Announcing CiviCRM 1.5

NOTES: I had previously posted the questions below at this spot on drupal.org but I then crossposted them here upon lobo's suggestion.

I have done a LOT of reading and researching on g.d.o., drupal.org, and civicrm.org. However, I still have a number of CiviCRM issues I'm not clear on. Thanks in advance for your kind assistance!

If there is any documentation that clearly explains the similarities/differences/overlap between CiviCRM and the various Drupal modules mentioned below (i.e. ecommerce, organic groups, og2list, og_civicrm), please let me know!

And now for the questions... : )

I've been playing around with CiviCRM 1.5 and find it simply amazing! I'm very happy with the excellent functionality and the way so many things were thought out and then worked into the code. GREAT JOB!!!

1. (omitted for this post as it was answered on the other crosspost)

2. CiviContribute or Ecommerce?

2.a. If I want to accept paid memberships/subcriptions and donations from my constituents, would I use CiviContribute, or would I use Drupal's ecommerce module? In other words, are CiviContribute and Drupal's ecommerce module complementary or competing? Is it either or, i.e., use one or the other but not both? If there's overlap, where does it exist? What's confusing is that both have donor/donations components, invoice/receipt/transaction generation, etc. For example, About CiviCRM states, in part, "Track and execute donations, transactions..." while the ecommerce module states, in part, "Donations module", "Transaction reports and sales summaries..."

2.b. As I mentioned on another post, with the ecommerce module I'm able to assign users to a specific role such as a "Platinum", "Gold", "Silver", or "Bronze" plan based upon which plan they paid for. So if they paid me $49 for the "Platinum" plan, I could automatically assign that customer to the "Platinum" plan. Does CiviContribute operate in a similar manner where a payment can be used to automatically assign that constituent to a specific "plan" (membership category)?

3. I'm setting up chapters across the world.

3.a. If I want to allow folks to sign up to a local chapter such as "Austin Chapter" or "San Francisco Chapter", I think my preferred solution would be allowing members to set up organic groups just like those found at groups.drupal.org. However, I'm a bit confused as to what overlap, if any, exists between organic groups and smart groups (as found under "Key Features in Detail"). Are organic groups and smart groups complementary or competing? Is it either or, i.e., use one or the other but not both? If there's overlap, where does it exist?

Smart Groups. Create smart groups based on any search criteria or create standard groups that are simply lists of contacts. The membership of a smart group changes automatically according to that moment’s search results.

Organic Groups. Enable users to create and manage their own 'groups'. Each group can have subscribers, and maintains a group home page where subscribers communicate amongst themselves.

3.b. With regard to group mailing lists, what is the difference between CiviCRM's CiviMail and Drupal's Organic groups list manager (og2list)? Are CiviMail and og2list complementary or competing? Is it either or, i.e., use one or the other but not both? If there's overlap, where does it exist?

I think I found a partial answer to this issue.

Reverse Bounty: og2list - mailing list support for Organic Groups
Future development (not covered in this bounty)
* CiviCRM integration that will enable users to email CiviCRM groups.

However, I'm still a bit confused as to how CiviCRM, CiviMail, and og2list all tie in together.

3.c. OG_CiviCRM and OG

The description here states:

The OG_CiviCRM module integrates organic groups with CiviCRM groups.

The above was written for Drupal 4.6. and previously, one could find the og_civicrm module packaged together as a subfolder of the 4.6.0 og module. I'm currently using Drupal 4.7.3 and plan on using OG 4.7.0 and the newly released CiviCRM 1.5. Is the og_civicrm functionality that was previously downloaded as part of the OG 4.6.0 module now integrated in OG 4.7.0 and/or CiviCRM 1.5 and/or any other 4.7.0 module(s)? If not, are there any plans to do so?

Related og_civicrm links:
(a) Update of og_civicrm for Civicrm v.1.4
(b) Organic Groups (OG) vs CivicCRM match made in heaven? (also discusses og, og2list, civicrm)

Final note. It would be great if the differences, similarities, and overlaps between the CiviCRM and Drupal modules could be displayed for all to see on the CiviCRM web site's FAQs.

Thank you in advance for your kind reply!

Walt Esquivel, MBA; MA; President, Wellness Corps; Captain, USMC (Veteran)
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