Modules in Drupal let you extend, build and customize the core functionality of this content management system powerhouse. Chances are if there is something you would like to do with Drupal, somebody out there has written an add-on for it. If not, it is pretty simple to dive in and write your own. Here are 5 of the most installed Drupal modules out there in the wild today.
Views
This tool is essentially a smart query builder that, given enough information, can build the proper query, execute it, and display the results. It has four modes, plus a special mode, and provides an impressive amount of functionality from these modes.
Token
Tokens are small bits of text that can be placed into larger documents via simple placeholders, like %site-name or [user]. The Token module provides a central API for modules to use these tokens, and expose their own token values.
Pathauto
The Pathauto module automatically generates path aliases for various kinds of content (nodes, categories, users) without requiring the user to manually specify the path alias. This allows you to get aliases like /category/my-node-title.html instead of /node/123. The aliases are based upon a “pattern” system which the administrator can control.
FileField
FileField provides a universal file upload field for CCK. It is a robust alternative to core’s Upload module and an absolute must for users uploading a large number of files. Great for managing video and audio files for podcasts on your own site.
Administration Menu
The module renders all administrative menu items below ‘administer’ in a clean, attractive and purely CSS-based menu at the top of your website. It contains not only regular menu items – local tasks are also included, giving you extremely fast access to any administrative resource and function your Drupal installation provides.
Drupal is a slick and very extendable content management system worth checking into. These modules show that Drupal may even be one of the easiest CMS scripts out there to hack around with to get the website you really need. To learn more about Drupal, be sure to check out Drupal is the Best CMS You Never Used.
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