I'm excited to share the first version of Drupal Starshot's product strategy, a document that aims to guide the development and marketing of Drupal Starshot. To read it, download the full Drupal Starshot strategy document as a PDF (8 MB).

This strategy document is the result of a collaborative effort among the Drupal Starshot leadership team, the Drupal Starshot Advisory Council, and the Drupal Core Committers. We also tested it with marketers who provided feedback and validation.

Drupal Starshot and Drupal Core

Drupal Starshot is the temporary name for an initiative that extends the capabilities of Drupal Core. Drupal Starshot aims to broaden Drupal's appeal to marketers and a wider range of project budgets. Our ultimate goal is to increase Drupal's adoption, solidify Drupal's position as a leading CMS, and champion an Open Web.

For more context, please watch my DrupalCon Portland keynote.

It's important to note that Drupal Starshot and Drupal Core will have separate, yet complementary, product strategies. Drupal Starshot will focus on empowering marketers and expanding Drupal's presence in the mid-market, while Drupal Core will prioritize the needs of developers and more technical users. I'll write more about the Drupal Core product strategy in a future blog post once we have finalized it. Together, these two strategies will form a comprehensive vision for Drupal as a product.

Why a product strategy?

By defining our goals, target audience and necessary features, we can more effectively guide contributors and ensure that everyone is working towards a common vision. This product strategy will serve as a foundation for our development roadmap, our marketing efforts, enabling Drupal Certified Partners, and more.

Drupal Starshot product strategy TL;DR

For the detailed product strategy, please read the full Drupal Starshot strategy document (8 MB, PDF). Below is a summary.

Drupal Starshot aims to be the gold standard for marketers that want to build great digital experiences.

We'd like to expand Drupal's reach by focusing on two strategic shifts:

1. Prioritizing Drupal for content creators, marketers, web managers, and web designers so they can independently build websites. A key goal is to empower these marketing professionals to build and manage their websites independently without relying on developers or having to use the command line or an IDE.
2. Extending Drupal's presence in the mid-market segment, targeting projects with total budgets between $30,000 and $120,000 USD (€25,000 to €100,000).

Drupal Starshot will differentiate itself from competitors by providing:

1. A thoughtfully designed platform for marketers, balancing ease of use with flexibility. It includes smart defaults, best practices for common marketing tasks, marketing-focused editorial tools, and helpful learning resources.
2. A growth-oriented approach. Start simple with Drupal Starshot's user-friendly tools, and unlock advanced features as your site grows or you gain expertise. With sophisticated content modeling, efficient content reuse across channels, and robust integrations with other leading marketing technologies, ambitious marketers won't face the limitations of other CMSs and will have the flexibility to scale their site as needed.
3. AI-assisted site building tools to simplify complex tasks, making Drupal accessible to a wider range of users.
4. Drupal's existing competitive advantages such as extensibility, scalability, security, accessibility, multilingual support, and more.

What about ambitious site builders?

In the past, we used the term ambitious site builders to describe Drupal's target audience. Although this term doesn't appear in the product strategy document, it remains relevant.

While the strategy document is publicly available, it is primarily an internal guide. It outlines our plans but doesn't dictate our marketing language. Our product strategy's language purposly aligns with terms used by our target users, based on persona research and interviews.

To me, "ambitious site builders" includes all Drupal users, from those working with Drupal Core (more technically skilled) to those working with Drupal Starshot (less technical). Both groups are ambitious, with Drupal Starshot specifically targeting "ambitious marketers" or "ambitious no-code developers".

Give feedback

The product strategy is a living document, and we value input. We invite you to share your thoughts, suggestions, and questions in the product strategy feedback issue within the Drupal Starshot issue queue.

Get involved

There are many opportunities to get involved with Drupal Starshot, whether you're a marketer, developer, designer, writer, project manager, or simply passionate about the future of Drupal. To learn more about how you can contribute to Drupal Starshot, visit https://drupal.org/starshot.

Thank you

I'd like to thank the Drupal Starshot leadership team, the Drupal Starshot Advisory Council, and the Drupal Core Committers for their input on the strategy. I'm also grateful for the marketers who provided feedback on our strategy, helping us refine our approach.

Authored by Nadiia Nykolaichuk.

Drupal 11.0.0 has been successfully released as a new major Drupal version which is very exciting news for everyone using Drupal or thinking about making the switch! This flexible, accessible, powerful, integration-ready, and secure CMS has transformed even more on the way from Drupal 10 to Drupal 11. 

So you’ve decided to change to Drupal, or maybe you are making a major upgrade from a really old version of Drupal to a more modern one and you are concerned about your SEO.

Changing content management systems will impact your search engine optimization (SEO), but with careful consideration and planning this can be a positive change rather than a negative one.

What is SEO

There are many misconceptions about search engine optimization, and part of that is because the industry has often been cast in a negative light. Really SEO is the process of making sure your website meets certain guidelines and standards so search engines can understand its content, relevance, and value to users.

As the end-of-life (EOL) for Drupal 7 approaches on 5 January 2025, site owners must adequately prepare to guarantee their websites' continued security, functionality, and compliance. Here, we outline the key steps to navigate this transition smoothly.

1. Conduct a Comprehensive Site Audit

A thorough site audit is the first step in preparing for Drupal 7's EOL. This process involves:

• Inventorying Content and Modules: List all content types, modules, themes, and custom code currently in use.

• Assessing Module Usage: Identify which modules are essential and which can be replaced or eliminated.

• Checking for Unsupported Modules: Determine if any modules are already unsupported and look for alternative solutions.

• Evaluating Performance: Analyze site performance to identify any bottlenecks or issues that need addressing during the migration.

2. Plan Your Migration Strategy

With a clear understanding of your site's current state, the next step is to plan your migration strategy. Key considerations include:

• Choosing the Right Drupal Version: While Drupal 11 is the latest version, you may need to evaluate if an interim upgrade to Drupal 10 is more feasible.

• Timeline and Budget: Estimate the time and resources required for the migration. Consider factors such as the complexity of your site, the number of custom modules, and the need for design changes.

• Engaging Stakeholders: Communicate the migration plan with all relevant stakeholders, including developers, content creators, and business leaders, to ensure alignment and support.

• Extended Long-Term Support: If your migration plan has an unsupported gap, consider utilizing HeroDevs Drupal 7 Never-Ending Support, a secure drop-in replacement for Drupal 7. HeroDevs’ service provides security, compliance, and compatibility updates as you plan your migration. As additional partners join the program, options will be listed in the Migration Resource Center.

3. Select a Certified Migration Partner

Migrating from Drupal 7 to a newer version is a complex task that often requires professional assistance. Selecting a certified migration partner who will provide the expertise and experience needed to ensure a successful transition. Look for partners who:

• Have Proven Experience: Check for case studies or references from similar migration projects.

• Offer Comprehensive Services: Ensure they can handle all aspects of the migration, from planning and execution to post-migration support.

• Understand Your Industry: Partners familiar with your industry can provide more tailored solutions and insights.

4. Update Your Hosting Environment

Ensure your hosting environment is ready for the new Drupal version. This may involve:

• Upgrading PHP and MySQL Versions: Verify that your hosting provider supports the PHP and MySQL versions required by your new version of Drupal

• Evaluating Server Performance: Ensure your server infrastructure can handle the new site's requirements, especially if you expect increased traffic or enhanced functionality.

• Considering a New Hosting Provider: If your current provider doesn't meet the requirements, consider migrating to a provider specializing in hosting Drupal sites.

5. Backup and Test

Before starting the migration, create a full backup of your site. This ensures you have a fallback option in case anything goes wrong. Additionally, set up a testing environment to:

• Run Migration Tests: Perform a dry run of the migration process to identify and resolve potential issues.

• Validate Functionality: Test all aspects of the site, including custom modules and integrations, to ensure everything works as expected post-migration.

• User Acceptance Testing (UAT): Engage end-users to test the site and provide feedback on any usability or functionality issues.

6. Execute the Migration

With all preparations in place, proceed with the migration. Follow a phased approach to minimize disruption:

• Migrate in Stages: Consider migrating in stages, starting with less critical sections of the site to ensure a smooth transition.

• Monitor Progress: Continuously monitor the migration process to quickly address any issues that arise.

• Communicate Changes: Keep all stakeholders informed about the migration progress and any potential downtime or changes.

7. Post-Migration Steps

After the migration, there are a few additional steps to ensure long-term success:

• Conduct a Final Site Audit: Verify that all content, modules, and functionality have been successfully migrated and are working correctly.

• Optimize Performance: Implement performance optimizations to ensure the new site runs efficiently.

• Plan for Ongoing Maintenance: Establish a plan for regular updates, backups, and security monitoring to keep the site secure and up-to-date.

Conclusion

Preparing for Drupal 7's end-of-life requires careful planning and execution. By conducting a comprehensive site audit, planning your migration strategy, selecting a certified migration partner, updating your hosting environment, and following through with testing and execution, you can ensure a smooth transition to a more modern, secure, and efficient version of Drupal. Taking these steps now will help future-proof your website and provide a solid foundation for continued success.

Today we are talking about DrupalCon Singapore, What you can expect, and What’s next for Drupal in Asia with guest Mike Richardson & Surabhi Gokte. We’ll also cover Filefield Paths as our module of the week.

For show notes visit: www.talkingDrupal.com/462

• When is Drupalcon Asia
• The last one was in 2016, what did it take to reprise
• How do you handle language barriers
• What are your roles in the organizing committee
• Steering committee and Drupal South
• What can attendees expect
• Any special programming
• What kind of diversity is expected from attendees
• Driving from Mumbai to Singapore is 110 hours
• Will Dries be there
• Can we expect future Drupalcon Asia's
• Planning and logistics regarding coffee
• Starshot

• DrupalCon Singapore
• Droptimes
• Drupal camp Pune
• Steering committee for Drupal South
• Linux Australia Council
• DrupalCon Singapore Sponsorship
  • Email events@drupalasia.org
• Park Royal Collection Marina Bay
• Singapore Wiki
• Singapore Visa

Mike Richardson - Singapore DrupalCon richo_au Surabhi Gokte - surabhi-gokte

Nic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan John Picozzi - epam.com johnpicozzi Josh Miller - joshmiller

Martin Anderson-Clutz - mandclu.com mandclu

• Brief description:
  • Have you ever wanted to use a variety of tokens to customize the directory and file names of your uploaded files? There’s a module for that.
• Module name/project name:
  • File (Field) Paths
• Brief history
  • How old: created in July 2008 by Stuart Clark (Deciphered), though recent releases are by Oleh Vehera (voleger) of Golems GABB
  • Versions available: 7.x-1.2 and 8.x-1.0-beta7, the latter of which supports Drupal 9.3 or newer, and Drupal 10
• Maintainership
  • Seeking co-maintainers
  • Security Coverage
    • Opted in, but no coverage in practice for Drupal 9 or 10
  • Test coverage
  • Number of open issues: 131 open issues, 50 of which are bugs against the current branch
• Usage stats:
  • 34,609 sites almost 35,000 sites
• Module features and usage
  • This module allows you to customize file names and paths by leveraging a variety of entity-based tokens
  • It also integrates with the Pathauto module, giving you options to clean up the tokens for example by removing slashes, filtering out words or punctuation, and so on
  • It can also work with the Transliteration module to convert unicode characters into US-ASCII
  • Filefield Paths has options to rename and move existing files, and can retroactively rename files, effectively bulk updating and moving all your existing files
  • It can also work with the Redirect module to automatically create redirects from the old path and filename to the new location, when renaming
  • I’d also like to give a tip of the cap to Jim Birch of Kanopi for suggesting this module, when I was talking to a customer who was looking to achieve pretty much exactly what this module does

We talk with Jamie Abrahams from FreelyGive about the new AI module and what it means for the future of AI modules in the Drupal ecosystem.

URLs mentioned

• The new AI module 
• Introductory video on the new AI module
• Press release announcing AI module
• Detailed introduction of AI module 
• #AI channel in Drupal Slack workspace 
• Issue queue discussion about generic "ai()" method
• LangChain  
• LlamaIndex 
• LM Studio 
• Ollama 

DrupalEasy News

• Professional module development - 15 weeks, 90 hours, live, online course.  
• Drupal Career Online - 12 weeks, 77 hours, live online, beginner-focused course.

Audio transcript

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Credits

Podcast edited by Amelia Anello.
 

The Drupal Association’s individual membership program has always played a crucial role in supporting the Drupal community and ensuring the ongoing success of the Drupal project. The program was initially set up as a transactional vehicle: aside from the badge and voting rights, members received access to discounts from Drupal services providers.

The individual membership program stayed on autopilot during the turmoil of the Covid pandemic as we made the difficult decision to cancel DrupalCon North America 2020. During this time, our members and other Drupal community supporters donated unprecedented unrestricted funds using the hashtag #DrupalCares.

I joined the Drupal Association about two years ago as the Development & Membership Manager. My role split my time between Drupal Certified partners and the individual membership program, however it was clear from the beginning that the individual membership program would need a lot more attention.

The membership program underwent significant transformation from 2019 through May 2023, overcoming challenges and celebrating successes along the way. Initially, we faced a decline in numbers, but through consistent effort and unprecedented generosity, we've made remarkable strides. Today, we proudly recognize 1,747 members, with 70% of them providing recurring support.

Ripple Makers: Celebrating Changemakers in our Community 

The individual membership program rebranded as Ripple Makers in 2024. With this new name, the Drupal Association increases focus on communication, transparency, and engagement within the community. The ‘new’ program encourages sustaining donors to make monthly recurring gifts, which provide a reliable source of funding. This financial support allows the Drupal Association to plan for the future, support essential projects, and foster a dynamic and responsive community​.

Membership Programs, Sustainable Giving, and Nonprofits 

Why does a nonprofit organization such as the Drupal Association need a sustaining giving program? This program is vital for the sustainability and growth of the Drupal Association, and the benefit it brings to the community. It provides a stable foundation of support, ensuring that we can continue to innovate and grow. In addition, unrestricted giving in particular allows nonprofits to allocate resources where they are needed most, supporting the overall health of the Drupal project. Importantly. It also opens up direct lines of communication with the community.

Positive Impact on the Drupal Community

The Drupal community thrives because of several factors: open source collaboration, supportive environment, diverse participation, commitment to quality, and others. In my opinion, a supportive environment is the most important one.

By becoming a Ripple Maker, you directly support a vibrant and inclusive community of people who care for the Drupal project. Your contributions empower us to foster a sustainable ecosystem for Drupal by harnessing the collective generosity and commitment to the future of Drupal. Learn more about the program and join the wave on our sign up page.

Thank you for your ongoing support and dedication. Let's make the next chapter of our sustainable giving program the best one yet!