Drupal 6.x Facebook Connect Module (beta 3)

I recently downloaded and installed the latest release of the Facebook Connect module and wrote a brief summary of that experience on Drupal North Carolina.

I won't rehash all of that here, you know how to use a web browser, but I will provide a brief summary for those interested in where this module seems to stand now.

Module Installation Time: 30 minutes to 1 hour+ (plus if you have never created a facebook application before, it's not rocket science but takes time).

Requirements: You'll have to have a facebook account (go figure).

Warnings and Pitfalls

1) The installation documentation is only about a "B-". Check the blog on Drupal North Carolina for a more detailed run down of some of the problems. Also check the issues queue if your installation comes back with errors (as with any module).

2) Creating a facebook application for the first time is a challenge and will vary in difficulty depending on ones familiarity with programming and facebook application development itself. You do have to have a facebook account to create an application.

3) Process flow issues: There are some process flow issues with connecting an exising user account on the Drupal site to that users facebook account, particularly with regard to logging in.

4) Importing user facebook info: With this module you can import parts of a new users facebook profile information into their new Drupal user profile. Cute and slick BUT manipulating this data seems to fall beyond the perview of native Drupal site functionality (not to mention CCK and most probably Views). If you have an existing site with user profile data in the profile module or in CCK you're probably better off not allowing new users to pull their facebook profile data with them.

 

All-in-all this is a pretty nice module and seems to be well supported (if not broadly used at this time). Just keep your eyes peeled for bumps and snags if you are planning on adding this to a site with existing users who probably have facebook accounts and want to connect them with your site.