It’s 2:30AM and I’ve just upgraded my blog to WordPress 3.o
I spent 30 mins taking a backup of my database and my files, afraid that something would go dreadfully wrong and wipe out my whole online existence. Maybe I am just a cynic. Then I hit the “Upgrade” link and held my breath. It took all of 30 seconds or less and I had the latest and greatest edition of the best blogging platform known to man.
It looks like the WordPress folks, have added a lot of new features in this new release, but the ones I like best are the custom menus (can’t use them with my current theme unless I use a custom menu widget) and the one click update all plugins feature. They have also integrated WordPress MU, into the single user installation and added the capability to create custom post types (similar to the Drupal CCK). However, I have yet to figure out, what’s really changed for Buddypress.
Here’s the demo video – check out the new features in WordPress 3.0
A twitter post I retweeted sums it all up – “RT @sethmac: @drupal has Custom Content Types, Revision Control, strong User Management, Excellent Documentation, and Community. SIGN ME UP!”
If you have ever tried to create a database driven portal in Joomla – you know how much of a pain it can be. I’ve created all kinds of sites in Joomla. From classified ads sites, to real estate directory, and even a order tracking system, Joomla can be used to create almost any kind of a site. But it is definitely not easy.
Joomla was primarily designed as a easy to use open source CMS. I’ve seen it being used to create complex applications but it is difficult to create forms and databases.
For example I once created a order tracking application for a international foodgrain exporter. They needed it to be able to track shipments. I used Fabrik – a form and database component of Joomla. Fabrik is nice – but it has almost no documentation. If you want documentation – you need to sign up for a paid membership. I decided not to register as a paid member. Instead I tried to tap the forums and blogs. It was not an easy task.
I managed to build the application and my client was quite happy.
I recently discovered the CCK module in Drupal – I wished I had discovered it earlier. This module makes user maintained databases very easy to create. It took me just a couple of days to create a real estate portal, where users can post advertisements for free. I also create a classifieds travel portal for Darjeeling.
The concept that I’ve used in both cases is the same. I’m creating a new content type with the fields I want. A content type correlates to a table and each content article is a record. I’ve created a new content type and when the user needs to create a record in the database – he simple creates a new piece of content.
Later I can use Taxonomy and Views to view the content and create the navigation.
I am just amazed how many companies still use clunky, inflexible proprietary content management systems like Sharepoint and Documentum – when open source alternatives like Drupal and WordPress (and so many others) are available for free. Is it just ignorance or is it plain stupidity.
I am going through the Lynda.com – Drupal Creating and editing custom themes tutorial series. Drupal is very exciting. There is so much I can do which I couldn’t do with Joomla. It’s a whole new world.
Lynda.com has a couple of very useful tutorial series. The Drupal essentials video tutorial series and the custom theme series. There are several video tutorials available from Lullabot and several videos on YouTube. So much to learn.
I especially like the way I can add custom HTML and PHP directly to a post or a page, without any 3rd party module, and at the same time maintain different security roles and limit general users from using malicious code.
I guess it’s obvious – I just love Drupal and the flexibility it offers.
A couple of days ago, I started building my first Drupal website. I’ve known about Drupal for a long time. A friend of mine had suggested it to me a couple of years ago, but I tried it and couldn’t really understand it. So I passed it by and adopted Joomla. Joomla is a good CMS system, simple to use, but very bulky. It takes ages to load.
Drupal seems to be much lighter than Joomla. It loads faster and although it’s very different – I feel that once you understand it, it is quite easy to use.
I built my first website in Drupal. It’s a real estate site for India, with elements of social media thrown in. The site is ekbigha.com – do visit it and let me know what you think of it.
I deleted my previous website which was built in Joomla and re-installed WordPress. Joomla is a great CMS, but using it to maintain a blog is too cumbersome. I just decided that WordPress will be a much better option for a blog.
I totally agree - it's the only good thing RT @gkhamba So the best thing to come out of the Iraq war was Call of Duty 4 about 4 days ago (reply)
what i do - who i am - nothing matters. Nothing matters except the lives i enrich... about 5 days ago (reply)
it's n experiment - 2 find da real meaning of twitter - it doesn't matter how many followers I lose - if in da end comes understanding about 5 days ago (reply)
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