Learn to use Drupal for your library website - popular eCourse returns

CHICAGO — By popular demand, ALA Editions announces a new session of the facilitated eCourse Using Drupal to Build Library Websites. Ken Varnum serve as the instructor for this six-week facilitated eCourse starting on March 6, 2013.

Drupal is an open source content management tool that allows users to build complex websites without extensive programming, making it perfect for library websites. In this eCourse, librarian and Drupal expert Ken Varnum will guide participants in building an attractive, functional library website using Drupal. This test website will be hosted on a server for six months after the eCourse, facilitating additional learning. This eCourse will focus on Drupal 7, while highlighting what is still applicable to Drupal 6. Whether the objective is a simple site or full-service digital branch, this eCourse will give participants the know-how to get a library website up and running.



Ken will introduce you to Drupal, teach you how to set up and configure a site and give you the foundation for learning more.

Learning outcomes for this course:

• Functional knowledge of Drupal;
• Ability to build basic websites;
• Experience in developing a fully-functional Drupal website;
• Knowledge of resources for expanding the functionality of a Drupal-based library website

Ken Varnum has been the Web systems manager at the University of Michigan Library since 2007, a position that involves all aspects of the libraries’ websites. In his 17 years working as a technology librarian, he has served in a variety of libraries, including a small special library at the Open Media Research Institute in Prague, a large corporate library at Ford Motor Company, and a small academic library at Tufts University. He received his MLIS from the University of Michigan and a Master’s of Russian and East European Studies. Prior to his postgraduate education, he received a BA from Grinnell College. His research interests include open source software, discovery environments, and personalized information delivery systems. Ken can be found on the Web at www.varnum.org/ and on Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus under the username varnum. He writes occasionally about technologies and libraries on his blog, RSS4Lib.

Registration for this ALA Editions facilitated eCourse, which begins on March 6, 2013, can be purchased at the ALA Store. Participants in this course will need regular access to a computer with an internet connection for online message board participation, viewing online video, listening to streaming audio (MP3 files), and downloading and viewing PDF and PowerPoint files.

ALA Editions publishes resources used worldwide by tens of thousands of library and information professionals to improve programs, build on best practices, develop leadership, and for personal professional development. ALA authors and developers are leaders in their fields, and their content is published in a growing range of print and electronic formats. Contact ALA Editions at (800) 545-2433 ext. 5418 or editionscoursehelp@ala.org.

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