Comments on: Be not afraid: Journalists should learn code

By: Greg Linch

Greg Linch — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 01:20:13 +0000

Great post, Mark. I definitely want to learn more than what I know now, namely HTML, CSS and some XML, as well as VERY basic knowledge of AS3, JS and PHP.

If I do grad school, I’ll probably do the programming track of UM’s new multimedia journalism program and learn more of those, and maybe some Python.

By: Carlos Virgen

Carlos Virgen — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 00:23:47 +0000

Hey Mark. Thanks for the advice. I’ve messed around a little JQuery and we’re doing more and more on Wordpress so more knowledge of PHP will come in handy.

By: CÉSAR CHAMAN

CÉSAR CHAMAN — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 15:47:14 +0000

Friends:

A debate about journalism and technology is right now opened in Latin America. Javier Darío Restrepo, a Colombian journalist, wrote in a book something like this: “After technology’s development, we need ethical solutions. Is it useful for journalism all that progress in technology if journalism finally loses its north? The problem is not if we learn to manage Internet and technical development. Our point is what to do with those tools.” (I’ve tried to translate it to English. Excuse me if I didn’t do as exact as I’d like).
So, I mean we could learn HTML, API, HTTP and all those codes. That’s fine. Probably, we’ll need them some time. But, we also need to focus in contents.

Regards.

CÉSAR CHAMAN

By: Cassandra Gallagher

Cassandra Gallagher — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 21:19:23 +0000

Another good resource: http://www.webmonkey.com/ A site for web developers, but they have tutorials, coding references, a library, etc. Very helpful

By: Cassandra Gallagher

Cassandra Gallagher — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 21:11:50 +0000

Well this makes me feel better…

I’m a visual journalism student but I decided to take a computer web page design class because I really just needed a filler class. (And I thought it would be a nice compliment to the online journalism class I’m taking.) But as I go through it I’m seeing how helpful it’s becoming…I might have to take more. Journalism very much becoming a jack-of-all trades sort of profession.

By: Mark Briggs

Mark Briggs — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 20:17:05 +0000

Carlos –

PHP and MySQL are a good direction to go once you’re comfortable with HTML/CSS. I wouldn’t worry about Flash/ActionScript unless you’re planning to specialize in multimedia graphics and presentation. Drupal or Django? Only needed if you’re getting a new CMS with one of those platforms. If you’re looking for advanced skills, JQuery is a flexible and powerful tool that is more universal than those CMS platforms.

By: Mark Briggs

Mark Briggs — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 20:10:22 +0000

Andy –

Here’s a reply from a friend of mine who runs a successful web development company:

“All APIs are different. A good resource is the help sections for the company’s api you are trying to incorporate. There will need to be some base development knowledge of systems, front end, backend technologies to implement any API.”

So it probably makes sense to attack them one by one. The Google API would probably be first, then whatever your next project requires (Facebook Connect, iPhone, Twitter).

By: Angela Dic

Angela Dic — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 20:10:08 +0000

I absolutely agree. After learning just a little bit of CSS (after getting HTML down) really opened up my understanding of what you can do with a site. I also am using Lynda.com both for CSS and PHP lessons.

By: Carlos Virgen

Carlos Virgen — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 19:42:35 +0000

I'm trying to figure out what coding skills to learn. I'm fairly capable with HTML/CSS but want to expand my codes knowledge. Especially since our news org has a very, very, very small web dev team. Small like in 1 person, who's more of an IT person, and myself. I wrote a blog post where I ask what skills I should pursue. Integrating APIs and data visualization/manipulation are at the top of my list. I've got accesss to Lynda.com account and I started a PHP w/ MySQL lesson. But what about Flash/ActionScript, or Drupal, or Django, or XML, or... It's a bit daunting.

By: Michael McCarthy

Michael McCarthy — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 19:38:22 +0000

Another good instruction source for technophobes is http://www.lynda.com, which has courses for a wide variety of software packages (Word, Photoshop, etc. etc.) as well as things like HTML, PHP, Dreamweaver. Monthly subscription of about $25 gets you access to all course offerings.

Michael McCarthy
Editor
LocalHealthGuideOnline.com