Installing and Configuring Community Quiz

This comprehensive guide covers everything you need to know to install, configure, and get started with Community Quiz for Joomla 5.

Package Contents

The Community Quiz package includes:

Extension	Type	Description
com_communityquiz	Component	Main quiz component
mod_communityquiz	Module	Display quizzes in module positions
mod_cqcategories	Module	Display quiz categories
mod_quizform	Module	Display quiz submission form
mod_topscorers	Module	Display top quiz scorers
plg_communityquiz_quizzes	Plugin	Core plugin for notifications, points & activity streams
plg_finder_quizzes	Plugin	Smart Search integration
plg_user_quizzes	Plugin	User event handling
plg_content_quizzes	Plugin	Content plugin for embedding quizzes
plg_content_quizfields	Plugin	Quiz fields in content
plg_privacy_quizzes	Plugin	GDPR/Privacy compliance
plg_editor_maths	Plugin	Mathematical formula editor button

System Requirements

• Joomla: 4.0 or later (including Joomla 5.x)
• PHP: 8.0 or later
• Database: MySQL 5.7+ or MariaDB 10.2+

Installation

Installing Community Quiz follows the standard Joomla extension installation process:

1. Download the package file (pkg_communityquiz.zip)
2. Go to System → Install → Extensions
3. Upload and install the package file
4. The component menu will appear under Components → Community Quiz

[!TIP] If menu items don't appear after installation, go to Menus → Menu Manager and click Rebuild. If issues persist, execute this database query (replace xxx with your table prefix):

DELETE FROM xxx_menu WHERE link LIKE '%com_communityquiz%';

Then rebuild menus and reinstall the component.

Admin Dashboard Overview

After installation, navigate to Components → Community Quiz to access these areas:

Section	Description
Dashboard	Overview and quick access to all features
Quizzes	Create and manage quizzes
Courses	Group quizzes into learning paths
Question Banks	Reusable question pools
Difficulty Levels	Categorize quiz/question difficulty
Certificates	Design completion certificates
Categories	Organize quizzes hierarchically
Responses	View and manage user responses
Email Templates	Customize notification emails
Migrate	Import from other quiz components

Quiz Types

Community Quiz supports three quiz types:

Standard Quiz

The traditional quiz format where you create pages and add questions directly to each page. Best for structured exams with a fixed question set.

Category Quiz

Questions are pulled dynamically from Joomla categories. Configure:

• Max Questions: Limit total questions displayed
• Questions Per Page: Control pagination
• Question Ordering: Sequential or random

Question Bank Quiz

Draw questions from one or more question banks. Perfect for:

• Randomized assessments
• Large question pools
• Reusing questions across multiple quizzes

Question Types

Community Quiz supports 15 question types organized into categories:

Multiple Choice

Type	Description
Radio	Single answer selection
Checkbox	Multiple answer selection
Select	Dropdown single selection

Grid Questions

Type	Description
Grid Radio	Matrix with single selection per row
Grid Checkbox	Matrix with multiple selections per row
Matching	Connect items from two columns

Free Text

Type	Description
Single Line	Short text answer
Multiline	Paragraph text answer
Password	Hidden input (for codes/passwords)
Rich Text	Formatted text with editor

Image-Based

Type	Description
Image Choice (Single)	Select one image
Image Choice (Multiple)	Select multiple images
Hotspots	Click on image hotspot areas

Other

Type	Description
File Upload	Submit file attachments
Page Header	Section divider (not a question)

Component Configuration

Access global settings via Components → Community Quiz → Options.

Quiz Settings

Setting	Description	Default
Theme	Color theme (Default, Primary, Success, Info, Warning, Danger)	Default
Enable Captcha	Spam protection on quiz forms	No
Enable Ratings	Allow users to rate quizzes	Yes
Randomize Pages	Shuffle page order	No
Randomize Answers	Shuffle answer choices	No
Allow Multiple Responses	Users can retake quizzes	No
Max Responses	Limit total attempts (0 = unlimited)	0
Allow Retry	Permit retaking after completion	Yes
Max Retries	Maximum retry attempts	3
Attach PDF Report	Email PDF results to users	No
Show Progress Bar	Display completion progress	Yes
Show Answers	Display correct answers after completion	Yes
Show Answers Early	Show answers immediately after each question	No

Results Display

Setting	Description
Show Report	Display results summary
Score Report Location	Above/below questions or both
Report Fields	Select which metrics to display (total marks, correct questions, percentage, etc.)
Scorewise Messages	Custom messages based on score ranges
Show Chart Labels	Display data labels on charts
Allow Export	Let users export their responses

Category Settings

Setting	Description
Category Layout	Choose display template
Show Category Title	Display category name
Show Description	Display category description
Show Image	Display category image
Maximum Category Levels	Subcategory depth (-1 = all)
Show Empty Categories	Include categories with no quizzes

List Layout Options

Setting	Description	Default
Layout Style	Modern or Classic	Modern
Avatar Size	User avatar dimensions	40px
List Limit	Items per page	20
Show Filter	Enable search/filter	Hide
Show Difficulty Level	Display quiz difficulty	Yes
Show Response Status	User's progress indicator	No

Shared Settings

Setting	Description
Cookie Key	Encryption key for session cookies (32 chars)
Default Editor	WYSIWYG editor for quiz creation
Show Toolbar	Display component toolbar
Load Math Library	Enable KaTeX for mathematical formulas
Capture User IP	Store respondent IP addresses
Skip Email Queue	Send emails immediately vs. queue
Allowed File Types	Permitted upload extensions
Max Attachment Size	Upload file size limit (KB)

Integration Settings

Setting	Description
SEF Remove IDs	Hide database IDs from URLs
Load Bootstrap CSS	For templates without Bootstrap
UI Layout	Bootstrap version (2, 3, 4, or 5)
Google Sheets	Enable spreadsheet integration
Show Feed Link	Display RSS feed
Profile Component	User profile integration source
Avatar Component	Avatar image source
Points Component	Gamification points source
Stream Component	Activity stream integration

Third-Party Integrations

Community Quiz integrates with these extensions:

Profile & Avatar Sources

• Sociable
• CjForum / CjBlog
• JomSocial
• EasySocial
• Community Builder
• Kunena
• Alpha User Points
• Gravatar

Points Systems

• Rewardify
• Sociable
• CjForum / CjBlog
• JomSocial
• EasySocial
• AltaUserPoints
• Alpha User Points

Activity Streams

• Sociable
• CjForum
• JomSocial
• EasySocial
• Community Builder

Courses & Learning Paths

Courses group multiple quizzes into structured learning paths.

Creating a Course

1. Go to Components → Community Quiz → Courses
2. Click New
3. Configure:
   • Title & Alias: Course name and URL slug
   • Intro Text: Brief description shown in listings
   • Description: Full course content
   • Quizzes: Add quizzes to the course
   • Learning Path: Require sequential completion

Learning Path Mode

When enabled, users must:

• Complete quizzes in order
• Pass each quiz before accessing the next
• Progress is tracked per user

Course Certificates

Like quizzes, courses support:

• Score-based certificate rules
• Custom messages based on overall performance

Question Banks

Question banks allow you to create reusable question pools.

Creating a Question Bank

1. Go to Components → Community Quiz → Question Banks
2. Click New
3. Add a title and description
4. Save, then add questions

Using Banks in Quizzes

1. When creating/editing a quiz, select Question Bank Quiz type
2. Choose one or more question banks
3. Set Max Questions to limit how many are pulled
4. Configure Question Ordering (sequential or random)

Benefits

• Reuse questions across multiple quizzes
• Randomize assessments for each user
• Maintain a central question repository

Certificates

Create custom completion certificates with dynamic content.

Creating a Certificate Template

1. Go to Components → Community Quiz → Certificates
2. Click New
3. Design using the HTML editor
4. Use placeholders for dynamic content:

Placeholder	Description
{USER_NAME}	Respondent's name
{QUIZ_TITLE}	Quiz name
{SCORE}	Achieved score
{DATE}	Completion date
{SITENAME}	Website name

Assigning Certificates to Quizzes

1. Edit a quiz
2. In Certificate Rules, add conditions:
   • Min Score: Minimum required percentage
   • Max Score: Maximum percentage threshold
   • Certificate: Template to award

Difficulty Levels

Categorize quizzes by difficulty for better organization.

Default Levels

The component comes with three preset levels:

• Easy
• Medium
• Hard

Managing Levels

1. Go to Components → Community Quiz → Difficulty Levels
2. Add, edit, or remove levels
3. Assign levels when creating quizzes

Email Templates

Customize all notification emails sent by Community Quiz.

Available Templates

Template	Trigger
New Quiz	When a quiz is published
New Response	When someone completes a quiz
Passed Quiz	When user passes (meets cutoff)
Failed Quiz	When user fails (below cutoff)
Email Results	Quiz results sent to respondent

Template Variables

Use these placeholders in email templates:

Variable	Description
{NAME}	Recipient's name
{AUTHOR_NAME}	Quiz creator's name
{QUIZ_TITLE}	Quiz title
{QUIZ_URL}	Link to the quiz
{SITENAME}	Website name

Access Control & Permissions

Community Quiz uses Joomla's ACL at three levels:

Component Permissions

Set in Options → Permissions:

Permission	Description
Configure ACL	Full administrative access
Access Administration	Access backend
Create	Create new quizzes
Edit	Edit any quiz
Edit Own	Edit own quizzes only
Edit State	Publish/unpublish quizzes
Edit Own State	Publish/unpublish own quizzes
Delete	Delete any quiz
Delete Own	Delete own quizzes only
Auto-Approve	Quizzes publish without moderation
Respond	Take quizzes
View Results	See quiz results/reports
Use WYSIWYG	Access rich text editor
Rate	Rate quizzes
Subscribe to Category	Get category notifications

Category Permissions

Override component permissions per category for granular control.

Quiz Permissions

Individual quizzes can have specific permission overrides.

Plugin Configuration

The core plugin (Community Quiz - Quizzes) manages notifications:

Activity Stream Events

• New Quiz Posted
• New Response Submitted
• Quiz Passed
• Quiz Failed

Email Notifications

• Admin group selection for notifications
• Toggle each email type on/off

Points Integration

• Award points for new quizzes
• Award points for responses
• Bonus points for passing
• Penalty for failing (optional)

Creating Menu Items

For SEF URLs and better navigation, create menu items:

Menu Item Type	Purpose
Quizzes Layout	Display quiz listings with categories
Categories List	Show category hierarchy
Category	List quizzes in a specific category
Quiz Search	Advanced search page
Quiz Form	Quiz creation/submission form
Single Quiz	Direct link to a specific quiz
Courses	Display course listings
Single Course	Direct link to a specific course
My Quizzes	User's created quizzes
My Responses	User's quiz responses

Migration Tools

Import quizzes from other components:

Supported Sources

• BFQuiz: Migrate quizzes and questions
• JQuizDeluxe: Full import with responses

Migration Process

1. Go to Components → Community Quiz → Migrate
2. Select source component
3. Follow the migration wizard
4. Review imported content

[!WARNING] Always backup your database before migration. Test imported quizzes thoroughly.

Quick Start Checklist

1. ✅ Install the package
2. ✅ Create categories for organizing quizzes
3. ✅ Configure global options
4. ✅ Set up permissions for user groups
5. ✅ Create menu items for frontend access
6. ✅ Enable and configure the Quizzes plugin
7. ✅ Create your first quiz
8. ✅ Test quiz taking as a frontend user

Getting Help

• Documentation: Browse other articles in this section
• Support: Get Support
• Updates: Check for updates in System → Update → Extensions