Drupal and I have declared detente. After a few sessions with my colleague JJ, I have learned enough to create a professional page for myself. I have learned a number of things along the way:
1) There is no magical source book or website when it comes to Drupal. I consulted Pro Drupal Development by John VanDyk and Matt Westgate, and my take away was that one of the authors dedicated his work to his ferrets. After I recovered from my initial horror (I have a ferret phobia -- sorry), I realized that this is in fact welcomed news. When I dedicate my first book to my basset hound, there will be precedent besides Lord Byron's love for Botswain. I digress. I read and understood the first chapter of Pro Drupal Development. I may have even attached a few Post-it notes; quickly, however, I was lost really lost. I realized that the "Pro" in the title might mean that this book is not for me.
2) People are the best solution. As I said, my colleague JJ has been the biggest help in answering my questions. One of my questions for him was where he goes when he has a question about Drupal. His answer -- to another colleague.
3) A little clarity goes really far. As I suspected might happen, once I had a few basics questions answered, I was ready to take off. I, and I suspect most techno-tyros (can I coin that phrase?), tend to get bogged down on a particular obstacle. I wrote a bit about this last time, and I did in fact find that making lists of questions and having to articulate my quandaries ultimately really paid off.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Drooooopal
I have the Droooopal blues today. Drupal is the content management platform that the CWRL uses for instructor web pages. Last year, I built my instructor web page using this tool without too much hassle. Granted, my instructor page is not particularly sophisticated, but I maintained it pretty well myself for the past yearr. Today, I began work on a locus page, which is for professionalization purposes. I figured that constructing a locus page would be an effective way to relearn the platform and to increase my skills. After about 5 minutes, my head was spinning. Here is why, I think.
First, when I am trying to figure out a new technology, I often don't have a clear, concrete goal in mind. So, for example, my goal is to construct this web page, and I start this project without a concrete image in my head of what it might look like. To alleviate this situation, I turn to colleagues' pages. Though this move is a good idea in theory, it dwindles into counter-productivity pretty quickly because I start to think about how great other folks' sites look without a sense of what I want. It is like reading for research without knowing one's research question. Anyhow, I get so easily distracted by others' bells and whistles that I forget why I am looking at these various pages.
The other reason that I failed to have a productive learning experience this morning and perhaps more generally with technology is that I don't know where to turn for help. Or, rather, I know too many places to turn for help, but I don't know which is the best place in a given situation. The options that spring to mind in no particular order include: the Drupal website, the cwrl website, my friend JJB who has helped me with Drupal before, a coworker at the CWRL, and some book on Drupal that I imagine is in the CWRL library.
Like most tyros, I tend toward human helpers, so I ended up emailing a colleague at work, and we are going to have a meeting next week. The only other proactive thing that I could think to do was to make a list of what I would like to see on my web page. I made a list of links, but I still have not picked any pictures, a point that may lead to my final observation about my failure today. I have no idea how to be clever when I am staring at a computer-related problem. I have noticed that when I am crafting, the small victories that come with figuring out a problem propel me to keep working and to meet the next challenges that a given project presents me with. I am far too easily disheartened when it comes to technology because I seldom, if ever, produce those encouraging boosts for myself. Oh, drooooooooooopal!
First, when I am trying to figure out a new technology, I often don't have a clear, concrete goal in mind. So, for example, my goal is to construct this web page, and I start this project without a concrete image in my head of what it might look like. To alleviate this situation, I turn to colleagues' pages. Though this move is a good idea in theory, it dwindles into counter-productivity pretty quickly because I start to think about how great other folks' sites look without a sense of what I want. It is like reading for research without knowing one's research question. Anyhow, I get so easily distracted by others' bells and whistles that I forget why I am looking at these various pages.
The other reason that I failed to have a productive learning experience this morning and perhaps more generally with technology is that I don't know where to turn for help. Or, rather, I know too many places to turn for help, but I don't know which is the best place in a given situation. The options that spring to mind in no particular order include: the Drupal website, the cwrl website, my friend JJB who has helped me with Drupal before, a coworker at the CWRL, and some book on Drupal that I imagine is in the CWRL library.
Like most tyros, I tend toward human helpers, so I ended up emailing a colleague at work, and we are going to have a meeting next week. The only other proactive thing that I could think to do was to make a list of what I would like to see on my web page. I made a list of links, but I still have not picked any pictures, a point that may lead to my final observation about my failure today. I have no idea how to be clever when I am staring at a computer-related problem. I have noticed that when I am crafting, the small victories that come with figuring out a problem propel me to keep working and to meet the next challenges that a given project presents me with. I am far too easily disheartened when it comes to technology because I seldom, if ever, produce those encouraging boosts for myself. Oh, drooooooooooopal!
Friday, June 6, 2008
Tablecloths!
The problem with tablecloths, in case you were wondering, is the middle. I know that I need to sew away from the middle (that is some sort of cardinal rule of sewing, is it not?), but I still end up with fairly lumpy middles. This first example was a total nightmare, as I did not account for this until way too late in the game:
The only way to solve this problem was a good centerpiece, so the tablecloth sits with a
lovely Vinca in the center at all times:
I wanted to work with this same pattern and have another go at it when I decided to make a table clothe for my mom. I was using my lovely new fabric from Bolt, so I did not want to screw it up. This time, I did not have the center pieces to cross over each other, so I sewed out from a central piece of fabric. I left about a half inch on each side, so I could fit in the 4 squares. I like the results, though there is still a slight bump in the middle. It is a considerable improvement from my last tablecloth, however:
My questions that remain are -- how to make the seems on a tablecloth so slight that they do not disrupt it laying flat? Also, what other patterns might a use for a table cloth? I am not sure how funky to go with tablecloths? I am thinking that, unlike a pillow, a few big pieces of fabric is better than a lot of pieces together? If nothing else, this will cut down on bulging seems.
The only way to solve this problem was a good centerpiece, so the tablecloth sits with a
lovely Vinca in the center at all times:
I wanted to work with this same pattern and have another go at it when I decided to make a table clothe for my mom. I was using my lovely new fabric from Bolt, so I did not want to screw it up. This time, I did not have the center pieces to cross over each other, so I sewed out from a central piece of fabric. I left about a half inch on each side, so I could fit in the 4 squares. I like the results, though there is still a slight bump in the middle. It is a considerable improvement from my last tablecloth, however:
My questions that remain are -- how to make the seems on a tablecloth so slight that they do not disrupt it laying flat? Also, what other patterns might a use for a table cloth? I am not sure how funky to go with tablecloths? I am thinking that, unlike a pillow, a few big pieces of fabric is better than a lot of pieces together? If nothing else, this will cut down on bulging seems.
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