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Weekend at Drupal 7's: Still Partying Past EOL

Project Management & Consulting 179 All Attendees Sat 1:00pm to 1:45pm (2/22/25)

Picture this: It's February 2025, and while Drupal 7 was supposed to be having its final farewell tour, it's somehow still crowd-surfing through thousands of websites. Like the tech world's most persistent party guest, it just won't take "time to go home" for an answer, and honestly, that might be a good thing.

Welcome to the real world of post-EOL Drupal 7, where thousands of sites are doing the digital equivalent of running with scissors. But before you panic-migrate your way into next Tuesday, let's talk about how to turn this potential disaster into your next success story.

In this session, we'll cover:

  • Why your Drupal 7 site is like that one friend who's still using a Hotmail address (functional but concerning)
  • How to transform your "technical debt" into "technical dividends" (yes, we're making that a thing)
  • The art of keeping your site secure when official support has left the building
  • Why HeroDevs is basically your site's designated driver through the afterparty

Perfect for: digital strategists putting off difficult conversations, developers tired of explaining why "just migrate it" isn't always the answer, managers wondering why their weekend plans keep involving security patches, and anyone who's ever had to make legacy software work well past its expiration date.

Leave knowing not just why your Drupal 7 site can survive, but how to make it thrive. Because sometimes the best parties happen after the lights are supposed to go out.

Warning: This talk may contain excessive metaphors, actual solutions, and at least one reference to how supporting Drupal 7 is like keeping a Tamagotchi alive in 2025—surprisingly possible and weirdly satisfying.

About the Speakers

Profile picture for user JDDoesDev

JD Flynn

Senior Software Engineer at HeroDevs

LaPorte, IN

JD Flynn has had mental illness most of his life, but didn't admit it until his early 30s when he decided it was time to do something about it. After a decade-long career in emergency services as a paramedic, JD made the jump from the ambulance to the text editor. Since then, JD has climbed to Principal Drupal Software Engineer in his current position.

His life was changed by OSMH (Open Sourcing Mental Health), a 501(c)(3) non-profit focused on opening the conversation on mental illness, which led him to telling his own story to as many people who would listen. As someone with mental illness who is not afraid to talk about it, JD has presented on the topic of Mental Illness in the Tech Community to local user groups, regional conferences, and national level events at locations such as MIT, UC Berkeley, Washington State Convention Center, Guaranteed Rate Field, and DePaul University.

More recently, JD has started streaming development on Twitch and has been learning new tools and languages on stream.  He streams under the name JDDoesDev and is desperate for your approval and attention.

When not speaking or coding, JD plays baritone saxophone in Windiana, a professional level wind ensemble out of Valparaiso, IN, and Michigan City Municipal Band, the oldest municipal band in Indiana.