[Techtalk] joomla or drupal

[linux at kappaluppa.com]

  First off, let me state that I am a Drupal designer/themer/developer 
so I usually recommend Drupal.  :)  However, for simple sites the 
"biggness" of Drupal is not always warranted.

The questions I'd ask to help you determine which you should use are:
Who will be doing the updates?
Is/are the person/s who will be maintaining the websites tech savvy?
What do they want the site to do? Do they want just a "brochure site"  a 
few pages, blog, how many bloggers, video, audio, calendar, photo 
gallery, purchases, etc.?
Will the website be expanded in terms of functionality further on down 
the road? If so, who will be making the changes - a developer?

If you just need a very simple site without a lot of functionality or 
customization I'd recommend WordPress, then Joomla. If you want a site 
that may expand to a larger site with complex or custom functionality 
then I'd recommend Drupal. There is quite a bit of difference between 
Joomla & Drupal. The two platforms that are more similar are WordPress & 
Joomla. Drupal is built upon a very robust framework that allows for 
more customization, functionality and growth.

Do you need an application to manage your non-profit group and 
activities such as fundraising, mailing lists, events, etc. Then take a 
look at CiviCRM:
"CiviCRM is a free <http://www.fsf.org/licensing/essays/free-sw.html>, 
libre <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libre> and open source 
<http://www.opensource.org/docs/definition.php> software constituent 
relationship management solution. CiviCRM is web-based, 
internationalized, and designed specifically to meet the needs of 
advocacy, non-profit and non-governmental groups. Integration with both 
Drupal <http://drupal.org> and Joomla! <http://joomla.com> content 
management systems gives you the tools to connect, communicate and 
activate your supporters and constituents."

Also, you can try out different CMS apps at http://php.opensourcecms.com/

Lastly, be cautious when using an online service such as WordPress.com 
that lets you run your website on their server. Make sure that you have 
the ability to download it and move it to your own server somewhere down 
the line if you feel you will be taking more control of the site later 
on. Drupal Gardens has thrown their hat in the ring with online managed 
website building tools. Its customizable and can be downloaded an moved. 
Also check out WebEnabled. http://www.webenabled.com/

A word about the one-click installs. Beware of those because they don't 
always keep the core software up to date. Check to see what version the 
CMS you are going to use is at (Drupal is now at 6.17) and then check to 
see if the one-click install installs the most recent versions. Some 
updates may be for security reasons and you will want to make sure you 
have the most recent version.

I've worked with WP for about 8 years and Drupal for about 4 years now, 
and have dabbled with Joomla - however I did use Mambo, Joomla's 
predecessor. I'd rank them in this order in terms of ease of use and 
functionality:
WordPress - easy, basic
Joomla - not so easy, more options
Drupal - steep learning curve, unlimited options

Good luck!
Kathy





On 8/16/2010 7:58 PM, Christine Bussman wrote:
> I'm starting to set up a website for a nonprofit that I'm involved in, 
> and I'm thinking of using either joomla or drupal for the main site.  
> My hosting company has one-click installs of either one.  After a 
> quick look over their websites, I don't see any differences between 
> them that would help me decide.  I don't even know what questions to 
> ask myself to decide which to use.  I'm going to start very small and 
> add as needed, but I don't want to change what I use later.
>
> Thanks in advance for any thoughts.
>
> Christine
> _______________________________________________
> Techtalk mailing list
> Techtalk at linuxchix.org
> http://mailman.linuxchix.org/mailman/listinfo/techtalk
>
>
>
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
> Version: 9.0.851 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/3076 - Release Date: 08/16/10 12:35:00
>