I Like to Build Stuff
I love to experiment and tinker, and enjoy the challenge of figuring things out. Below are some of the technologies I've worked with, for work and fun.
I can also read code in Python, JavaScript, and others to get a high-level understanding of what it does.
HTML / CSS / JavaScript
I created this very website pretty old-school: hand-coded HTML with CSS and JavaScript based on a customized Bootstrap theme. To really understand how things work and what's going on under the hood, I feel you need to get knee-deep in code.
I typically start with an existing example and modify the heck out of it. And if I don't know how to do something, I figure it out.
In addition to this site, here's another one I built using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript:
Markdown
I love how Markdown separates content from presentation, so you can really focus on the word in any text editor while still putting structure in your content. Combine this with a content conversion tool like Pandoc and some HTML templates, and you can create beautiful, versatile output. I've used this approach to quickly create content at work alongside a more formal DITA XML-based workflow.
Python
I've written Python scripts to parse, process, and convert plain-text and Markdown content to fully rendered HTML output. One script I created took command-line text output and converted it to ready-to-publish HTML content without any human intervention. Another script scraped content from various sources and turned that into HTML output.
I've also used Python and command-line scripts to automate repetitive tasks such as verifying redirect URLs, performing text transformations, and backing up files.
CMS
I'm a big fan of flat-text content management systems and static site generators. They're easy to work with and straightforward to deploy and troubleshoot, without complicated database connections. I'm all about keeping it simple.
My flat-text CMS of choice is Statamic, which I've used to create several websites. I've also experimented with other tools such as Hugo, Publii, Grav, and Kirby, and I'm constantly trying out new stuff.
Here's a site I built using Statamic:
Videos
Videos are an important part of technical communication today. I've created a number of explanatory videos from start to finish, from writing the script to capturing screen sequences and recording the voiceover, and then putting it all together in video editing software (mostly Camtasia).
Here are two examples of videos I've created:
