If you're a beginning Montana Drupalista, this is the meetup you've been waiting for! On Thursday March 18 we're kicking off our monthly 'Getting Started Series' with an introductory presentation on Drupal core.
Starting from Drupal out-of-the-box – with no added modules – we'll methodically walk through Drupal's basic building blocks. You'll get a solid grounding in core Drupal concepts like nodes, users, permissions, taxonomy and learn the basic workflow of posting content in Drupal.
If you have any specific beginner questions you'd like to have addressed, please add them to the comments for this event and we'll try to work them in. And ss usual we'll have ample time after the presentation for informal Q&A, networking, etc.
If you think you'll be there, please use the 'sign up' button below to indicate your RSVP.
If you know anyone who'd like to get started with Drupal, please send them the link to this page!
Recommended reading
To best prepare for the Getting Started series, we recommend the book Using Drupal published by O'Reilly. If you are at all serious about learning Drupal, please just go ahead and purchase this excellent book. Monte, Art, and AJ are just three of our group members who are happy they did! Well-written and aimed at the Drupal beginner, it takes you though the sometimes-daunting Drupal jargon and concepts with ease, and gets you comfortable with managing content and building sites step-by-step. If you review the first two chapters before this meetup, you'll have a leg up on everyone else! (Although highly recommended, the reading is not required to attend the session – everyone is welcome!)
About the Getting Started Series
Each month an experienced Drupaler will present a lesson suitable for Drupal beginners. We'll structure the series so each month builds on the next – if you attend each monthly Getting Started series, your Drupal skills will grow naturally and within a few months you'll be competently managing your site and your content, and on your way to adding new site sections and features.
Meetup Details
Thursday, March 18th
4:00 to 6:30 pm
Ruby' Inn and Convention Center (Room 300)
4825 North Reserve
Missoula, MT 59808 map
Phone: (406) 721-0990
Comments
Friends
Andy, I will be brining one friend is all goes well.
Great!
Great, the more the merrier!
Could you also bring your projector so we have a backup?
Projector
Shall do.
Using Drupal Book
Can anyone who has purchased the Using Drupal book bring it to this meeting so I can have a look at it? I'm quite curious but want to peruse a bit before asking my boss to buy it. ;)
Thanks,
Emily
Online preview of book
Here's Google Books preview of the book – can't read all the pages but can see the TOC, browse around, and get a good sense for the book: http://tr.im/RuPL
I'll bring my print copy with me next Thursday.
Drupal Book
Hi Emily,
Just got my book this week. I'll bring it to the meeting and you're welcome to take a look. Also, you can get a free trial to check the book out online at http://safaribooksonline.com/ I found it a great resource to check out the book before I purchased it. The best price I could find was on Amazon for purchasing the book. I got a used copy and it basically looks brand new any how.
Room 400
In case anyone is checking this late, we're in Room 400 upstairs.
Scott Rouse
http://about.me/scott.rouse
Thanks
Thanks for a great presentation last night, Andy.
If anyone is interested in an install-fest/code-sprint or something, just let me know. I'd be interested in helping out.
-Scott
Scott Rouse
http://about.me/scott.rouse
install fest
Thanks, Scott, I'd definitely be up for that. As more of a sysadmin type, I'm really curious to understand the rudiments of what connects to what under the covers. I'm not averse at all to using something like the Acquia Drupal install stack, which seems to have worked well on Windows XP, but in cases like Ubuntu or Fedora where this isn't available or appropriate, would like to know how to install the straight Drupal stuff, maybe into an existing environment already running Apache/PHP if you have any experience with that.
"Probably one of the most powerful laws in the Universe is the Law of Unintended Consequences"
Superfreakonomics by Leavitt & Dubner
sorry i missed it...
I swear I am usually not sick all the time, Andy, but I went back to the doctor yesterday (because I'm still not better!) and found out I have walking pneumonia. I really want to come and will as soon as I am well! Sorry I missed it.
Thanks, Andy! Good meeting,
Thanks, Andy! Good meeting, sorry I had to scoot out a bit early. Look forward to the next one.
"Probably one of the most powerful laws in the Universe is the Law of Unintended Consequences"
Superfreakonomics by Leavitt & Dubner
Great Meeting!!
Thx, Andy! That meeting was fun and terrific. I had a great time and learned a lot.
Excellent introduction!
Andy,
Thanks for the excellent class Thursday evening. You are a great presenter! I've been (re)reading the book, and it is making more sense now that I have more of the picture.
SCOTT - I've got Drupal running on my laptop, but I would be interested in a "code Fest" where we work in teams to crank out a simple site in a couple hours (is that possible?) or a couple meetings.
Regards,
Art
www.aheld.com
www.HikersCameraBelt.com
Why did I pay for college?
Thanks Andy,
It was a fantastic opportunity, on par with teaching I've had at The University of Montana Media Arts Department. Get a Master degree and they'd probably hire you if they new what was good for them.
Hey Andy can you tell me what chapter to have read before the next meeting? Also when is the next one?
BTW I have a .PDF of the Theming chapter I got from Safari Books. I'd be happy to send that to you for teaching the theming Drupal class. Let me know if you'd like to use it.
Good to meet and see everyone yesterday. Don't forget to check out Missoula BarCamp 2010 http://www.MissoulaBarCamp.org become a fan at http://www.facebook.com/MissoulaBarCamp
Install-Fest/Code-Sprint
Wendell, I'd be happy to talk about installing Drupal without the help of the Acquia stack. As a sysadmin, though, you'll most likely be showing me a thing or two! I've managed to fight my way through it a few dozen times, so I feel like I've pretty much got it down, but you will probably be able to understand what's going on in the background better than I do.
Art, the code fest sounds like a fun idea. I'd be into meeting one afternoon and attacking a site to see what we can come up with. I learn something new every time we get together.
Next week, I'm open Monday and Tuesday, but Wednesday-Friday aren't that great for me. Thursday morning would work if we wrapped up by noon or 1.
-Scott
Scott Rouse
http://about.me/scott.rouse
Code Fest
Scott,
Thanks for the wonderful offer!
I'm so new at Drupal that all I could contribute to a code-fest this week would be the junk food. I'm slowly reading/working through the book in spare evenings. Hopefully after a couple more classes I'll have my feet far enough into the mud to both contribute to a code fest and learn more than "Oh! that's the screen you use to do that...."
Perhaps we could set something up later in conjunction with the classes? I'd really enjoy and benefit from that experience.
I see that you are teaching a photo course in Glacier next summer - What a great place to take people to photograph!
Do you ever do the Logan Pass to the Loop trail via the chalet? We did that one last summer when the flowers were at their peak. Really nice!
Art
www.aheld.com
www.HikersCameraBelt.com
You Bet!
You bet, Art. Happy to do it.
Just like with Lightroom/Photoshop, I love to help where I can with Drupal and other geek-related things. A small group gathering apart from one of the scheduled meetups would probably be great for a lot of people (myself included).
RE: Glacier: I've never made it over past the chalet. It, along with a 1000 other MT hikes, is on my to-do list!
-Scott
Scott Rouse
http://about.me/scott.rouse