Chapter 20. Using the Forum Module

IN THIS CHAPTER

  • Introducing the Forum module

  • Administering forums

  • Controlling the styling of the Forum module

  • Using the active Forum topics block

  • Using the New Forum topics block

Drupal's Forum module creates a threaded discussion functionality, similar to what you see on other discussion or bulletin board sites. Topics are posted. and users can respond to the topics and to each other. Forums not only provide interactivity for your users, but also create a growing body of content for your site.

The Forum module provides a significant amount of functionality, including two system-created blocks. In this chapter, I introduce the Forum module, the various parts of the forum functionality, and the options that are available for styling your forum.

Introducing the Forum Module

The Forum functionality has several parts. The main elements are the containers, forums, forum topics, and posts. Additionally, there are two related blocks for displaying forum topics.

The containers and the forums are the basic organizational elements, with the forum topics and posts supplying the content that is the essence of the threaded discussions. The blocks simply provide easy access to the most recent and active topics.

Figures 20.1 and 20.2 show the Forum module in action. In Figure 20.1, you see the top level of the forum—in this case, a container containing one forum.

Clicking the default Forums option on the Navigation menu displays a list of categories, if any exist.

Figure 20-1. Clicking ...

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