PGSuper, open source girder bridge design software
PGSuper is the most widely used, most comprehensive AASHTO LRFD precast prestressed girder bridge design software in the world. Better yet, PGSuper is open source which means that it is free to be used, inspected, and modified by all.
BridgeSight, developers of PGSuper, is a small open-source software company started in the mid-1990’s. Structural engineers are developing software for the bridge industry that was mostly funded by government agencies, and they felt that open-source was the best way for taxpayers to get the most out of our efforts. BridgeSight are pioneers in the government open-source software world.
PGSuper website is providing users with Free Online tutorials, Downloads, Support Forums and PGSuper Newsletter.
Why was Backdrop chosen for this project?
Website owner did not want any changes - site was working great for his business and his users. The only reason for move was security support ending on Jan 5, 2025 for Drupal 7.
Backdrop CMS was best fit for this project as it allowed users to maintain a familiar, cost-effective, and sustainable platform. It retains the core structure of Drupal 7, ensuring a smooth seamless migration of all the content, users with their current passwords and emails, forums, etc.
Backdrop CMS has low hosting and maintenance costs compared to newer Drupal versions, and runs fine on shared hosting provided by SiteGround. It provides long-term support, stability, and security while staying lightweight and performant. Backdrop ensures a future-proof solution for those who need a reliable CMS without the steep learning curve or increased expenses.
Migration was completed using d2b module which made it almost one-click-upgrade for all content and users. We used Basis theme with custom color settings, set layouts (which did not exist in Drupal 7 core) and made some updates to forum module. The whole project was completed in under 40 hours without interruption of service for end users.
The first version of our opensource support site pgsuper.com utilized dedicated bulletin board software (BBS) to provide discussions and support for the program. The BBS company went out of business in 2007, and I found Drupal as a promising replacement (also it was open-source).
We started using Drupal 4 in 2008, and thus began the constant treadmill of minor and core updates.
I performed yearly updates up until 2020 and it almost always took 1-2 days – a painful waste of my limited resources, especially since the updates almost never provided any new functionality we needed. In fact, sometimes the opposite was true; some modules I used were discontinued causing chaos during the update process. After 2020 we started paying outside contractors to update the site. This was expensive ($1,000’s) and often the work would not be completed properly, forcing me to take time to fix the details.
There are a lot of things I still like about Drupal, but I would not recommend it to other small businesses unless their needs were very specific and they had the resources to stay on the update treadmill. I am happy to see BackdropCMS as an alternative to the treadmill. Drupal 7 provides all of the features we need, and the update process for BackdropCMS looks much simpler. It’s great to see an effort with users like us in mind.