We've had a 24-hour make-over on Alledia. Throughout today we're using the SimSun font for all headlines on the site.

Its made possible by a cool technology called sIFR (or Scalable Inman Flash Replacement), created by Mike Davidson. It solves the problem that disappoints many people when they first start designing websites - browsers only accept a limited number of fonts. Some people try to get around this obstacle by using images for text, but this technique is bad for SEO, invisible to screenreaders and difficult to change. sIFR uses Javascript and Flash to solve all those issues.

However, one thing you need to do is create a special Flash file to hold your font. In this quick tutorial we'll show you how to use sIFR on your Joomla site in 8 easy steps:

Simple Instructions to Create Cool Font Headings in Joomla

Making the Font Work with sIFR

1. Download the OpensIFRr release from Sourcforge. Unfortunately, its only available for Macs currently. Using Windows is possible, but you'll need a copy of Flash and these instructions.
2. Use OpensIFRr to open your font. It needs to be a True Type Font. You'll know if it is because the file extension is .ttf.
3. Create a .swf file using OpensIFRr. It has a habit of crashing sometimes. If it does, try and convert nearly all of the characters, but don't check the "all" option.
4. Upload your new .swf file to the mambots/system folder.
   

Making sIFR Work with Joomla

1. Download the sIFR plugin from Joomla-addons.org.
2. Install it and add the code to the bottom of your template.
3. Change the code to reflect the color of your headlines and the name of your .swf file.
   
4. Voila! Your component and content headings will now show in a snazzy new font.

Which browsers does this work with?

About the same as the number percentage as Flash itself - around 90%. PC IE 5+, Safari, Firefox, Opera 7+, Omniweb, and even Konqueror.

More Resources

• sIFR fonts from JoomlaBamboo and demo template
• Joomlashack sIFR template with support forum