How do I get started?

These help pages are designed to help you convert the basic installed site into a site tailored for you. The instructions here are very basic. Drupal is capable of much much more, and as you get familiar with the system and see what others have done, you may want to explore new features on your web site.

Please review the topics in this getting started guide first.

Start with the items:

• Logging Into Your Site
• Navigating Drupal
• Changing Site Information

If you have questions, please post them in the forums here, and if you have gained some experience, please watch the forums here to help out those following you.

More help:

• You can get help from Forward Support. They work on Drupal professionally.
• The Drupal Cookbook at the official Drupal site
• Try googling "Getting Started with Drupal" for several informative sites
• There are several books at various levels of technicality. See Amazon.com or Packt Publishing.

With Drupal, you don't need to know HTML code and you don't need to know how to ftp content up to your site. It does everything through simple forms you fill out.

The first couple times you use Drupal, navigating it can be a bit difficult. That's especially true if you've never built a web site before or have only done them through html coding (either by hand or using software like Front Page or Dreamweaver) and uploading by FTP.

With Drupal, FTP access is rarely needed. Times you would need FTP access include things like initial set up, module upgrades and changes, and changing the theme. Everything else is done in your browser.

When you create HTML code in a page, you use a simple WORD-like toolbar that lets you apply styles, make lists, add links, create tables, and more. You see the results of your changes on the page, not the code behind it. (Note: the WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor does not always work correctly with Mac Safari. So if you are on a Mac, you'll want to use Firefox instead.)

(Click for larger image)
Note: Your WYSIWYG bar may look different than the one shown above. There are a variety of options available.

First, you'll need to be logged into your web site in order to do anything. So log on with the information that has been provided to you.

Now you can begin work on your site.