And my own Joomla! projects www.JoomlaFriends.net built with Joomla 1.0.15 and www.JoomlaFriends.org built around Joomla 1.5.2
Joomla! 1.5 Quick Start
The Joomla! 1.5 Quick Start Guide, written by Kevin Hayne, and the series of accompanying videos developed by Michael Casha, are excellent step-by-step learning tools. These tools take you through building a Joomla! Web site for a fictitious landscaping company, from download and installation to configuration and template customization. They're a fun and easy way to master Joomla! quickly. (source - http://demo.joomla.org/ )
If your current needs are asking the 'question' this might be the answer,
admin - JoomlaFriends