Troubleshooting

Due to how open source software is created, with all the moving parts, there’s no way to guarantee that the versions of the files you download will work with the version of Drupal you have. In general, the best thing to do is to try and make sure you’re getting the right version of the file, the most recent recommended release for a module, and to see how it goes.

Things going wrong comes with the territory. The next line of defense is the support people at the hosting company; in some cases, you might be able to find a Drupal support forum and ask a question there.

The other thing you can do as a work-around for these particular modules is to upload your images and format your text elsewhere, using Blogger as a content authoring tool.

And if you end up pulling your hair out, you might want to revisit Chapter 2 and explore Google Sites, in the interim, until you work the tech issues out.

The one thing I can offer is that even though there are no guarantees, when it does work (like if the file versions happen to be compatible with each other, etc.), it’s nice to overcome the hurdle. If you go through all these steps and it doesn’t work, what I’d say is that you’ve learned something regardless—and I’m proud of you!

Though I wish I could provide readers with a perfect situation and simple steps that will always work, because I can’t control all the variables and the moving parts, as an author, I had to accept that there might be issues. So I had to step back and say, better to at least try writing the chapter (I didn’t even know if I’d be able to get it working), and see what happens. It was empowering and demystifying to make some progress.

Don’t be distraught if things start out working and then break—that’s the nature of open source software because things are changing all the time. The general process for dealing with it is to become part of the community. Otherwise, hire a developer to get it going for you, investigate a company like Acquia if you want a managed Drupal, investigate a commercial CMS, or investigate Google Sites. There’s no wrong answer.

Another thing you might be interested in doing is searching for a Drupal Meetup group, which can provide an opportunity to connect with people who are exploring Drupal, in person. See the Meetup chapter in Social Networking Spaces (http://tinyurl.com/snspacesbook).

And you might find it helpful to join a Drupal LinkedIn group; there’s also information on LinkedIn in social networking spaces.

LinkedIn groups, Meetup groups, and Drupal.org forums may be a way to reach out and possibly get a solution, or at least to find people who might empathize or have some recommendations for a technical issue.

And you can certainly purchase Drupal support from Acquia.com:

Best wishes!