iCountry Media

Drupal (pronounced droople) is a powerful, fully customizable, open-source content management system (CMS) that offers Web developers a balance between design and content by separating the two. We can change the look without affecting the content, and vice versa, allowing us to create dynamic designs and targeted content for emerging Internet publishers. Just like quality print publications, credible Websites have an established format so users know what to expect and where to look for specific information. Drupal uses an industry-established hierarchy to organize content using global and local navigation menus that serve as an intuitive sitemap for the user.

While Drupal does allow professional Web developers to easily build sites with complex hierarchies and dynamic content like blogs and forums, it pays to know a few tricks that will save you many trips to Drupal’s help pages.

• Before you update Drupal’s core or add a module, take the site off line.
• Always return the theme to Garland and disable all other themes. Garland is the default theme and the one designed to work with update.php. Not following this step can cause more headaches than you might imagine.
• Always disable all CCK modules that did not come with the original Drupal installation folder.
• After updating the core or adding a module, always run update.php before you attempt to bring the site online or perform any other administrative function. Again, failing to do this can cause odd error messages and send you on a wild goose change after phantom snippets of code to fix the problem (which inevitably causes more problems).
• Be very careful when adding PHP to the core. One wrong “%” or “?” and the whole site could come crashing down.

Content management systems like Drupal, Joomla, MediaWiki and other emerging Web 2.0 programs are the perfect solution for companies making the transition from print media to Web-based media. Regardless of the delivery method, paper or electronic, content is still king. Keeping it organized so users can find information easily keeps them on your site longer and leaves them satisfied with their experience, which means there’s a pretty good chance they’ll be back.

Content management systems also allow for hourly or daily updates and multi-user access, making it a snap to keep your site fresh and interesting without paying a Webmaster to ftp files for you. Drupal allows site owners to control the entire site once it is completed, including theme changes and access permissions. If installed properly, the only thing the owner should need a Webmaster for is design updates and the occasional database upgrade.

Content management systems provide a high level of accessibility to all users, even those who still depend on dial-up Internet access; a majority of rural Americans fall into this category. Slower dial-up connections cause Websites containing graphics and animation to load painstakingly slow. Not so with Drupal, Joomla, and other CMS platforms. Because the graphics are minimal (most of the design is CSS or PHP) CMS sites load quickly, even for rural users. CMS-based sites are highly interactive, encouraging participation and community-building. Businesses concerned about accessibility issues will find the CMS platform is an attractive solution.