textpattern vs drupal

fpccsvb · 2007-02-24 19:31:59

Hi,

While researching CMS’s, I found some info on Drupal. Would anyone be able to share their experiences with either/both?

I am planning on updating my church website, which (hopefully) will include static content, dynamic content, pictures, blogs, and video. It looks like textpattern allows me to schedule content to appear on certain dates, which is huge to me – not sure if Drupal provides the same functionality.

TIA…

anoke · 2007-02-24 20:17:00

Hi – and sorry being blunt (:

Drupal is good, so is Textpattern. Learn either. If you are in hurry – throw a coin.

Go with and trust your skills, not any brand. This is Textpattern’s forum, this the place where you get help for Textpattern problems. Of course we’ll say Textpattern is the tool you need.

Thinking featurewise: Textpattern does things you need (i haven’t tried videos though, plugins help maybe). Drupal does ‘multiple publishers’ thing better I think (but it has been a while I played with Drupal, TXP I use daily). Then again – if you have only a few publishers you trust, everything will be fine.

With both CMSes you can do lot. It’s deciding between if you prefer freshly painted blocks or clay; in both scenarios you will get your hands dirty. But it will be worth the effort.

Jeremie · 2007-02-24 20:36:30

From what I know of Drupal :

Textpattern run on more hosts
TXP is faster, lighter
TXP is incredibly easier to customize in the frontend
TXP is easier to mod or to write a plugin for

Drupal as the best taxonomy system that exist
Drupal has real multi-writers tools, and workflow

hcgtv · 2007-02-24 21:00:45

Jeremie wrote:

Drupal as the best taxonomy system that exist

That’s Drupal’s strength and weakness, it’s so hard to wrap your mind around taxonomy.

As for a church site, there are pre-built editions of Drupal specifically for Churches. I would install both of them locally, with something like XAMPP, and try them both out, only you can determine which is best for your needs.

mrdale · 2007-02-24 23:09:10

I’ve used both for some time now.

Drupal Strengths

Extreme flexibility with content types through abstraction.
- Whereas TXPs content types are hard-coded (article, image, link, file), Drupal’s Flex-node allows you to build custom content-types (eg, people,donations,events, sermons).
- Each of these custom type can have it’s own hierarchical field sets (eg, “people” might contain name, address, contact fields, etc.)
- One content type can be nested in another, (eg a sermon could contain a “people” select.)
You can create flexible, hierarchical, sequentially presented “books” in Drupal
Drupal allows content revisions, with difference (track changes) display
Drupal “themes” and are easy to install and switch between. (Although you pay the price in site presentation flexibility)
Drupal has super-dooper configurable “categories” with the taxonomy
Drupals workflow” provides configurable steps in the publishing process and the ability for crossing a “step’s” threshold to trigger an “action” (send an email, etc)
Drupals roles are configurable without hacks

Textpattern Strengths

Forms for presentation. It’s vastly easier to present content exactly the way you’d like with TXP. Ironically this makes it harder to do standard templates. This is a BIG advantage.
TXP is leaner/meaner/cleaner requires more knowledge to get beyond the basics with, but really shines .
TXP has a real semantically clever, elegant separation between content/presentation in the admin.

I love TXP, but I look wistfully at Drupal’s feature-set and visualize some of those features in the TXP context. I have been informed that Drupal is a “framework” and TXP is not, but I’m still not sure practically what that means…

Last edited by mrdale (2007-02-24 23:10:04)

anoke · 2007-02-25 07:58:52

This is what I face almost daily (What makes me worry is that there’s more – than + marks..)

+ One edit screen for all textual content.
- Image permission
- File permissions
- File authors
- Articles have only two categories
- Images/files have only one category
- no custom fields for images/files
- content expiration
- Separated categories between content types, no ‘master categories’ – though sometimes this feels like a good thing..

Some of those are hackable or there’s a workaround though.

Isn’t custom fields combined with different forms supposed to be a way for achieving custom content types? Not as “a workaround” but as “a different approach”. There just isn’t an UI for those. With files and custom fields making “audio” or “video” wouldn’t be that complicated doing. (Some might argue “that isn’t a video content really! Just a file tagged as video to make it look like video!” but I find such talk silly myself..)

TXP isn’t the easiest CMS to understand from the first installation. But it becomes friendly after some months of using..

fpccsvb · 2007-02-25 12:58:32

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the input and candor.

fpccsvb · 2007-02-25 13:57:39

One last question – do you know if Drupal provides the ability to schedule articles to appear at a future date/time? It’s listed as a feature on textpattern, and for me, that’s huge. Would you know if Drupal has that? I don’t see it mentioned.

maniqui · 2007-02-25 17:14:02

I have written in my rough english my experience with Drupal (that occurred after working with TxP).

I find Drupal to be a pain in the @$$, counter intuitive for me and far less flexible (in both design and functionality) than TxP. I think it’s an overbloated software that has grown as a monster.

mrdale · 2007-02-25 19:12:06

hcgtv wrote:

That’s Drupal’s strength and weakness, it’s so hard to wrap your mind around taxonomy.

Not that bad really, just simultaneous multi-heirarchial,lateral and free associations.

anoke wrote:

- Image permission

- File permissions

- File authors

- Articles have only two categories

- Images/files have only one category

- no custom fields for images/files

- content expiration

- Separated categories between content types, no ‘master categories’ – though sometimes this feels like a good thing..

Everything on this list relates to (and to some degree, would be solved by) more flexible (abstracted) content types which I suggested a while back. But is deemed beyond the scope and mission of TXP.

Isn’t custom fields combined with different forms supposed to be a way for achieving custom content types? Not as “a workaround” but as “a different approach”. There just isn’t an UI for those. With files and custom fields making “audio” or “video” wouldn’t be that complicated doing. (Some might argue “that isn’t a video content really! Just a file tagged as video to make it look like video!” but I find such talk silly myself..)

I wholeheartedly agree. Forms are a fantastic mechanism and means of abstraction on the presentation side. Content-Type abstraction would extend this complementary flexibility to the content-side.

Right now TXP is tied down to hard-wired content types, and as you point out, when you envision new content types you really have to “trick” TXP into handling them. I think a better (more future-proof) approach is to free-up content from these underpinnings.

But I digress, this is a post comparing/recommending one of two CMSs, and my recommendation stands with TXP for most purposes.

Last edited by mrdale (2007-02-25 19:13:37)

hcgtv · 2007-02-25 19:35:19

mrdale wrote:

Not that bad really, just simultaneous multi-heirarchial, lateral and free associations.

I rest my case :)

mrdale · 2007-02-25 20:16:33

>hgtv You got me :)

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Textpattern CMS support forum

#1 2007-02-24 19:31:59

textpattern vs drupal

#2 2007-02-24 20:17:00

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#3 2007-02-24 20:36:30

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#4 2007-02-24 21:00:45

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#5 2007-02-24 23:09:10

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#6 2007-02-25 07:58:52

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#7 2007-02-25 12:58:32

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#8 2007-02-25 13:57:39

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#9 2007-02-25 17:14:02

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#10 2007-02-25 19:12:06

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#11 2007-02-25 19:35:19

Re: textpattern vs drupal

#12 2007-02-25 20:16:33

Re: textpattern vs drupal

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