Drupal Overview

Prepared by : Agustin D. Gumogda Jr.Instructor

Content Types

• ‘Node’ is the basis for all content types

• All ‘nodes’ contain title, body, create date, published, etc.

• CCK Module allows the addition of any kind of field (text, radio, select, checkbox, image, date, etc)

• New modules can be created for content types by using the Node API.

Modules

• Modules are extensions or add-ons to Drupal that add a specific feature or features

• Modules can easily integrate with Drupal core or other modules by using the Drupal API (http://api.drupal.org/) - An application programming interface is a specification intended to be used as an interface by software components to communicate with each other.

Blocks

• Blocks allow the placement of secondary content in various regions on the page

• Out-of-the-box Drupal allows 5 regions (left column, right column, header, footer and content)

• Modules can provide blocks with specific functionality

• Custom blocks can be created

Users, Roles, Permissions

• Drupal provides a very flexible authentication system (far above other CMS’s)

• Users can be created by an admin or can self-register

• Each user can be placed into 1 or more groups called a ‘Role’

• Each role can define very specific permissions for users

Taxonomy

• Taxonomy is a method of categorizing your content in a flexible way

• Taxonomy is usually the most confusing aspect of Drupal for the uninitiated

• Category groups are defined as “Vocabularies”

• Categories themselves are defined as “Terms”

URL Aliases

• Makes Drupal sites easily SEO friendly• URLs typically have variables embedded

in them that are required by PHP to process the page request correctly

• URL alias mask these url variables with any URL of your choice

• The PathAuto module allows logical rules to be used in automatically creating path alias’ for content

Menus and Navigation

• Drupal allows the creation of unlimited menu groups, each with it’s own hierarchy

• Menu items can be tied directly to a content page or be unattached

• Menu system is tied to permissions, so menu items will only appear for users with permission to view that page

Theming

• Themes involve HTML templates, CSS files, and a template.php file for custom theme code and theme function overrides

• HTML templates use PHP snippets for inserting variables and control structures

• Zen theme is a great starting theme for creating custom designs