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Joomla! is a free and open source Content Management System (CMS) that allows you to build Web sites without any previous programming experience.The easy to use interface along with its extensions have made it into one of the most desired and popular programs for starting up a website. It is designed to be easy to install and setup even if you have basic computer knowledge, some Web hosting services offer one-click installs so it can take only a few minutes to get a site on it's feet. If you want to create a fast website for a client, it is very easy to explain to your client a few basic instructions and he will be able to maintain and improve the website on his own. 

 Image           Drupal is also a free and open source CMS but is considered to be less user friendly, requiring a lot more time and experience to become acquainted with. Administrator menu was hard to use in the early version but has improved as new versions launched. After you get used to it offers more flexibility and power than other CMS’s out there. Drupal  is used more in the corporate and large business environment whilst Joomla! is better suited for small ventures and entry level users.

 


1. Requirements

    Both Joomla! and Drupal require a web server and a database to run, their size averages between 3MBto 40MB with all themes and modules, excluding content in the database. Neither are difficult to install and come with detailed guides and support from their communities.


2. Security

    Joomla! as most open source software comes with a dedicated community that offers updates and fixes as soon as problems arise, a responsible administrator should have no security issues while using Joomla!.  Using up to date extensions and configuring your website properly will guarantee a secure website.


    Drupal users should subscribe to the security mailing list in order to keep up to date with security advisories. Most of the cases exploits are found and fixed even before they can compromise any live website. Drupal core in itself, due to the work of its security team and user feedback, has a very good track record regarding security, more than 90% of vulnerabilities being caused by custom, user made, modules and themes.



3. Extensions

    Joomla! extension directory offers over 7000 extensions for Joomla!, from basic modules to complex components that configure your website allowing for endless possibilities.


    Extensions come free or with purchase depending on what they offer. A proffesionall  Joomla! component or template can cost hundreds of dollars but some offer them for free, either way you can find a solution for any type of project from the thousands of Joomla! developers. They are easy to install and you can find components that come with modules and themes in one package making Joomla! ideal if you want to start a  business website with one piece of software.

    Drupal also offers an astounding number of extensions, with thousands of modules and themes making it a worthy foe for Joomla! in the extension market. Drupal is also very good at content management and user permissions, allowing it to perform tasks that would otherwise require additional extensions.


4. eCommerce

    Virtuemart (Joomla): the Joomla shopping cart solution is capable of live credit card processing, predefined payment gateways (paypal, 2checkout), currency conversions using live rates, shop statistics, stock level, product attributes and many more. It has a powerful web administration interface powered by Javascript and can manage an unlimited number of products and categories. It can also handle downloadable products (software). Quick search for products, categories and manufacturers. Virtuemart also has multiple languages if used with Joom!fish or Nooku.


    Ubercart (Drupal):  the Drupal solution is designed to be modified without much effort, all you need is to enable a module and configure it. It has a configurable product catalog, flexible product creation system, attributes system, single page checkout, automatic account generation, activity logging and XML import/export.



5. Language

    Joomla! is shipped with multiple languages in the installation menu but language packs for the site and administration area, other than English, must be installed after, this is because including all languages in the installation kit would make the kit too large in size.


    For multi-lingual content Joomla! has the free Joom!Fish extension which offers control over translations.

    Drupal has 2 core modules that handle translation. Locale Module is for interface elements (like ‘log in’ or ‘submit’) and a Content translation module which translates site content (articles, news). Guides for enabling and configuring these modules can be found on the official page of Drupal.


  

6. Blogging

    The Joomla! community offers many fully configured blogging extensions that may cost money or not, but you can also create a blog by using multiple free independent solutions along with the core Joomla! options.


    Drupal comes with a core blogging module that allows multiple blogs on one site, for every single user. Also you can use it a single blog website which after properly configured will also offer you RSS feeds and an image gallery. Further expansion can be done with the use of other modules.



7. RSS Feeds


    Joomla! comes with built-in RSS feed but is limited to the frontpage and one category, however you can install RSS components that send feed about everything on your website, like VirtueMart or other components.



    One of Drupals best feature is the fact that is can generate a lot of RSS feeds. You can control the items in your feed and their content. You can create feeds for every category on your website. You can create feeds by using the views module. Drupal even allows you to create a podcast although it is a bit limited.




8. Templates

    Joomla! lacks nothing when it comes to templates, you can download thousands from the Internet for free or at low cost. Joomla! comes with 3 default templates: Milky Way,  Beez and JA purity which you can easily select from the back end menu. Creating a new template from scratch is also possible.


    Drupal allows you to change the appearance on a single page, type of content or section of your website. For example you can use a template on just the front page. Themes from Joomla! or WordPress can also be ported and used with Drupal.




9. Multisite

    Joomla! doesn’t support multiple sites on one installation by default but there are components that overcome this limitation.


    Drupal can run multiple websites with one installation out of the box, you can use core code, modules and themes from a single installation on several sites. This is great because it upgrades the code for all sites in a single run. The only drawback may be security if there are multiple administrators.



10. Updates

    Joomla! updating joomla manually can be quite a handful for inexperienced users or if you run multiple sites that require updates but the Joomla! community offers free software that automatically updates your Joomla! installation without any hassle. With the release of 1.6 Joomla! comes with this out of the box.

    Updating Drupal manually is also quite time consuming but the community offers plenty of guides and help if you run into trouble.


    In conclusion, both CMSs are well developed and have many people offering support, both are free and open source, both have thousand of extensions available and are updated constantly. Joomla! comes with an easier to use interface suited for people on the run that don’t have time to learn a CMS from top to bottom, it allows you to build a website in a few hours with no coding knowledge at all. Drupal on the other hand needs more time at first but in the end is more powerful and is also used for some high profile website like mtv.co.uk and whitehouse.gov

For Joomla Extenions please check out our extension list on our website.