From acorn to oak: Climbing the Drupal learning curve

Submitted by Caleb G on Fri, 05/29/2009 - 16:05 in , , , ,

Getting involved with Drupal brings with it a significant initial learning curve. With Drupal there are so many possibilities which exist and more are available every day. So the challenge of how to 'tackle' your Drupal development effort is compounded by the matter of staying current with the ever changing Drupal world. Facing these conditions it's no wonder that many Drupalers feel like they frequently 'take one step forward and two steps back'...

In this session Caleb Gilbert, who came to Drupal four years ago knowing "just HTML" and is now very active in the Drupal community, and leads a multiperson development team for a large Drupal site, will share tools, tips, and experience which will help you manage your learning curve, rather than being managed by it.

Topics covered

The short-term, "getting starting":

  • Foundational things which no Drupalista should be without when making their climb
  • How to save time, and how not to waste it (closely related, but not always the same things)
  • Knowledge/tools/modules that are worth investing in short-term, and those that might not be

    • Long-term

  • How to plan for the ever-moving drop...new Drupal versions, new trends in contrib
  • What things are worth building a site with over the long-term (and what might be problematic)
  • What skills/knowledge will pay off the most for you in the long run?
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