AI is no longer on the horizon — it’s fully here, and reshaping nearly every corner of the digital world. It’s no longer news that with the right approach, AI tools can quietly and tirelessly simplify and streamline much of the work across various areas. Search Engine Optimization, with its many routine and repetitive tasks, is no exception.
Join Johanna and Jess as they dive deep into their experiences and insights working with Drupal in the nonprofit sector. Learn about their early careers, the evolution of Drupal's development, the significance of community in nonprofit tech, and the origins and importance of the Nonprofit Summit at DrupalCon. Discover how their community initiatives foster collaboration and support among nonprofit technologists, and get a glimpse into the upcoming summit details. Perfect for anyone interested in Drupal, open-source technology, and nonprofit organizational challenges.
For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/cafe012
Johanna BatesJohanna Bates (they/them, hanpersand on drupal.org) is co-founder and co-principal of DevCollaborative, a company that builds accessible and sustainable Drupal and WordPress sites exclusively for nonprofit organizations.
Johanna began their formal tech career at WGBH in Boston in 2000 as a front-end developer. They have been building Drupal sites since 2004, and have been co-moderating NTEN's Nonprofit Drupal Community and its monthly chats for over a decade.
Johanna was involved in early Nonprofit Summits at NYCcamp starting back in 20-teens 2015, and helped bring the Nonprofit Summit to DrupalCon North America in 2017.
Jess SnyderJess Snyder (jesss on drupal.org and Drupal Slack) is Director of Web Systems for WETA, the flagship public media station for Washington, DC, and has over 20 years of experience in website development.
Jess is an organizer for NTEN's Drupal Community of Practice as well as Drupal GovCon. She also co-chaired the triumphant return of the Nonprofit Summit to DrupalCon Portland 2024 and its sequel at DrupalCon Atlanta 2025.
When not Drupaling, Jess sits on the Board of Directors for the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
TopicsJohanna Bates - hanpersand Jess Snyder - jesss
I built a dashboard that tracks Drupal Core's code quality over time, across major releases from Drupal 7 through Drupal 11. It measures lines of code, cyclomatic complexity, maintainability index, anti-patterns, and API surface area. Think of it as a health report for Drupal's codebase.
The dashboard updates automatically and is available at https://dbuytaert.github.io/drupal-core-metrics/.
The charts tell a clear story of steady, hard-won progress. A story to be proud of and worth sharing. Code quality is dramatically better than it was in Drupal 7: lower complexity, easier to maintain, fewer anti-patterns, and dramatically better test coverage. Drupal now has nearly twice as much test code as production code!
Drupal Core's API surface has modernized too. As Drupal shifted from procedural to object-oriented patterns, global procedural functions gave way to classes implementing interface methods, services, plugins, and events.
By tracking these metrics publicly, I hope to inform decisions about both code quality and developer experience. When we refactor complex code, we can measure the impact. We can set goals and track progress.
All charts use static code analysis. Static analysis measures the code as written, not what it feels like to work with it or to learn Drupal as a new developer. As a next step, I'd love to measure developer experience more directly. Dynamic analysis might help, for example by tracking call stack depth, or how many files and APIs you have to touch to make a simple change.
The dashboard is open source, and contributions are welcome at https://github.com/dbuytaert/drupal-core-metrics.
Special thanks to catch for multiple rounds of feedback. As the most active Core Committer over the past 12 months, his input was invaluable.
What’s the fastest way to understand Drupal AI and bring it into your DNA? Build things!
If you want to turn curiosity into capability, join us for “Play to Impact”, a two-day Drupal AI hackathon in Brussels on 27–28 January 2026. Hosted by the Drupal Community of Practice @ European Commission and EUIBAs, the event brings makers together to prototype practical solutions that help teams do more with less—without compromising trust, governance, or human judgment.
What you’ll work onAcross two distinct challenges, you’ll work hands-on with the Drupal AI ecosystem, including:
Drupal AI is moving quickly, and this is a chance to be part of that—not by watching, but by building alongside the people leading it.
Two days working together in person creates something different: you'll learn faster, make connections that last, and leave with something real you've made.
The European Commission is hosting because they believe this matters. We do too.
Who should attendThis is intentionally cross-functional. You’ll fit right in if you’re in:
You will be joined by many key members of the AI Initiative such as Freely Give’s AI experts, Marcus Johansson, the AI Initiative’s official tech lead and the head of innovation Jamie Abrahams.
How it worksParticipants get access to a structured program that transitions into onsite collaboration at the European Commission premises in Brussels and culminates in team pitches to an expert jury.
Top teams receive recognition and visibility across the Drupal community—amplifying both their contributions and their career profile.
Join usMore information and registration details.
If you’re new to Drupal AI, the all new Drupal AI TV is a good on-ramp.
Bring your ideas—and let’s build impact together.
"DrupalCon Chicago 2026, happening March 23–26 at the Hilton Chicago offers incredible value for web professionals and enthusiasts alike with professional training options, sector-focused summits, deep dive sessions and workshops, a full hands-on Drupal in a Day introduction seminar and contribution opportunities."
Look. I know you’ve seen that everywhere at this point, but hear me out. It’s been over a decade since DrupalCon North America has seen the interior of the continent (since 2014 in Austin, to be specific). Every year either the Techies on the West coast fly 6 hours east or the Govvies on the East coast fly 6 hours west. What if we all just met in the middle?
Enter… Chicago.
ImageImage Source: Photo by Neal Kharawala on Unsplash
We’ve got one of the most connected airports on the continent, and a smaller one too if you want. Both airports are connected to downtown with $2.50 public transit rides. Take the train if riding the rails suits you. Parking downtown isn’t even that bad.
We have 20 Michelin Star restaurants. We have over 200 neighborhoods, each with their own unique character (if you can take your eyes off of our skyscrapers… we invented those too, you know).
Ok, fine, we know what ya’ll really want… how about a city with its own design system and municipal typeface?
But enough about me. I asked some other Drupal folks what one thing they recommended you check out during your time here at DrupalCon. You’ll literally be staying “in the Loop” and there’s no better home base for exploring the city. Here’s what they had to say:
The Chicago Cultural Center is an often-overlooked gem right in downtown Chicago, and it’s free! Inside contains incredible architecture, insanely detailed stained glass domes, and a nice Chicago gift shop. ~ Avi Schwab (froboy) (oops, yea that’s me again)
DrupalCons are the time of large group dinners and there is no better place than The Purple Pig, north of the Hilton on Michigan Ave. I have fond memories of the last DrupalCon Chicago participating in the "bite-bite-pass" rule and trying so many amazing dishes.
P.S. Don't let anyone trick you into drinking Malört, the local legendary spirt. Choose so boldly, or not at all, and that's ok. ~ Kevin Thull (kthull)
Try a Chicago hot dog and Italian beef. Deep dish is good too… You’d be surprised how many times I heard the traditional food in the USA was just burgers and fries and yet every city has their own thing, but you don't know when you landed and have 5 days to get everything else done. ~ Bernardo Martinez (bernardm28)
[In the Pilsen neighborhood,] the food was amazing, the art, the murals, and the people were SOOO nice. ~ My Wife ~ Eric Wheeler (sikofitt)
The Chicago History Museum is great and not too far from the venue. For an iconic Chicago dog place, visit Wiener Circle. (Editor’s note: but … be prepared.) ~ Doug Dobrzynski (dobrzyns)
Gaze in wonder at both big pointy teeth and tiny pointy teeth at the Field Museum! Get tacos from one of the trucks on Monroe St. outside the Art Institute. Or take the CTA Pink Line to 18th St. for tacos at Taqueria El Mezquite or the more upscale (but still casual) 5 Rabanitos.
Also near the Pink Line is the National Museum of Mexican Art, which has a great collection. There are also too many kinds of pizza to count. ~ Brian Smith (brianbrarian)
Get "on a Boat" for an Architecture Tour. Visit Chinatown. Take a walk in a park (Grant Park & Millenium Park are closeby, but we have 8,800 acres of them). Catch a show (HAMILTON!!!) at the CIBC Theater or one of many stand-up venues. ~ Norah Medlin (tekNorah)
Image Source: Avi Schwab
That’s… a lot. I’ve been here for 25 years and I still haven’t hit all of those. You’ll have a couple of days (and theoretically conference things to go to as well).
Speaking of the conference, it’s looking to be a busy one. (Almost as busy as the last time DrupalCon was here and Dries created the Drupal 8 branch on stage.)
If you’re looking to find your people or just reconnect, you can choose from one of seven industry summits on Monday. If you’re not sure where to start, you can sign up for professional training instead. Tuesday and Wednesday will bring a boatload of sessions (still to-be-announced) along with our two keynote speakers — both of whom will give us some insight into what the future will hold, for Drupal and for humanity. Thursday is Contribution Day, where everyone has a chance to give back to the project (it’s not just code!). Or if you’re new to Drupal and looking for more guidance, our free, hands-on, Drupal in a Day program could be right for you.
ImageImage Source: MidCamp Flickr, licensed as CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Finally, we understand that travel might not be in the cards for you right now. 2025 was a lot. It may not be the right time for you to join us in Chicago. That’s ok.
If you’re not able to join us, consider supporting Drupal and Open Source by becoming a Ripple Maker for as little as $1, or subscribe to the many Drupal Newsletters (they’re free).
I hope to see you there,
Avi Schwab
DrupalCon Chicago Steering Committee
This post was written by humans.
Uploading files should be as seamless and intuitive as possible, especially if you’re managing a large and bustling Drupal website. Sometimes, third-party upload tools are a great choice because they bring special capabilities to the table, boosting editorial efficiency. One of them is the Uppy tool, a free and open-source JavaScript-based file uploader.
As we begin 2026 with Volume 4, Issue 1 of Editor’s Pick, our weekly newsletter, we return with a fresh dispatch of Drupal news, community highlights, and contributor updates.
With each edition, we continue to focus on amplifying contributions and sharing developments that shape the Drupal ecosystem. This year also presents an opportunity to reflect, not only on where Drupal is today, but also on how far it has come.
Drupal turns 25 this month. The official anniversary, on January 15, marks a quarter-century since the initial release of Drupal 1.0. Over that time, the project has grown through community-led development and steady innovation. Whether you’ve contributed code, organised events, maintained modules, or built with Drupal, this anniversary belongs to you, too.
To mark the occasion, the global community is coordinating celebrations throughout the week of January 8 to 15. These will include online events, local meetups, and stories shared by users and contributors alike. The format is intentionally flexible, allowing participation across time zones and regions. Community members in Vienna and Ottawa, among others, are already preparing localised gatherings.
We encourage you to take part in whatever way works for you — sharing a post, attending a meetup, or simply reflecting on your time with Drupal. For those looking to stay updated or contribute ideas, the #celebratedrupal channel on Drupal Slack is the central hub. We'll continue to follow and report on these efforts as the week unfolds.
DISCOVER DRUPALDISCOVER DRUPALWe acknowledge that there are more stories to share. However, due to selection constraints, we must pause further exploration for now. To get timely updates, follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Bluesky, and Facebook. You can also join us on Drupal Slack at #thedroptimes.
Thank you.
Kazima Abbas
Sub-editor
The DropTimes
As I sit here in 2026 getting ready to head back to work tomorrow (Monday), I thought I’d take a moment to reflect on the year that was 2025. It was a busy year—and one that somehow went by incredibly fast. Between the increasing use of AI and the rapid innovation happening across the Drupal ecosystem, there was a lot to experience, contribute to, and learn from. Looking back, 2025 felt like a year when many long-term ideas became real, usable tools for the community.
A common request I see when theming Search API forms is to swap out the normal submit element with a magnifying glass icon. Performing this action isn't difficult, but it does require adding a couple of operations to add a suggestion so a custom template can be used.
When I set up a view to perform a search against a Search API index I normally create an exposed filter for the text content. Views shows this as a block that can be embedded into the site. The block, however, comes with a input element to act as the search button, and it isn't possible to inject SVG icons into input elements.
By changing the input element to a button we can then inject a small SVG of a magnifying glass or similar to act as the search button.
Swapping out this input element takes a couple of steps, and I although I have done this technique a few times I still need to dig into old code to figure out how I did it. So, I thought I would document it so I didn't have to go looking for the solution again.
In this article I will look at how we can use a combination of form alters and suggestion hooks to change the Search API form submit input to a button so that an SVG can be embedded inside.
Altering The Search FormThe first step (and perhaps the trickiest) is to alter the search form to add a couple of attributes to the search submit element.
If we add a theme suggestion alter hook for the input element, the element itself has no knowledge of the context that surrounds it. This makes it tricky to know that we are altering the correct element or even to inject a suggestion that would be unique for the search form.
The form alter hook, therefore, is used to inject an attribute into the form element so that we can read this in the suggestions hook. This gives is a bit of data we can identify and use in the suggestions hook.
The short answer: Yes.
Drupal works well for eCommerce. The Drupal Commerce module is not a light add-on. You aren’t slapping some basic shopping cart functionality onto your website and calling it a day. Drupal Commerce is a comprehensive framework suitable for all sorts of applications. It processes billions in annual sales and many businesses trust it to power mission-critical eCommerce applications.
The long answer: It depends. Specifically, it depends on your business, on your budget, on your long-term plans, and maybe even your personality. Drupal could power any eCommerce website, and do it well. But is it the best choice for your particular situation?
What makes Drupal good for eCommerce?Let’s assume the table stakes for a functioning eCommerce store. Shopping cart, products, variations, order management, shipping integrations, payment gateway connections, and all the stuff you’ll see advertised on every SaaS commerce platform. Out of the box, Drupal Commerce provides all of this functionality and implements it in a stable, secure way.
But since Drupal Commerce is built on top of Drupal, you get so much more.
Read more
My blog turns 20 today!
I have been at this for two decades now, yet I still don't identify as a blogger. It feels awkward to say the words: I am a blogger.
Probably because I started writing to think out loud. I never set out to be a blogger. And honestly, I still feel like I'm figuring the whole thing out.
My history with blogging actually goes back 25 years. Before this site, I started Drop.org, where I shared ideas and experimented with emerging web technologies. Drop.org eventually led me to create Drupal. Drupal 1.0 even included a feature called "public diaries". We didn't call it "blogging" back then, but that is what it was.
The irony was that Drupal was powering personal blogs around the world, while my own site was still a few static HTML files.
At DrupalCon Amsterdam in 2005, Steven Wittens called me out on it. Steven was the number two in Drupal at the time. He proposed a bet: if I did not launch a Drupal-powered site before January 1, 2006, I would owe him a Duvel. If I did, he would owe me one.
I wrote my first post on December 31, 2005 with less than a day to spare. I don't remember if I ever collected that Duvel, but I haven't stopped writing.
In the early years, I would post short thoughts on a whim. Social media did not exist yet, so there was almost nothing between a thought and my Publish button. Today, those quick thoughts often end up on social media instead, although I have mostly stepped away from it. More people read what I write now, so a new post can take me hours instead of minutes.
I removed analytics from my site long ago. I do not want to write for page views, nor do I want to invade your privacy. My site aspires to the privacy of a physical book.
I write to discover and connect with people. But one thing has never changed: I am a terrible judge of what will connect. The posts I polish the longest often get little attention, while the ones I nearly talk myself out of publishing are the ones people share. I have stopped trying to explain this, but it reminds me that I do not get to decide what matters to others. Maybe the polishing takes something away. Maybe the risky ones carry an honesty that others can feel.
I love that writing in public has a way of keeping you honest. Ideas that seem solid in my head can fall apart the moment I try to explain them. I have changed my mind more than once simply by trying to put my thoughts into words.
But the writing is only half of it. The best part happens after you press publish.
Blogging starts conversations with people I have never met. Blog posts become invitations that never expire. They wait patiently for the right moment to be found. Someone reads an old post, reaches out, and suddenly we are talking. Even in person, conversations start more easily because people already have a sense of who I am or what I care about.
My attention to this blog has gone up and down over the years. Work pulled me away. Travel pulled me away. But I always come back. Writing in public gives me something I do not get anywhere else.
It is strange to think this all traces back to that Duvel bet. My site still runs Drupal of course, which must make it one of the oldest Drupal-powered sites.
Some of you have been reading since the beginning. Many found your way here much later. I am grateful for all of you. Thank you for making this feel like a conversation instead of a monologue.
I plan to keep writing here as long as I can. If you have been reading for a while, I would love to hear from you. Even a simple hello means a lot.
Salesforce had an embarrassing moment last week.
Vivint uses Salesforce's Agentforce to send satisfaction surveys after customer service calls. Recently they discovered surveys were randomly not being sent and no one noticed for weeks.
When Salesforce investigated this problem, they found the root cause: their AI agents were skipping steps. A sobering discovery for a company betting its future on those agents.
What is most telling is how Salesforce is responding. They are not rushing to build smarter AI models. They added more structure and guardrails around the agents. More workflow, not more magic.
And that is the right answer. I actually wrote about this months ago in The Orchestration Shift:
The future will likely require both: deterministic workflows for reliability and consistency, combined with AI-driven decision-making for flexibility and intelligence.
Salesforce learned it the hard way.
This is exactly why I've been paying attention to external workflow automation platforms like n8n and Activepieces. They let you control which steps are deterministic and which steps use AI. Internal automation solutions like Drupal's Event-Condition-Action module work on similar principles.
Using Activepieces or n8n, the Vivint workflow would look like this: the customer service call ends, AI analyzes the transcript and personalizes the survey message, then the automation platform sends the email. The AI does what it is good at and the automation platform ensures the send happens every time.
Which brings us to the first big question: is AI's reliability problem temporary or permanent? If it is only temporary, orchestration tools may be a bridge solution. But if reliability limits are inherent, workflows become essential infrastructure. I believe the latter.
LLMs are probabilistic by design, which means everything that can be deterministic probably should be.
Two architectural approaches are emerging for solving this problem.
The first is outside in. Workflow platforms like n8n or Activepieces put a deterministic process in control and use AI for specific steps within it. The workflow decides when to invoke the AI, what to do with its output, and what happens if it fails. Outside in is more reliable and auditable. If the AI fails or returns something unexpected, the workflow catches it. You can see exactly what happened and why. But it is less flexible because you are limited to what the workflow designer anticipated.
The second approach is inside out. AI agents call deterministic tools as part of their operation. The AI is in control, but when it needs to do something that requires precision, it hands that task to a tool that executes reliably. This is what Anthropic's Claude Code does, for example. When Claude Code needs to verify that code compiles, it does not guess. It calls an actual compiler. Inside out is more adaptive. You describe what you want and the AI figures out how. But it is harder to audit and debug, harder to explain to regulators, and more expensive at scale since the AI is invoked at every step.
It feels intuitive that both approaches will coexist. They are nested. Picture three layers. The outer layer is the enterprise workflow. It decides what happens and in what order. The middle layer is an AI step. It makes judgment calls within each step. The inner layer is deterministic tools. They execute precisely when the AI calls them.
Not everyone needs all three layers. For certain tasks, like writing software, inside out is enough. But for complex enterprise workflows with many steps, integrations, business rules, and audit requirements, you need the outer layer.
That is where workflow automation platforms come in. They do not need to power every AI use case. They need to win the complex workflows where enterprises need visibility and control. That is also where a lot of commercial value will accrue. Enterprises pay for reliability and accountability.
We are still early in the age of AI agents. The temptation is to believe that intelligence alone will replace structure. But enterprises cannot gamble processes that touch customers, revenue, or compliance. They need systems where every step is accountable. That is why non-deterministic workflows matter. It is where reliability and intelligence meet and where the next generation of enterprise platforms will be built.
And when infrastructure becomes essential, organizations want to own it, not rent it. That is why Linux won servers and PostgreSQL won databases. If the orchestration layer becomes essential to enterprise AI, open source will be the natural choice. Activepieces is open source and n8n is "source available" (the code can be inspected but has commercial restrictions). Either way, I would love to see them succeed.
Indexing document content in Drupal enables users to search within PDF and Word files, making document libraries more accessible and discoverable. Search API Attachments combined with Apache Solr provides a powerful solution for extracting and indexing text from uploaded documents.
In the video above, you'll learn how to set up document thumbnails for PDFs and Word files, install and configure Search API with Search API Attachments, set up Apache Solr locally using DDEV, configure Solr's built-in extractor for document content, and create search views with faceted filtering.
Today we are talking about Webhaven.io, What it is, and How it helps build Drupal faster with guest Fons Vandamme. We'll also cover Metatag Simple Widget as our module of the week.
For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/534
TopicsFons Vandamme - webhaven.io f0ns
HostsNic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan John Picozzi - epam.com johnpicozzi Martin Anderson-Clutz - mandclu.com mandclu
MOTW CorrespondentMartin Anderson-Clutz - mandclu.com mandclu
I also wanted to give a shout out to the Drupal.org Infrastructure Working Group. In the lead-up to this recording there was a media server failure that brought down the entire site. They worked as furiously as Santa's elves and were able to quickly get the site back up. It was a reminder for me of how much we all (and this segment in particular) depend on the tireless work they do. In this season of giving please consider supporting the Drupal Association, and if you already do, maybe see if you could give a little more.
Dear Readers,
This issue marks the conclusion of Volume 3 of Editor’s Pick and the final newsletter of the year. As we close 2025, we would like to express our sincere appreciation to everyone who has followed The DropTimes, engaged with our work, and trusted us as a source of record for the Drupal ecosystem.
Over the past year, The DropTimes has continued its effort to document Drupal as more than a technology. Through news, interviews, events, case studies, and curated updates, we have focused on capturing the people, contributions, and decisions that collectively shape the community. Our work is guided by the belief that visibility, continuity, and context are essential for any open-source ecosystem to remain healthy and sustainable.
As a not-for-profit, community-driven initiative, our responsibility goes beyond publishing content. We see The DropTimes as part of the ecosystem it covers, with a duty to support makers, amplify meaningful work, and encourage shared responsibility. This perspective informs our editorial choices and reinforces our commitment to independence, fairness, and long-term relevance.
In 2026, we will continue to build on this foundation with sharper editorial focus, improved processes, and deeper engagement with the community we serve. Your feedback plays an important role in shaping this work, and we welcome your thoughts at editor@thedroptimes.com
Thank you for being part of this journey, and we look forward to continuing it with renewed purpose in the year ahead. With that, for one last time in 2025, let's spotlight the key stories form last week.
DISCOVER DRUPAL
We acknowledge that there are more stories to share. However, due to selection constraints, we must pause further exploration for now. To get timely updates, follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Bluesky, and Facebook. You can also join us on Drupal Slack at #thedroptimes.
Thank you.
Alka Elizabeth
Sub-editor
The DropTimes
We’ve developed a huge platform for over half a decade to host the official sites of the United Nations’ member countries, and we’ve never really posted about it. It’s 170 Microsites, built on top of a single code base and database. Having the word “Micro” before Microsites is really stretching the definition. There’s nothing micro about them. Head over to your favorite UN member country to see it in action. Here are a few completely random ones:
This post is a reflection of why we always try to avoid such architecture, and why we almost always still end up going with that level of effort; how much it should cost (less than having 140 independent sites); the common pitfalls we’ve gathered over the years (many).
What are MicrositesMicrosites are sites that share the same structure and purpose, usually under one organization, but are meant to serve different branches, offices, or audiences. They can have their own content, languages, and editors, and sometimes even a different look. In a setup like the UN’s, each country office site is technically similar, but each is managed by a different local team, with its own priorities and style. They’re independent enough to feel separate, yet still connected through a shared foundation.
The term “microsite” is misleading. Once you have hundreds of them, each with custom permissions, content, and translations, there’s nothing “micro” left about it. It’s a big system pretending to be many small ones.
The Options - From Worse To BadNone of these options are easy. Microsites are the kind of problem where every path feels wrong; you just choose which pain you can live with.
On October 5, 2023, the W3C published WCAG 2.2 as an official web standard. While WCAG 2.1 remains valid and widely referenced, WCAG 2.2 introduces nine new success criteria and removes one obsolete requirement. These changes reflect a deeper understanding of mobile accessibility, cognitive disabilities, and focus management.
The Legal LandscapeAdoption of WCAG 2.2 varies by jurisdiction:
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