The State of Drupalin Higher Education
Zach ChandlerStanford [email protected]
DrupalCon Asia 2016Higher Ed SummitIITB, Mumbai
2016 - Drupal has a very strong position in Higher Ed
2016 - Drupal has a very strong position in Higher Ed
(this is not news …)
But what does it mean for a university to “use” Drupal?
use cases: { ● main university website● websites at scale
(all the other websites!)● application development● scholarly publishing● scientific and research applications● library and information science
case 1: main university websites
case 2: website publishing at scale
case 3: application development
case 4: scholarly publishing
case 5: scientific and research applications
case 6: library and information science
conclusion: we do more with Drupal than marketing
dig deeper: WHY is Drupal so prevalent in Higher Ed?
Drupal is the most sophisticated content modeling framework available
Drupal is complex, but developers in Higher Ed are not afraid of complexity
Drupal: 3 Fundamental Attributes
1. Flexibility2. Community3. Leverage
#1: Flexibility
● Drupal is a tool-building tool● System designers make specific tools with its generalized build
kit, based on their needs● Content Types, and business logic, can be industry-specific● Amazing customizations are possible● Override anything
#2: Community
● As a Drupal developer, you are never alone, you have thousands of colleagues around the world
● Expensive specialties, like security, accessibility, and performance are often solved by others
● Vendors provide professional services, but are also community members
● You get to contribute to something bigger
#3: Leverage
● code: Drupal’s modularity (esp. the Features module) allows us to re-use prior work easily
● people: Internal expertise built up on simple projects are a stepping stone to more complex use cases
Community, FTW!
Drupal has a growing global community
India has a tremendous amount of talent
Like my colleagues at Stanford, YOU are not afraid of complexity
Let’s create something amazing, together!
...
thank you.