So I've been thinking lately about how teachers need tools that are easier to use. I've thought for a long time that Normal People don't need to learn how to use tools like Dreamweaver or Frontpage (or even NVU, which is at least Open Source and looks like a good tool if you think you want to create static web pages). Now that I've been using Drupal for a while, I'm more convinced that I was right.

I've been teaching my students to use Moodle and having them use it to create courses. Some of them have used it to create portfolios (like this, this. Some have used it to facilitate communication with parents, students and other teachers.

Anyway, I've started using Drupal to create this web site, and wow I can't believe how great it is. I've been here for nearly two years and almost haven't created or updated a web page since I got here. Creating web pages is really a drag, even if you're pretty good at it. Drupal takes care of all of the tedious stuff like navigation, handling versions, and does stuff that you just can't do with stuff like Dreamweaver like allowing one person to create content and somene else to approve it, making the site searchable and a host of other things. If you don't know how to create static web pages, I encourage you not to learn.

I'm convinced that tools like Drupal will soon make tools like Dreamweaver seem as obtuse and unecessary as the DOS dir command. (Personally, I use GNU/Linux command line tools all the time and am highly annoyed by having to use graphical tools to do the same thing, but I am not a Normal Person.