Powering On: The Drupal Community Keeps Connected

A little over a year ago, the global pandemic struck and all planned events came to a screeching halt for the foreseeable future. Here at Promet Source, we quickly adjusted, leveraging a wealth of knowledge we had acquired from our track record of successful collaborations around the world. Within the Drupal Community at large, the learning curve might have been more steep, but it appears to have been rapidly scaled.

In signature Drupal community style, tech solutions were explored, adjustments were made barely a beat was missed as networking, learning, and growth kept right on going. 

Last month’s Florida DrupalCamp took the virtual event experience to a new level for many of us as we got to experience gather.town in action. Promet’s Chris O’Donnell and Aaron Couch collaborated on a presentation of some breakthrough new possibilities for Drupal during their “Drag and Drop Content Management in Drupal,” session, and Promet Source is always thrilled to get to serve as a sponsor of Drupal events.

Onward to Drupalcon 2021 next month, April 12-16. Hope to “see” you there and in the meantime, here are some thoughts on Florida DrupalCamp from a few of us from Promet Source who participated in the event. 

Q.  What drew you to Florida DrupalCamp this year?

Chris O’Donnell: I presented at Florida DrupalCamp last year (in unusually cold weather!) and wanted to reconnect with the Florida Drupal community. Of course it was 78 degrees and sunny this year, when nobody could travel there! 

Luc Bezier: Promet Source is sponsoring several camps every year and I’ve heard a lot from the team about Florida DrupalCamp Florida. I am in Europe and since the camp was being offered this year, it was a great chance for me to participate, without having to get on an airplane. 

Danita Bowman: It was definitely the weather. Oh wait! It was virtual so that couldn't have been the reason. But seriously, I have wanted to attend Florida DrupalCamp for several years and it just never was the right set of circumstances. With the camp being virtual this year, it fit perfectly with my schedule.

Q. What was the highlight of the event from your perspective?

Chris: Reconnecting and catching up with far flung Drupaler’s that I had not spoken with in quite a while -- since last year’s Florida DrupalCamp in some cases. 

Danita: The highlight of most camps and other Drupal events is connecting with old friends and meeting new ones. That was the case this year with Florida DrupalCamp. 

Q. What were the top takeaways from your participation in Florida DrupalCamp?

Danita: Aside from Chris O’Donnell and Aaron Couch’s presentation on Drag and Drop Content Management in Drupal, the top takeaway for me was that the Drupal Community has weathered the last year just fine, but we are all really itching to drop the “virtual” from our meetups. 

Q. How did the virtual event technology differ from what you are accustomed to? 

Chris: This was my first event using gather.town. I was initially skeptical as every attempt to recreate the on-site convention experience has been disappointing so far. However, gather.town does an amazingly good job of recreating that serendipitous “running into somebody in the hallway" experience that is so important to Drupal events. 

Luc: The conditions right now are forcing organizers to find new tools to reproduce the interaction we normally have at events. We were able to create an avatar and hold conversations as little groups with gather.town. Nothing beats the face-to-face events of course, but this was a good way to get to chat with other attendees and speakers. 

Danita: I can't say enough good things about the experience this camp provided with gather.town. For the first time in more than a year of virtual events, I once again got to participate in my favorite part of events—the hallway track. 

Q. Any comments on the Drupal Community’s ability to power through during difficult circumstances?

Luc: It’s really great to see that despite the ban on face-to-face events the community keeps on creating and organizing opportunities to connect. This proves that Drupal events, and tech events in general, are very important. We need those to learn and connect with others. 

Danita: I've been impressed with the Drupal community throughout this year, as I’ve watched so many events pivot on short notice to virtual but still provide great training sessions and experiences for attendees. The organizers are to be commended for their resilience and determination to keep the Drupal community engaged. And the entire community is to be commended for staying in the game and showing up with a continued commitment to learning, growth, and contribution.

At Promet Source, Drupal is in our DNA. We demonstrate an ongoing commitment to contributing and connecting to new possibilities for Drupal sites that solve complex challenges. Interested in  a conversation about leveraging what’s new and next with Drupal for your next project? Contact us today!