Before you start

Hi all,

Currently I have a manually built website which uses simple php includes to load the template around the content, pages being built using notepad.

My file structure is simple - at the moment most files are in the main directory, so the URL is in this format (for example):

http://www.tranquillizer.co.uk/martial-arts-chow-gar.html

Now, ideally I should have built a separate directory for "martial arts", but I never got around to doing that. I have the same 'head' and 'header' for each page, and the 'footer' include holds the different parts for each "section". So the /diet-fast-food.html has a different footer to the Chow Gar page.

So, can I set up Drupal so that:

1. The site is more or less in the same style - i.e. 3 columns etc.
2. Can I keep the same URL's?
3. Other than copying and pasting each page into the Drupal CMS, would there be any other way of dumping / loading up all my .html files?

My only reason for the moment of moving to a CMS is to easily be able to:

1. add user comments to each page
2. produce an RSS feed for the whole site.

Currently I have a couple of blogs on the site too, which are published using Blogger. If I moved the blogs to Drupal, could I keep those URLs, e.g. http://www.tranquillizer.co.uk/articles/2007/05/health-benefits-of-regul...

I have been testing both drupal and drupaled for use as a schoolwebsite. I'd like to know if it's possible to have students upload files in a personal file area. Each student should only be able to access it's own files. A teacher should be able to access all files submitted by his students.

So far I've looked at the upload module / user roles / taxonomy based access. What is the best solution?

I have a close friend of mine who I am doing a web site for. I do quite a bit of web development, but this is the first time I have really looked into a CMS. Essentially what my friend needs is a "reps only" section of her website. This section would be restricted to users whom she would enter into the CMS system. Anyone who does not have a user name or password will have access to nothing.

This reps only section would consist of several pieces that would be updated semi-regularly. I.E.- General information (with several sub pages), Tips and Tricks (which again would have several sub pages), FAQ, etc. Any of these pages would be viewable by any user with a valid username/password, but only editable by her. Preferably, the editor would have rich text editing, easily add bullets, colors, etc ala TinyMCE. She would also like to have sections that only specific users, or groups would have access to.

Finally, and this is what drew me to Drupal, she wants to have a forum for her reps, which it appears Drupal has built in. So the cliffs notes of what I need:

1) Only authorized users can VIEW pages.
2) These authorized user accounts set up by the administrator only.
3) Ability to create an easy to navigate hierarchy of somewhat static pages (not the article/date setup that most blogs use, but more like a standard website).

Security and support are the issues I'm having with Mambo. My site keeps getting hacked and my host says its probably Mambo. But he cannot prove or pinpoint it either.

So, I'm looking to switch to Joomla which is basically the same so I know how to use it, and can possibly import my database. However, I'm having some issues and after posting several questions to their forum I don't get any reponses.

So, I'd like a system that provides good security and just as important help when needed. Does this forum actually answer questions when asked?

We're looking at Drupal on Apache and need to integrate with our corporate web access control system based on CA Siteminder. Is there a way to get Drupal to use the credentials that Apache gets from Siteminder (via a mod) and both 1) auto create users in Drupal and 2) log them in using the credentials from Apache/Siteminder?

I know next to nothing about HTML code, and am trying to make a website. I am however, an above average internet user and am willing to learn. The website I am trying to make needs to be able to have
-users creating basic account pages where they can enter information about themselves in several text fields
-users to comment on other users pages
-a way for users to search through the text fields including "less than" or "greater than" or "around the same as" (for example searching "number of pets" greater than/less than/around the same as 3)