[DDN] Free Drupal CMS (and other tools) for nonprofits

[Chris Ward]

Quick question, you wrote that the Salsa platform is free, is this true? 
I see that it is available only at a price. Please inform me of where I 
could retrieve a copy. Thanks.

-Chris

Dave Chakrabarti wrote:
> Hi fellow DDNers,
>
> It's been a while since I posted (my apologies) since I've been  
> fairly swamped with my new position at Grassroots.org.
>
> I thought I'd send a note to let you know what we've been working on.  
> Grassroots.org is developing a nonprofit toolbox that will include a  
> growing number of technology tools for every nonprofit, everywhere in  
> the world, for free...but we need you to take five minutes and vote  
> for the project, if you think it's cool :) I'd also welcome any and  
> all feedback on the project...what tools would you like to see in the  
> toolbox? What would be pointless? Which tools are a real pain for you  
> guys to host on your own?
>
> Some of our planned tools will be Drupal-based, and others will  
> include EGroupware, Democracy In Action's Salsa platform (integrated  
> with Drupal, for online Moveon.org-style campaigns), free first-year  
> domain registrations, and free telephone consulting on topics like  
> search engine optimization for nonprofits. Partners include MAIN.org,  
> the Chicago Technology Cooperative, and Democracy in Action, along  
> with a couple of for-profits.
>
> Of course, a lot of this stuff is free already (Drupal, Salsa, and  
> EGroupware are all open source, for example). So why aren't more  
> organizations using them? We think that if offer them to  
> organizations, hosted for free, with a comprehensive support and  
> training system (including screencasts and guides), it'll make a huge  
> difference in how nonprofits engage the internet. It seems like a  
> small thing, but most organizations *really* need a screencast on  
> "how to create a Drupal page" or "how to name your new page  
> intelligently" ...not "how to install and upgrade your uber-powerful  
> tech platform". And I mean really "hosted" by the way...not as a  
> subdomain or as part of another site, but a true hosted nonprofit CMS  
> site, with a unique domain name, minus the geek stuff.
>
> And I really meant the "anywhere in the world" bit, too...this isn't  
> a US-only venture.
>
> We're up for the NetSquared innovation fund that Michael Maranda  
> posted about earlier...it's a somewhat unique system where the  
> community votes for projects they like. If you think this project  
> pitch sounds useful, it would help us a ton if you could visit http:// 
> www.netsquared.org/projects/vote and register / vote. Registration  
> takes five minutes (seriously, it's a Drupal site), and votes are due  
> this Saturday, April 14th.
>
> And of course, all comments and feedback are welcome. Feel free to  
> hit me on list if it's a discussion relevant to the community, or off- 
> list otherwise.
>
>   Thanks!
>
>      Dave.
>
> ------------------------
> Dave Chakrabarti
> Director of Programs
> Grassroots.org
>
>
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