DIY Web Development
Free Tools and Strategies for Library Instruction
by Bryan Brown, Indiana University Bloomington SLIS
We will cover:
•Why teach coding
•Understanding the
beginner's mindset
•The best free
resources
Who am I?
•Not a web
developer
•Not a teacher
•A recent beginner
So why listen to
me?
My Story
Learning from
lectures
My Story
Learning from
playing
3 Hurdles to Learning
•Anxiety
•$$$
•No
teacher
Overcoming Hurdles
•Remove anxiety
•Use free* software
•Teach, and reveal
other teachers*beer and/or free speech
3 Keys to Learning
good tools + good lessons + motivating goal = successful learning
The Best Lessons
• Understand time limits and what
can be accomplished
• Strive for conceptual
understanding before
implementation (demystify)
• The "What" and "Why" before the
"How" (30,000 ft. view)
The Best Goals
• Give realistic motivation (why
code?)
• Personalized projects mean
personalized interest
• Inspire further study and point out
"where to go from here"
W3Schoolshttp://www.w3schools.com/
HTML Doghttp://www.htmldog.com/
Codecademyhttp://www.codecademy.com/
The Best Tools
• Easy to use/obtain
• Free*
• Simple and/or minimal
• Support you as you grow
• BONUS: Multi-language
NotepadYou already have it.
Notepad++http://notepad-plus-plus.org/
TextEditYou already have this, too.
TextWranglerhttp://www.barebones.com/products/textwrangler/
Eclipse IDEhttp://www.eclipse.org/
NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART!
What about servers?
• Not necessary yet, just open files
with a browser.
• Show off works in progress with
Dropbox
• Give them a fancy URL with
Site44
Using Dropbox to Host
Using Dropbox to Host
Using Dropbox to Host
Using Site44 to Host
Using Site44 to Host
Using Site44 to Host
Using Site44 to Host
Using Site44 to Host
Wanna see that again?
Go to:
http://iolug.site44.com/resources.html
to see all software, learning sites and hosting methods listed.