News Roundup

DevCollaborative has been certified as a Drupal Partner, recognizing its significant contributions to the Drupal ecosystem. The agency actively supports the community through event organization, sponsorships, workshops, and maintaining key Drupal modules. This certification highlights DevCollab’s commitment to innovation, accessibility, and open-source development.

The Pacific Northwest Drupal Summit is giving away two free tickets to DrupalCon Atlanta 2025, the largest open-source event in North America. The first ticket drawing is set for March 3, with potential weekly giveaways if more tickets become available. DrupalCon Atlanta, happening March 24-27, will feature cutting-edge sessions, networking, and hands-on training for Drupal professionals.

Manpreet Singh explores how the RobotsTxt module simplifies SEO for Drupal 9 by managing the robots.txt file efficiently. The module helps control crawler access, optimize indexing, and prevent duplicate content issues. Follow the step-by-step guide to improve your site's search engine visibility with ease!

DrupalCamp England returns on March 1, 2025, at the University of Cambridge after a five-year hiatus, featuring expert talks, discussions, and networking. Attendees can participate in the DrupalCon Vienna Mascot Contest for a chance to win a free ticket to DrupalCon Vienna 2025. With two session tracks on the latest Drupal advancements, the event is a must-attend for developers and professionals.

Drupal Village at DrupalCon Atlanta 2025 is also a new sponsorship opportunity that offers prime networking and brand visibility. The event, which will take place from March 24 to 27, will host over 1,000 attendees and feature keynotes, training, and contributions. Limited sponsorship spots are available, so early registration is encouraged for maximum industry engagement.

DrupalSouth Melbourne 2025 is set for March 11-13 at ACMI, featuring presentations, networking, and a code sprint for over 200 attendees. The event will offer expanded tracks, birds of a feather sessions, and exclusive t-shirts for registered participants. Secure your spot now to connect with the Drupal community and grab your limited-edition event tee!

Talking Drupal #490 features guest Steve Wirt, who explores the Contrib First approach to Drupal development. The discussion covers explaining the model to stakeholders, overcoming client scepticism, and strategies for developer confidence. This week's Module of the Week, Config Importer & Tools, simplifies configuration management across environments.

Tag1 Consulting releases the 29th article in its Migrations How-To series, guiding users on migrating nodes from Drupal 7 to Drupal 10. Authored by Mauricio Dinarte, the article explores filtering unpublished nodes, managing entity relationships, and ensuring data integrity. This is part 1 of the Nodes migration series—full details available on the Tag1 blog.

Aten Design Group has integrated Drupal 10 and React to power an interactive map for Tampa International Airport’s revamped website. The React-based map, built with React Leaflet, enables real-time navigation, food ordering, and location searches while optimizing mobile performance. A Drupal-powered UI allows easy content management, ensuring a scalable and user-friendly digital experience.

Drupal enthusiasts attending DrupalCon Atlanta 2025 can volunteer to capture event highlights through photos, videos, interviews, and real-time updates. No professional experience is needed—just enthusiasm and a smartphone—with contributions credited on TDT’s platform. Interested participants can sign up via email to be part of the live coverage team.

The Drupal Meetup Nara returns on February 28, 2025, bringing together professionals and aspiring talents eager to explore digital transformation (DX) and career shifts into the IT industry. Featuring insights from Masami Suzuki and Misako Fukagawa of Genero Co., Ltd., the event will highlight real-life experiences of transitioning into DX, balancing work and family, and embracing flexible career paths. Hosted at the Nara Convention Center and available online via Zoom, this free event offers a unique opportunity to learn about DX careers, Drupal trends, and industry best practices—so don’t miss your chance to connect, learn, and grow in the world of digital transformation!

Helppy Hour Drupal Brasil returns for its fourth edition on February 26, 2025, at 8 PM (BRT), offering developers a space for learning and networking. Organizers will answer selected questions from social media, with live participation via YouTube and Meet. This free event continues to foster collaboration in the Drupal community with an interactive, casual format.

DrupalCamp Ottawa returns on May 2, 2025, at the Canada Science and Technology Museum for a day of learning and networking. The call for session proposals is now open, welcoming speakers of all levels to share Drupal insights. This year introduces an unconference segment with open discussions, mini-presentations, and breakout sessions.

The recorded session of "Drupal AI: Démo et concepts" by Mathieu Le Cain (IOSAN) is now publicly available. Presented at the Drupal France & Francophonie Meetup in Nantes, it showcases how Generative AI and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAGs) integrate with Drupal. Watch the full talk, including demos and code examples, on Conserto’s YouTube channel.

The Config Pull Request module for Drupal has released version 2.0-beta3, which adds support for Drupal 11 and expands integration with GitHub Enterprise and Self-Managed GitLab. The update enhances collaboration by allowing admin users to generate pull requests for UI-based configuration changes, reducing reliance on command-line Git. Maintainers Marcelo Vani and Juan Folgar Colomer continue to refine the module for smoother configuration management.

Acquia and the Drupal Association are hosting a webinar on March 10, 2025, at 9:30 PM IST, introducing Drupal’s Experience Builder. Lauri Timmanee and Tim Lehnen will showcase how this no-code tool streamlines content management and enhances collaboration. The session is ideal for professionals exploring the future of digital content workflows.

Professor Graham Leach continues his in-depth analysis of Drupal’s public data, focusing on the unique case of Drupal 7. His findings highlight inconsistent release cycles, unexpected service life extensions, and a reluctance among website owners to upgrade. With insights from historical discussions and user experiences, he uncovers deep-rooted challenges that shaped the Drupal 7 situation, setting the stage for the series' final installment.

A new Drupal module, Sheephole Helper, enhances Project Browser by enabling secure Composer-based module installations without command-line use. Developed by Chris Kelly, it automates installations via a free Java-based application, requiring SSH access. The module is available for testing, with feedback welcomed on GitHub and LinkedIn.

The first-ever Drupal MeetUp Nara gathered DX professionals, government representatives, and Drupal enthusiasts at the Nara Convention Center. Speakers shared insights on Drupal careers, case studies, and industry trends, with a focus on inclusivity and career growth. The event highlighted Nara's business-friendly environment and fostered ongoing community engagement.

Voting is now open for the 2025 Ironstar Community Recognition People's Choice Award, organized by DrupalSouth. The nominees—Ivan Zugec, Lee Rowlands, Pamela Barone, and Suchi Garg—have made significant contributions to the Drupal community. The winner will be announced at DrupalSouth Melbourne 2025, with voting closing on February 26.

The Austin Drupal Users Group held its second in-person meetup on February 18 at Material+, with discussions on layout modules, frontend architecture, and workflow automation. Speakers covered topics like CiviCRM, component libraries, and Drupal’s role in content promotion. The event wrapped up with plans for the next session on March 11.

A new on-demand webinar, Drupal Decoupled Misconceptions Holding You Back, launches on March 6 to address common concerns about headless Drupal. Featuring Jesus Manuel Olivas and Flavio Juarez of Octahedroid, the session will cover performance, API management, and scalability benefits. Designed for business and tech leaders, it offers insights into future-proofing digital platforms.

Murray Woodman, ahead of his DrupalSouth Melbourne panel, explores the web's AI-driven transformation in his blog, "The Future of Web." He highlights AI's impact on content creation, the decline of SEO, and the shifting role of CMS platforms. Woodman urges Drupal and businesses to embrace AI integration, authenticity, and user experience to stay relevant in the evolving digital space.

Convox has launched Quick Apps for Drupal, enabling rapid deployments without complex DevOps setup. Running in the user’s own cloud, it ensures full control over infrastructure, costs, and compliance. With automated scaling and a centralized dashboard, it simplifies multi-site management for agencies, media companies, and nonprofits.

In a new blog post, Aten Design Group outlines the Drupal 11 upgrade process, emphasizing the importance of careful planning and the Upgrade Status module. The recommended approach includes staged upgrades, from server checks to module updates and core transitions. With Drupal 10 reaching end-of-life in mid-2026, most users should aim to upgrade by late 2025.

Lullabot is hosting a webinar on "Creating a Multi-Brand Design System for State Government" on March 6 at 6:00 PM UTC. Experts will discuss balancing design flexibility with consistency, stakeholder-driven design, and using Figma for automation. This webinar is ideal for government web teams, designers, and strategists. Register now!

Evolving Web is hosting a live webinar on February 28 at 12:00 pm EDT, exploring AI-powered translation in Drupal for efficient multilingual content management. Experts will discuss AI’s impact, its benefits and limitations, and strategies for combining AI with human oversight. A live demo will showcase AI-driven translation in action—register now to optimize your workflow!

Droptica Co-CEO Grzegorz Bartman announces a new open-source intranet system built on Drupal and PHP to enhance workplace communication. The platform includes news, events, a knowledge base, AI-assisted content creation, and enterprise authentication support. Droptica is inviting 10 companies for early testing with free hosting for a year.

The Drupal community has an exciting week ahead with events covering networking, accessibility, and AI-powered translation. Key events include Atlanta Drupal Coffee and Coworking (Feb 25), Axe-con 2025 (Feb 25-27), the Drupal Kochi Monthly Meetup (Feb 27), and Evolving Web’s AI Translation Webinar (Feb 28). Capping off the week, DrupalCamp England 2025 on March 1 marks the country's first major Drupal gathering in five years.

The Drupal Certified Partner Program has grown to 101 partners, reinforcing efforts to sustain Drupal’s future while preserving its open-source independence. However, 96% of contributions in 2024 came from just 219 companies, raising concerns about long-term innovation and sustainability. The Drupal Association aims to expand partnerships, encourage larger agencies to contribute, and direct more business to Certified Partners to ensure Drupal’s continued success.

Dries Buytaert, founder of Drupal, has built an AI-powered system to automate alt-text generation for 9,000 images on his website, improving web accessibility. After testing local LLMs, he opted for cloud-based AI models like ChatGPT-4o and Claude-3 Sonnet for better accuracy. His system integrates AI-generated descriptions via API updates, ensuring transparency and continuous refinement.

DrupalSouth 2025 is set for March 11-13 in Melbourne, and sponsorship opportunities are closing fast. The event at ACMI Melbourne gathers developers, designers, and industry leaders, offering sponsors prime exposure and networking. Businesses looking to connect with the Drupal community should act now to secure their spot.

After a five-year hiatus, DrupalCamp England is back on March 1, 2025, at the University of Cambridge’s Faculty of Law. The Drop Times will serve as the official Media Partner, delivering exclusive coverage and insights. This one-day event will showcase expert sessions, networking opportunities, and the latest Drupal innovations.

Palantir is gearing up for a public release of EditTogether, a free, open-source module that enables real-time, field-level collaborative editing in Drupal while protecting user data. Built on the Yjs framework and leveraging peer-to-peer WebRTC, it offers a secure alternative to third-party cloud editing tools, integrating with Drupal’s content moderation and editorial workflows. Originally planned for Q4 2024/Q1 2025, Palantir is seeking early adopters and sponsors, and will demonstrate the module at upcoming Drupal events.

LocalGov Drupal has launched a Certified Suppliers program to recognize and incentivize supplier contributions while strengthening collaboration with local councils. The initiative offers tiered accreditation—Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Base—unlocking benefits like visibility, networking, and procurement advantages. Suppliers can qualify through contributions in development, governance, and accessibility, with fees starting at £700 annually based on company size.

The Black in Drupal Lunch at DrupalCon Atlanta 2025 will take place on March 25 at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, offering a space for Black professionals to network and share insights. This roundtable event will center on community support, career development, and identifying key needs for future initiatives. Attendees must pre-register to join the discussion.

In Talking Drupal #489, guests Carlos Ospina and Mike Anello discuss the IXP Fellowship Initiative, which provides paid internships to help newcomers enter the Drupal job market. The episode covers the program’s impact, business engagement strategies, and ways to make Drupal more accessible. It also highlights the Cloudflare Turnstile module, a CAPTCHA alternative that enhances security without disrupting user experience.

DrupalCon Europe 2025 will take place in Vienna from October 14 to 17. It will bring together developers, designers, and tech enthusiasts for four days of innovation and networking. Organizers have launched a contest inviting participants to share their favourite DrupalCon memory for a chance to win a free ticket. Entries submitted via social media or email by March 7 may also be featured in the event’s official promotional video.

Vardot has released Varbase 10.0.4, delivering refinements to enhance workflow efficiency and stability. This update focuses on automation, usability, and performance without introducing major new features. Regular updates ensure Varbase remains a reliable and scalable Drupal distribution for organizations globally.

TechBullion highlights Drupal 11’s built-in SEO features, which reduce the need for additional plugins. Modules like PathAuto, Metatag, and XML Sitemap simplify optimization while better performance, structured data, and accessibility improve search rankings. With multilingual support and an SEO Checklist, Drupal 11 helps businesses effortlessly enhance their organic traffic.