Beginning Drupal 8

Chapter 17 ■ Putting It All Together
Table 17-1. (continued)
Phase Task Activity
III
IV
B
A
B
A
B
Install and configure Drupal
Following the step-by-step instructions outlined in Appendix A, install Drupal on either
your local desktop/laptop or on your hosting provider’s environment.
Visual Design
Picking or designing your Drupal theme is one of those activities that you can choose
to do early in the process, midway through the development process, or near the end of
your efforts. For most people, having a sense of what the site is going to look like helps
to visualize the layout as it will look in its final state. There may be circumstances where
you can’t pick or design the theme up front, such as the case where the organization
you are building the site for doesn’t have their branding completed (including logo,
colors, iconography, fonts, and so on). In that case it is still possible to continue with the
construction activities using a generic theme.
Look for an existing theme that matches what you are trying to accomplish
Hundreds of themes are available on Drupal.org, and there is likely one that comes close
to the layout and design that you would like to use on your site. To see the list of themes,
visit www.drupal.org/project/project_theme. If you can’t find a theme that matches
your requirements, you can use one of the various “starter” themes listed on the Drupal
site (such as Zen) as a place to start. Revisit Chapter 6 for detailed instructions on how to
download and install a Drupal theme.
Implement your site’s specific design elements
If you pick an off-the-shelf theme from Drupal.org (versus creating one from scratch),
you will likely want to change the theme’s logo, colors, and so on. The topic of theme
development is beyond the scope of this book; however, you can read up on the concepts
behind Drupal themes, and discover which files you will want to look in to make changes
to customize the theme, at www.drupal.org/documentation/theme.
Downloading and Installing Contributed Modules
In Task D of Phase I, you documented the functionality that you want to deliver to your
site visitors beyond just content (such as blogs, RSS feeds, video, polls, forums, and
e-commerce). In this phase you will search for, install, and enable the modules that you
need to address the desired functionality.
Identify the modules required to address the desired functionality
Some of the functionality may be addressed by Drupal 8 core modules (such as the
Book module, Forums, and the like) while other functionality may require searching
for an appropriate module. To look for modules, visit www.drupal.org/project/
project_module. Using the filters available at the top of the page, narrow the search to
those modules that are based on the functionality that you wish to fulfill on your site.
If you’re struggling to find the right module, a good resource to use is the Drupal.org
forums. The community is extremely helpful, and posting a quick question asking for
advice on which module to use for a specific feature or function may cut down on your
research time as well as save you from picking the wrong module for the job.
Download and install required modules
Once you’ve identified the right modules to address the required functionality on your
site, follow the instructions listed in Chapter 11 for installing, enabling, configuring, and
setting permissions for each of the modules.
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