Couple things.
Drupal documentation has heavily gone the way of the screencast, while I
personally think they move too slowly, but I'm like that. There have
been times where I haven't been able to figure something out and I've
watched a screencast on a module and not only find the solution to my
problem but learn of two other features I didn't know about.
The module "problem" you describe is the downside of a very conscious
decision made by the community. There are several reasons. Firstly by
having more but smaller modules for things it means that you can reduce
the size of the code on the system, if every feature you might want was
in the main modules you would have a lot of code you don't need being
loaded into the system. Secondly it means someone working on a feature
you don't use is unlikely to break your code by changing something
higher up to fit their needs and breaks yours. Thirdly it allows
individuals and groups of people to try doing things differently and let
the community choose which best serves their needs.
This brings up something else about modules. There is a reason the
information about the number of sites using the module is on the
webpage, the more you stick to modules heavily used the less likely you
will run into update problems and the more likely someone will figure it
out and fix it before you even notice it.
Which brings me to the next thing. Google is your friend. Drupal
throws you an error put it in Google and most of the time you will get
the answer. Same goes with wanting to know about how to do something.
Which brings me to the fact that there is a Drupal way of doing things
that can seem odd from time to time for people who know how to code
decently. The Drupal way isn't necessarily the "right" way something
should be done, but the best way to do it with the peculiarities of
Drupal. The more you do things the Drupal way instead of how you think
they should be done the easier things become. If instead of writing
your own module you find a way to use a Drupal module to accomplish what
you want, that module may eventually do exactly what you want and in 2-3
years when you have to upgrade there is a decent chance the module will
be upgraded and if not you will have a group of people using the same
one you are trying to upgrade to help each other through the process.
The reason I have no intention of leaving Drupal is actually its robust
multi-user support. Your right pulling data out of databases and
displaying it is easy. Giving people control of parts of a website's
content is complicated. Stale content because its too difficult to
change things is rarely a good thing.
On a closing note, if a system comes along that does everything Drupal
does and more with better performance and what not I would consider
changing, but one thing noticeable in this thread is that outside of
WordPress for simpler stuff there is no consensus on other products out
there. Projects need a certain amount of mass to keep them going
forward with enough momentum to continue to thrive. Drupal has that for
the time being.
The only book I have found that I like on Drupal is Drupal for
Designers. It assumes you know how to make a webpage but aren't a
programmer but want to leverage the things Drupal can do, so it is very
different than other Drupal books I have or have come across.
Brent
Joshua Welker wrote:
Thanks for the suggestions about videos and the Services module. I will give
it a look. I am still quite torn overall about whether to stick it out with
Drupal or use a framework.
