I still clearly remember how different the internet looked about 20 years ago. Websites were mostly built using table layouts - at the time, there were hardly any other options for structuring content. Design trends like drop shadows, rounded corners, and bright colors dominated the visual style. Mobile devices weren't a consideration yet, and responsive design simply didn't exist. Usability played a very different role back then, and content maintenance was mostly a technical task reserved for developers. For editors, it was often a real challenge.
It was in this environment that Joomla! was born in 2005, emerging as a fork of the Mambo project. From the beginning, I found Joomla! and its community exciting because it aimed to create a flexible, customizable, and user-friendly platform - not just for developers, but also for agencies, organizations, and freelancers. The goal was clear: to make websites easier to create and manage without compromising on quality or functionality.
Accessibility was already a key concern for me at the time. I wanted to ensure that websites were accessible to all people - regardless of their abilities or the assistive technologies they used. Joomla! was meant to be my tool for achieving this, and I knew early on that I needed to get involved.
Debates Around Accessibility and “Read More” Links
I clearly remember the heated discussions on accessibility back then:
Open Letter to the Joomla! Community
One particularly intense debate was about the introduction of custom “Read More” text.
A “Read More” link is a short link used in articles to lead from a preview or introduction to the full text. It helps keep content tidy and pages compact, only expanding when the reader is interested.
The issue was (and still is) that if a page has multiple links all labeled just “Read More,” important context is missing. Blind or visually impaired users navigating via screen readers had no way to tell what content the link referred to. Joomla! took a big step forward by allowing custom text for each article’s “Read More” link. What may seem like a small detail was a huge improvement for screen reader users, since the context was now clear and no longer had to be guessed. Joomla embraced these ideas early and consistently - long before accessibility became a widespread topic in other systems.
The Beez Template
In 2008, the Beez template was introduced and marked an important milestone in Joomla’s accessibility journey. From the beginning, Beez focused on semantic HTML, a clear heading structure, and screen reader support—features that made Joomla a pioneer in accessible web design. It felt great to be able to contribute to something so important, and then see it make its way into the Joomla core.
With template overrides, Joomla users were now able to precisely control the HTML output without modifying the core system. This made it possible to tailor the markup specifically to accessibility requirements. That flexibility remains one of Joomla’s strengths today and allows us to deliver code that meets the needs of all users.
Despite the power of template overrides, the Joomla community continued working to improve the core output of Joomla itself. True accessibility can only be achieved when not only the templates, but also the underlying system output is clean, understandable, and accessible.
Joomla! 4: Backend Accessibility Takes the Stage
Accessibility doesn’t stop at the visible part of a website. The Joomla! backend - the administrative interface where content is created and managed - also came into focus. With Joomla! 4, the backend was thoroughly modernized with accessibility in mind. Features like high-contrast modes, larger font sizes, keyboard navigation, and improved screen reader compatibility were added. The goal: not only to deliver accessible websites but also to empower people with disabilities to work as content editors.
The Role of the Joomla Accessibilty and Usability Team
A key player in this ongoing process is the Joomla Accessibilty and Usability Team. This dedicated team within the community focuses entirely on systematically improving accessibility in Joomla, both in the frontend and the backend. They test new features for accessibility, provide recommendations, support releases, and ensure that Joomla continues to meet international standards like WCAG 2.2 AA.
A CMS with Principles: Joomla’s Clear Commitment to Accessibility
Over the years, Joomla has evolved into a CMS that not only impresses with flexible technology and modern design but also with its strong and consistent commitment to accessibility. Today, Joomla is one of the few systems that doesn't treat accessibility as an afterthought, but as an integral part of its foundation. It’s a commitment that the community continues to uphold, version after version.
And for that, I am deeply grateful - to the entire community and everyone who has dedicated themselves so passionately over all last 20 years.