So it has been three weeks since I started learning how to use Drupal, and I have to say, it is quite fantastic. So fantastic infact, that I have decided to spend the next 20 minutes or so writing about it, and how it can change your life...if you make websites anyway.
So, first things first; what is Drupal?
Drupal, pronounced 'droop-all' is not something that happens after drinking too much beer, it is an open source content management system. That basically means you can build a website using it, and then 'log in' and change the content without having to get too technical. The 'open-source' bit means that it is developed by the worldwide community, and it is free to use, yes, I did say free!
Drupal is written in PHP and according to the Wikipedia page, accounts for 1% of all websites, worldwide! That is literally quite a lot of websites. Think of Drupal as a framework from which to 'hang' your website on and you are on your way to understanding how it works.
Why Drupal and not Another CMS?
The choice between Drupal and one of the other major open source content management systems is quite simple. In the collective opinion of Indulge Media, we think that Drupal is by far the most flexible and intuitive CMS to use and it beats Joomla and Wordpress hands down.
The core Drupal package allows you to easily make a blog style website but with a little knowledge of themes and the amazing Views module (we will get to that), you can create all manner of websites, there really are no limits to what you can do with Drupal.
Learning Drupal
As I mentioned, I have been learning how to use Drupal and I have to say, it has been both an enjoyable and largely un-painful experience. This is testement to how well made the system is. I began learning Drupal about three weeks ago and I am now quite happy to work on websites without much help, only needing some guidance for more complex things, which as soon as I am shown am astounded at how simple a complex task becomes.
Druapl is all about the theme. The theme uses a system called PHPTemplate which does all of the hard work in the background. Much of building a website in Druapl will be done using the online admin interface and of course lots of CSS. If there is one thing you do before diving into Drupal it is to make sure your CSS skills are up to scratch, this really is key to making your site work well and look good.
Drupal 7
Another thing to mention about Drupal is that is has just been updated and we are now on Drupal version 7. The new version is up and running but it has to be said, many of the modules that are key to building a great site are not ready, with the all important views module still in alpha mode. My top tip, give it a little while before moving to Drupal 7, just to let the module creators catch up.
What is Views?
Views is really what makes Drupal the CMS powerhouse it is today, and what makes it stand out from the open source CMS crowd. Views is a module which once installed into Drupal allows you to create pages and blocks (elements of a page) in any way you like. With a view, you can pull out as much, or as little content from an area of your site and re-format it to site somewhere else on your website.
So, that is my mini appraisal of Drupal, my next Drupal post will be a bit more functional and talk you through the key parts of Drupal you need to know about in order to make a website.
