Offering custom forms is generally a key element of having an effective web site. Creating them has not always been simple, but RSForm provides the features we believe are most important: Simple form creation tool (almost drag-and-drop); easy e-mail response setup, with ability to send to user, administrator, or any required parties; insertion into online database for further tracking; and the ability to add attachments. RSForms has evolved over time to be our standard for custom forms on our client sites. It is a commercial extension with minimal cost.

Can you say, "Why isn't this the core functionality of the Joomla! Module Manager"? With AMM, you can expose or limit the display of a module by...well...just about anything you can think of! Even if you only want a module to display on your birthday, AMM can make it happen. We consider this a core extension for any 3by400 site build, and are always impressed with all things NoNumber. NoNumber offers a free version and a pro version for minimal cost.

One shortcoming of Joomla! is that it doesn't have a native Content Construction Kit (CCK), which basically allows you to display a page using custom fields that can be easily populated through a form. Think "custom database" display. There are a couple out ther to plug this gap: K2, Jreviews, etc. Our favorite is YouTheme's ZOO. They have good support and it's stable. There may be more add-ons for K2, but we think ZOO displays better out of the box. Plus, ZOOLanders offers plug-ins for just about anything you can imagine. ZOO is offered as free and commercial versions, and we suggest getting the bundle with the pre-built apps so you can get a feel of what it can do.

If we need more information from a registered user than the standard Joomla! fields (name, user name, password, and email) we use Community Builder. It allows you to create your own fields that the user can fill in (age, gender, interests, etc). It looks a bit clunky out of the box, but with some work it looks ok. It is a free extension, and offers a plethora of free and paid plug-ins.

One key to presenting well to Google search indexing is an accurate, current site map. Xmap allows you to specify which menus you would like to display in your site map and provides an easy display for those users who just prefer to see the whole enchilada. It is a free extension.