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Drupal Development – Usability, Design, Features

by Louise W. Rice
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Drupal is an open system that can be customized to solve different problems. As standard, the engine is equipped with a poor set of functions required by CMS, but it can be easily expanded by connecting modules. Let’s check what you can employ.

This is a free system that a user can download in the form of a kernel or in the form of assemblies with sets of modules. It is flexible to ensure customization, so drupal development is suitable for not only experienced and skilled developers (who know how to build their own system configuration based on the kernel) but also novice webmasters using ready solutions. In this review, we will look at how easy Drupal is to use as well as what the standard interface patterns are.

The Convenience of Use

Drupal is free. One can download this engine from the developer’s website or install it through the hosting admin panel. The second option is considered preferable since there is no need to create a database and perform preliminary system configuration. It is sufficient to attach an already registered domain name to your hosting account and choose it to deploy a CMS.

To get accustomed to the interface of the engine, a user needs to utilize it for a while. One can trace a clear logic, but the wide range of available functions and possible settings make it complicated for unseasoned webmasters to comprehend it quickly. When you install Drupal, it comes with a standard kit of modules that you can use to manage your site. We can highlight the following solutions:

  • Tracker – to keep track of new items;
  • Block – to display the content on web pages;
  • Color – to change colors on the site (if a theme provides such an opportunity);
  • Image – to process images;
  • Node – to add fresh materials;
  • Search – to organize the search on the site;
  • System – to work with system settings;
  • User – to manage registered users;
  • Locale – to select languages;
  • Path – to rename links;
  • Update manager – to make sure if updates are available.

The core of the system is formed based on the above modules. Nevertheless, their functionality does not suffice in order to, for example, launch a store. A webmaster also needs add-ons; one can download them from the official site of the engine. Applications offer different tools, so you should not only read what is written in their descriptions but also check out forums and guides that are helpful to set up Drupal sites.

Design

After you have installed the engine, it is necessary to select one of the templates. Based on the choice you make, the appearance of the website user part is determined. It is also possible to download other themes from the official CMS website. There are several thousand templates available, they have different levels of performance: some themes are so behind the times that they don’t even have an adaptive layout, but there are still plenty of worthy options.

Conclusion

Many commercial websites, blogs, and webshops have been successfully implemented using this CMS. It can be said that this system is universal and suitable for creating sites of any complexity. By type of execution, this system is modular, which is very good in order to implement many functions at your discretion.

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