joomla!)
If someone would ask me the same question today, I’d reply differently. I’d tell them “I love Joomla!, I love helping people, but for the moment, building a new site is not something I want to do. Not in this climate.”
What’s next?
Will I never look back at Joomla! again? Like I mentioned, I can’t, as I’m payed to goof around with Joomla!. I’m a site builder. And the people who pay me, expect me to build sites using Joomla! that’s what I’ll be doing. Unless someone else would pay me NOT to do so, of course. Which probably won’t happen.
It’s inevitable that, during said “work” I’ll be stumbling upon problems that need to be fixed. That I’ll discover beautiful gems of Joomla! goodness I can’t keep for myself. It wouldn’t be fair of me not to share what I’ve learned, when I could easily do so. So, I’ll just keep on posting. Right here, on this blog. This WordPress powered blog. You guys never seemed to care about that, anyway.
But I still think it’s a shame, really. Building that site was something I really looked forward to.
Like this:
Be the first to like this post.
