In this episode, Ivan Stegic and Randy Oest discuss the impact of AI on junior developers and other roles, debating whether AI will be a disruptive force in the job market. They delve into the complexities of using LinkedIn for job hunting and effective networking strategies. The conversation shifts to new features in Figma, the potential of AI-driven coding tools like Cursor, and the importance of investing in junior developers. They also explore higher education design systems, innovative business strategies, and reflect on the balance between tactical and digital controls in modern cars. The episode wraps up with a light-hearted chat about slang, parental roles, and mentorship.

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/cafe004

Ivan is a prominent leader in the Drupal community and the founder of TEN7, a Minneapolis-based technology studio specializing in Drupal development, strategy, and digital transformation. With a background in physics and a passion for problem-solving, Ivan transitioned from science to tech, ultimately finding a perfect fit in the open-source world of Drupal. Since founding TEN7 in 2007, Ivan has championed Drupal as a powerful, scalable platform for mission-driven organizations, nonprofits, and enterprises. Under his leadership, TEN7 has delivered impactful Drupal solutions for clients across education, healthcare, and government sectors. Ivan is also known for fostering a people-first company culture grounded in trust, transparency, and continuous improvement. Beyond his work at TEN7, Ivan is an active contributor to the Drupal project, frequently speaking at DrupalCons and camps, hosting the ONE OF 8 BILLION podcast (formerly the TEN7 Podcast), and mentoring others in the community. His advocacy for open source and ethical tech underscores his commitment to using Drupal to make the internet—and the world—a better place.

Randy is a design strategist, creative director, and accessibility advocate helping mission-driven organizations craft inclusive, user-centered digital experiences. With a background that spans visual design, front-end development, and content strategy, Randy specializes in building scalable design systems and digital platforms—particularly within the Drupal ecosystem. As the former Creative Director at Four Kitchens, Randy led cross-functional teams in developing cohesive design strategies, architecting front-end systems, and aligning user experience with organizational goals. He’s known for bridging the gap between high-level vision and implementation, ensuring that every project is both beautiful and deeply usable. Beyond his client work, Randy is a frequent speaker at DrupalCon, regional camps, and virtual events, where he shares insights on accessibility, usability, and design systems. A passionate advocate for open-source collaboration and digital equity, he is committed to making the web a more inclusive and empowering space for everyone.

• Debunking AI Myths: Junior Developers Are Here to Stay
• Casual Catch-Up: Podcast Conversations and AI Avatars
• LinkedIn: A Wasteland or a Goldmine?
• Creative Networking: From Fortune Tellers to Meaningful Connections
• Figma Innovations: Draw and Sites
• The Future of Coding: AI Tools and Junior Developers
• Flying Cars and Spam Texts
• Dealing with Spam Texts
• Exploring Higher Education Design Systems
• The Onion's Creative Agency
• The Importance of Tactile Controls in Cars
• Wrapping Up and Future Plans

Ivan Stegic - TEN7 ivanstegic Randy Oest - amazingrando.com amazingrando

Today we are talking about Automated Testing Kit demo Recipe, Why Automated Testing is important, and How this recipe helps with guest André Angelantoni. We’ll also cover Taxonomy Views Integrator as our module of the week.

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/506

• What is Automated Testing Kit
• Features and benefits of Automated Testing Kit
• Cypress vs Playwright
• Where should these run
• Automated Testing Kit recipe
• Demo configuration
• Installing and setting up the Kit
• Using this on an existing site
• Managing tests and repositories
• Building and using recipes
• Debugging and troubleshooting tests
• Roadmap

• Automated Testing Kit Demo Recipe
• Automated Testing Kit
• Documentation
  • https://performantlabs.com/automated-testing-kit/automated-testing-kit
  • https://performantlabs.com/testor/introduction
• Thread on nightwatch replacement
• Testor
• Automated Testing Kit Intro Video
• Automated Testing Kit Philosophy
• Recipes list
• Testery
• Testiny
• Code generators
• Drupal forge

André Angelantoni - drupal.org/project/automated_testing_kit aangel

Nic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan John Picozzi - epam.com johnpicozzi Norah Medlin - tekNorah

Martin Anderson-Clutz - mandclu.com mandclu

• Brief description:
  • Have you ever wanted to customize the taxonomy display view for a specific vocabulary, or even a specific taxonomy term? There’s a module for that.
• Module name/project name:
  • Taxonomy Views Integrator
• Brief history
  • How old: created in Sep 2009 by Derek Webb (derekwebb1) though the most recent release was made by Kevin Quillen, who was a guest on the podcast in episodes 406 and 500
  • Versions available: 2.0.0 which works with Drupal 8, 9, 10, and 11
• Maintainership
  • Actively maintained
  • Security coverage
  • Test coverage
  • Documentation
  • Number of open issues: 13 open issues, 4 of which are bugs against the 2.0.x branch
• Usage stats:
  • 24,130 sites
• Module features and usage
  • After enabling this module, when you edit a vocabulary or a taxonomy term, users with the necessary permissions will see an option to specify a view to show tagged content, and you can also choose which display to use
  • You can create a new view from scratch, or clone the taxonomy/term/* view provided by core, or a view defined in code. Obvious it’s critical for the view to have a contextual filter for a taxonomy term
  • Using this module could allow you to customize the presentation on a view page, for example to make the exposed filters more relevant, or even to split out the content, for example if you wanted to list only news in the main display, and have events and blog posts listed separately in attachments
  • I found this module really helpful during some recent work on the Drupal Event Platform, so I thought I would share it with our listeners

Today we are talking about the Custom Field Module, what it does, and why you might want to use it with guest Andy Marquis. We’ll also cover Facet Bot Blocker as our module of the week.

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/505

• Meet the Guest: Andy Marquee
• Module of the Week: Facet Bot Blocker
• Exploring the Custom Field Module
• Benefits and Use Cases of Custom Field Module
• Custom Field Module vs. Other Solutions
• Advanced Features and Integrations
• Reflecting on Past Projects and Key Value
• Use Cases and Flexibility of Custom Fields
• Advanced Features and Integrations
• Challenges and Limitations
• Future Roadmap and Improvements

Custom Field Module

Andy Marquis - drupal.org/project/custom_field apmsooner

Nic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan John Picozzi - epam.com johnpicozzi Norah Medlin - tekNorah

Martin Anderson-Clutz - mandclu.com mandclu

• Brief description:
  • Have you been looking for an inexpensive way to mitigate an upsurge of bot traffic on your Drupal site’s faceted search pages? There’s a module for that
• Module name/project name:
  • Facet Bot Blocker
• Brief history
  • How old: created in Mar 2025, so about two months ago, by John Brandenburg (bburg) of Forum One
  • Versions available: 1.0.2 which support Drupal 10 and 11
• Maintainership
  • Actively maintained
  • Security coverage
  • Number of open issues: 4 open issues, one of which is a bug, but it did have a fix merged 4 days ago
• Usage stats:
  • 106 sites
• Module features and usage
  • A number of sites are seeing a huge upswing in bot traffic, and quite often a big part of that bot traffic is on one or more pages with faceted search
  • Crawlers try to request every permutation of every possible combination of facets. If your page has multiple facets, and in particular facets that accept multiple values, the number of permutations becomes huge
  • Facet Bot Blocker works by allowing you to set a maximum number of facet requests to allow, what error to return, and a custom HTML message to return to blocked user agents
  • If you have Memcache or Redis available, it’s recommended to use the appropriate module, and Facet Bot Blocker will automatically store its settings there for reduced database reads
  • The project page is also clear that if you are able to use a true Web Application Firewall (like Cloudflare or Akamai), that would be a better strategy. But if you don’t have one available, Facet Bot Blocker can help to mitigate the surges in bot traffic that are causing problems for many Drupal sites, particularly those hosted on platforms that charge based on usage

In this episode, Mike Anello and Mike Herchel dive into a casual conversation covering a wide array of topics. They start by discussing the concept of a podcast with almost no effort required and the mystery of Stephen's involvement. The conversation then quickly shifts to Florida Drupal Camp, mentioning its impressive 16 uninterrupted years, the increase in attendees, and how fun it is. They touch upon single directory components in Drupal, their importance, and intricacies like CSS styling, schemas, and Experience Builder. The discussion also includes insights into popular Drupal events like Florida Drupal Camp, Drupal Dev Days, and the upcoming DrupalCon. They infuse humor and personal anecdotes while engaging in thoughtful technical exchanges and playful banter.

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/cafe003

Mike, widely recognized by his Drupal.org username "ultimike," is a prominent figure in the Drupal community with over 15 years of experience as a developer, educator, and community leader. As the co-founder and vice president of DrupalEasy, a Florida-based training and consulting firm, he has been instrumental inshaping the careers of countless Drupal professionals through comprehensive programs like Drupal Career Online and Professional Module Development .

Anello's contributions extend beyond education. He has been deeply involved in the Drupal ecosystem, serving as a core contributor to the Migrate module, co-maintaining several contributed modules, and actively participating in issue queues and documentation efforts . His leadership roles include membership in the Drupal Community Working Group and the Conflict Resolution Team, as well as organizing the Florida Drupal Users' Group and Florida DrupalCamp for over a decade.

As the host of the long-running DrupalEasy Podcast, Anello provides insights into Drupal development, community news, and interviews with key contributors, fostering a sense of connection and ongoing learning within the community (DrupalEasy). His dedication to mentoring and community building has made him a respected and influential voice in the Drupal world.

Mike is a seasoned front-end developer and a prominent contributor to the Drupal community, with over 15 years of experience in web development. He is best known as the lead developer of Olivero, Drupal's default front-end theme, which emphasizes accessibility, modern design, and user experience. (ImageX) In addition to his work on Olivero, Mike serves as a core CSS maintainer for Drupal and is the creator of the Quicklink module, which enhances site performance by preloading links in the user's viewport. He also has amazing calves. They're the size of small children. Rumor has it that his vertical jump is over 4.5 inches! He has also contributed to the introduction of Single Directory Components (SDC) into Drupal core, aiming to streamline component-based theming. 

Beyond his technical contributions, Mike is an active community leader. He has served on the Drupal Association Board of Directors and is a primary organizer of Florida DrupalCamp. (Drupal) As a speaker, he has presented at various events, including EvolveDrupal, discussing topics like the future of Drupal theming and the Starshot initiative, which seeks to make Drupal more accessible to site builders. 

Professionally, Mike works as a Senior Front-End Developer at Agileana, where he continues to advocate for accessibility, performance, and the open web.  He shares his insights and experiences through his personal blog at herchel.com, contributing to the ongoing evolution of Drupal and its community.

Discussion Topics:

• The Best Podcast Idea Ever
• Florida Drupal Camp: A Legacy of Success
• Single Directory Components: Getting Started
• TD Cafe: The Podcast Name Debate
• Deep Dive into Single Directory Components
• Experience Builder and Component Integration
• Custom Themes and Single Directory Components
• Design Tool Integration
• CSS Variables and Component Architecture
• Template File vs Render Array
• CSS Preferences: Plain CSS vs Post CSS
• Top Drupal Events
• Concluding Remarks and Personal Plans

Mike Anello - DupalEasy ultimike

Mike Herchel - herchel.com mherchel

In this episode of Talking Drupal, we dive into the intricacies of the Drupal marketplace initiative with our guest, Tiffany Farriss, CEO and co-owner of Palantir.net and long-time board member of the Drupal Association. We explore the goals and challenges of creating a trusted Drupal marketplace, discuss how site templates can lower the barrier to entry for new users, and examine the importance of maintaining community trust and the sustainability of Drupal. This episode also includes a spotlight on the Views CSV Source module and an in-depth discussion on community feedback, the potential value and business models for site templates, and the steps needed to make a go/no-go decision on the marketplace by the upcoming Vienna event.

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/504

• Meet Our Guest: Tiffany Farriss
• Module of the Week: Views CSV Source
• Deep Dive into Views CSV Source
• Introduction to the Drupal Marketplace
• Goals and Challenges of the Marketplace Working Group
• Community Feedback and Sustainability
• Monetization and Fairness in the Marketplace
• Risk Mitigation and Future Plans
• Exploring the Impact of Releases and Usage
• Challenges and Successes of the Drupal Marketplace
• Defining the MVP for the Drupal Marketplace
• Addressing Community Concerns and Governance
• Engaging the Community and Next Steps
• Final Thoughts and Contact Information

Marketplace initiative

Tiffany Farriss - palantir.net farriss

Nic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan John Picozzi - epam.com johnpicozzi Norah Medlin - tekNorah

Martin Anderson-Clutz - mandclu.com mandclu

• Brief description:
  • Have you ever wanted to present data within your Drupal website that comes from a CSV flat file, without having to import that data to your Drupal database? There’s a module for that.
• Module name/project name:
  • Views CSV Source
• Brief history
  • How old: created in March 2024 by Daniel Cothran (andileco) of JSI, though I met Danieal at Midcamp earlier this week and he was emphatic that his colleague and co-maintainer Nia Kathoni (nikathone) deserves significant credit
  • Versions available: 1.0.11, which works with Drupal 8.8, 9, 10, and 11
• Maintainership
  • Actively maintained, latest release was last month
  • Security coverage
  • Test coverage
  • Documentation - a robust README
  • Number of open issues: 4 open issues, none of which are bugs
• Usage stats:
  • 56 sites
• Module features and usage
  • With Views CSV Source installed, you can create a view that uses a CSV as a source instead of the Drupal site’s data. You can point to a file within your site’s filesystem, or it can be a remotely hosted CSV. If the file requires authentication for access, it is also possible to include encoded credentials in a header.
  • Now you can use CSV Fields to specify the columns you want to pull into the view, and you can use the “group by” to specify datasets to represent, for example to plot as lines in a chart
  • You can also create filters, either a CSV Field that acts a standard text filter, or a CSV Field Options filter that creates a dropdown of all the unique values in a specified column
  • Your assembled data can be shown in tables or charts, and can also be manipulated using standard view configuration, or using contributed modules like Views Simple Math Field
  • The module also comes with sort and a contextual filter plugins
  • It was impressed by a demo of Views CSV Source in a lightning talk at Midcamp yesterday, so I thought it would be fun to talk about today

In this episode, John Picozzi and Jason Pamental explore the connections fostered by using Drupal across different geographies, the evolution of conferences, and how design systems are being utilized at Chewy. We also delve into the application of AI in e-commerce and coding, and discuss the practicalities of maintaining governance in large organizations. Join us for an engaging discussion filled with personal anecdotes, professional insights, and future prospects.

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/503

John Picozzi is the Solutions Architect at EPAM Systems, where he helps organizations implement scalable and sustainable digital solutions—most often using Drupal. With over a decade of experience in web development, John has become a trusted voice in the Drupal community for his commitment to open source, user-centered design, and thoughtful architecture. John is a contributor to Drupal and an active member of the community as the organizer of the Drupal Providence Meetup and New England Drupal Camp. He’s also well known as a co-host of the Talking Drupal podcast, a weekly show focused on all things Drupal, where he interviews community members and shares insights on development, strategy, and community engagement. Outside of podcasting and coding, John frequently speaks at DrupalCamps and conferences across the U.S., offering sessions that span technical deep dives to community and career development topics. You can find more about his work and speaking engagements at picozzi.com, or follow him on Drupal.org

Jason Pamental is a designer, strategist, and technologist specializing in typography, variable fonts, and digital design systems. He is currently Principal Designer at Chewy, where he leads their design system efforts and helps guide their mobile app architecture and strategy. With over 30 years of experience, Jason has worked with organizations such as Adobe, ESPN, Fidelity, and the State of Rhode Island to shape impactful digital experiences. He’s a globally recognized expert in web typography and the author of Responsive Typography. His work has helped define how variable fonts are used on the web today. Jason is a frequent speaker at conferences like Beyond Tellerrand, An Event Apart, and SmashingConf, and he shares his knowledge through writing, teaching, and open source contributions. His articles, presentations, and resources can be found at rwt.io — short for Responsive Web Typography — and many of his talks, videos, and associated resources are available on https://noti.st/jpamental An active supporter of the open web and the Drupal community, Jason is committed to bridging the gap between design and development. Outside of work, he enjoys riding bikes, making espresso, spending time with his family in Rhode Island, and following Leo and Henry around Turner Reservoir, posting photos on Instagram.

John Picozzi - epam.com johnpicozzi

Jason Pamental - rwt.io.

Welcome to the first episode of Talking Drupal Cafe.

Join Martin and Jake as they delve into an insightful conversation exploring the challenges and responsibilities associated with being a module maintainer. Discussing project types, the significance of sandbox modules, the impact of Drupal CMS, and the role of AI tools, they highlight issues around burnout, sustainability, and community support. Discover how the Drupal community can better support maintainers and the importance of continued contributions. This episode also touches on upcoming conferences and the significance of face-to-face interactions in the Drupal community.

Martin is a highly respected figure in the Drupal community, known for his extensive contributions as a developer, speaker, and advocate for open-source innovation. Based in London, Ontario, Canada, Martin began his career as a graphic designer before transitioning into web development. His journey with Drupal started in late 2005 when he was seeking a robust multilingual CMS solution, leading him to embrace Drupal's capabilities. (mandclu.com)

Martin holds the distinction of being the world's first Triple Drupal Grand Master, certified across Drupal 7, 8, and 9 as a Developer, Front-End Specialist, and Back-End Specialist. (TheDropTimes) He also possesses certifications in various Acquia products and is UX certified by the Nielsen Norman Group. (mandclu.com)

Currently serving as a Senior Solutions Engineer at Acquia, Martin has been instrumental in advancing Drupal's ecosystem. He has developed and maintains several contributed modules, including Smart Date and Search Overrides, and has been actively involved in the Drupal Recipes initiative, particularly focusing on event management solutions. (mandclu.com) His current work on the Event Platform aims to streamline the creation and management of event-based websites within Drupal. (TheDropTimes)

Beyond development, Martin is a prominent speaker and educator, having presented at numerous Drupal events such as DrupalCon Barcelona and EvolveDrupal. He is also a co-host of the "Talking Drupal" podcast, where he leads the "Module of the Week" segment, sharing insights on various Drupal modules. (mandclu.com) Martin's dedication to the Drupal community is evident through his continuous efforts to mentor, innovate, and promote best practices within the open-source landscape.(TheDropTimes)

Jacob is a prominent figure in the Drupal community, best known for developing and maintaining the Webform module—one of the most widely used and feature-rich form-building tools in the Drupal ecosystem. His work has significantly enhanced Drupal's capabilities in form creation, data collection, and user interaction.

Rockowitz began his Drupal journey while working as a consultant for Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), where he spent over 18 years. Facing the need for robust form functionality during MSK's early adoption of Drupal 8, he created YAML Form, which later evolved into the Webform module for Drupal 8 . This module has since become integral to many Drupal sites, offering extensive features for form management.(design4drupal.org)

Beyond Webform, Jacob has contributed to other projects like the Schema.org Blueprints module, aiming to improve structured content modeling in Drupal. He is also an advocate for open-source sustainability, often discussing the importance of community involvement and the challenges of maintaining large-scale open-source projects .(talkingdrupal.com, jrockowitz.com)

As an active member of the Drupal community, Rockowitz frequently speaks at events such as DrupalCon and New England Drupal Camp, sharing his insights on module development and community engagement . He maintains a personal blog at jrockowitz.com, where he writes about his experiences and thoughts on Drupal development.(Drupal)

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/502

• Introduction to Project Maintenance
• Types of Projects and Their Significance
• Sandbox Modules and Work Projects
• Passion Projects and Inherited Projects
• Challenges in Managing Multiple Modules
• The Role of Recipes in Project Management
• AI and Automation in Project Maintenance
• The Future of Project Maintenance and Contributions
• Evolving Drupal and Community Contributions
• Enterprise Features and the Trash Module
• Marketplace and Site Templates
• AI and the Future of Web Development
• Contribution Credits and Bounties
• Guiding Users and Module Selection
• Drupal Adjacent Solutions
• Sustainability of Contribution
• The Importance of Community Engagement

Martin Anderson-Clutz - mandclu.com mandclu Jacob Rockowitz - jrockowitz.com jrockowitz

Join us as we celebrate our 500th episode with Drupal founder Dries Buytaert! Reflecting on 13 years of our podcast and Drupal's 24-year journey, Dries shares his motivations, strategies, and insights into the future of Drupal. From community contributions and AI strategy to the impact of Drupal on organizations worldwide, this episode is packed with exciting updates and heartfelt reflections.

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/501

• Reflecting on Milestones
• The Urgency Behind Starshot
• Cobwebs

Dries Buytaert - dri.es dries

Nic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan Stephen Cross- @stephencross

Join us for an extraordinary celebration of Talking Drupal's 500th episode! In this milestone episode, we dive into a treasure trove of memories, insights, and updates from an array of special guests. From innovative Drupal contributions to the future of open-source technology, this episode is packed with valuable discussions. Don't miss appearances from notable guests like Dries Buytaert, Tim Doyle, Tim Lehnen, Mike Anello, and many more. Celebrate with us as we look forward to 500 more episodes!

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/500

Guests include, in order of appearance:

• Jason Pamental
• Dries Buytaert
• Tim Doyle
• Tim Lehnen
• Carlos Ospina
• Mayela Jackson
• Mike Anello
• Jonus Cuyvers
• Jacob Rockowitz
• Antonio Estevez
• Norah Medlin
• Kevin Quillen
• Chris Wells
• Steven Jones
• Jürgen Haas
• Thomas Scola
• Chad Hester
• Matt Glaman
• James Abrahams
• Avi Schwab
• Josh Mitchell
• James Shield

Road to deprecating .module files

Nic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan John Picozzi - epam.com johnpicozzi Martin Anderson-Clutz - mandclu.com mandclu Stephen Cross - stephencross

Today we are talking about The Contact Form Initiative, What it is, and how it helped Drupal with guest J. Hogue. We’ll also cover Local Tasks More as our module of the week.

For show notes visit: https://www.talkingDrupal.com/499

• What is the Contact Form initiative
• What makes up the contact form recipe
• Why did you want to run this initiative
• What are the responsibilities of an initiative lead
• Were there any unexpected speed bumps
• Who was involved
• As a non-backend developer, any hesitation to lead this effort
• What was onboarding like
• What was the timeline
• Any tips for others thinking of leading an initiative

J. Hogue - oomphinc.com artinruins

Nic Laflin - nLighteneddevelopment.com nicxvan John Picozzi - epam.com johnpicozzi Kathy Beck - kbeck303

Jacob Rockowitz - jrockowitz.com jrockowitz

• Brief description:
  • Nodes can have too many local tasks. Only the first few, like View, Edit, Layout, Revisions, and Translate, are used daily. Would you like to hide or reorder less commonly used local tasks, which include Usage, Clone, Devel, and Convert. There is a module for that
• Local Tasks More (local_tasks_more)
• Brief history
  • How old: created on November 6th, 2024
  • Versions available: 1.0.0-beta2 r
• Maintainership
  • Actively maintained
  • No security coverage
  • Has test coverage
  • Does not require much documentation
  • No issues
• Usage stats:
  • 22 sites
• Maintainer(s):
  • jrockowitz (me)
  • Module features and usage
  • Enter the base routes that support the show more/less task link and alterations.
  • Enter the local task id and the altered title and weight. Set the local tasks to FALSE to remove it.
  • Enter the number of links to trigger show more/less tasks link/icon from primary and secondary tasks (aka tabs).