There are several modules (and approaches) that allow a node to be presented as a block:
| Module | 6.x | 7.x | Usage | Notes | Module Updated | Info as of | Links to this page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Node Blocks | 6.x-1.4 | 7.x-1.2 | 11165 | Specifies a content type as being a "block" content type. Then when you create nodes of that content type, they're exposed as blocks. Supports content translation, so in a particular context, the correct node of a language set is presented. D7 version additionally allows selecting view modes(Full, Teaser, Custom, Etc.) by content type or for each individual block. | July 2011 | 21 July 2011 | Yes |
| Node as Block | 6.x-1.x-beta1 | No | 1863 | Replicates the block administration form inside the node edit form. Unfortunately both the beta1 and development versions seem to be broken at the moment. | Aug 2009 | 31 Nov 2010 | No |
| Nodes In Block | 6.x-1.6 | 7.x-1.0 | 3607 | Creates a number of blocks. Each of the blocks can have one or several nodes inserted into it using the module's own interface. Blocks are placed and managed using Drupal's management interface. | Jan 2011 | 5 Apr 2011 | Yes |
| Views | 6.x-2.11 | 7.x-3.x-dev | Millions served | Any view can provide a block. A view can show a single node by filtering on the node ID. More sophisticated arguments and filters are possible. | June 2011 | 19 June 2011 | No |
| NodeQueue | 6.x-2.11 | 7.x-2.0-beta1 | 25,121 | Allows selection of an arbitrary set of nodes, then automatically provides a Views "Block display" to display them. The block display can be configured as needed. Nodes with translation sets can have the proper language displayed. | Sept 2011 | 29 Sept 2011 | No |
| Node Type Views | 6.x-1.0-beta2 | 7.x-1.0-alpha1 | 120 | It's a simple module to generate teaser listings and RSS feeds of nodes based on node type. This module is not an add-on for the views module. | 2009-Feb-02 | 2010-Oct-27 |
The Bean module does not allow nodes to be presented as blocks, per se, but creates block entities instead. Since entities are the fundamental unit of Drupal 7 content, this is analogous and can accomplish many of the same ends.