Session 05: Researching Preexisting Tools
Hi. Welcome to this project log. Today’s session is a recap of how the tools were researched as the work for this was completed offline.
Here is a reminder of the goals and objectives for this project:
Goal: Establish a system for writing notes and logs for Cryptiquest projects online.
Objective 1: The system must connect to a populated online community with the intention of facilitating discussion about the posts.
Objective 2: The system must be able to accommodate advanced formatting, including lists, indents, an tables.
Objective 3: The system must allow session-based posts.
Objective 4: The system must feature a way for posts to be linked together under the same project.
Objective 5: Ensure the system allows for Cryptiquest, LLC to maintain rights to all content posted for and by Cryptiquest, LLC.
Since the objectives are all Boolean, I made a simpler checklist like this:
- Community
- Formatting
- Sessions
- Nested-projects
- Protected IP
For starters, I’ve done an internet search for online tools for project management. There are tons of them! But none of them fulfill the first objective: Community. I want an online community baked in.
Moving on. Since online communities are integral, I did a search for social media platforms that would work for project planning. This was extensive. I was already familiar with Facebook, Twitter, G+ and some other related platforms (LinkedIn, for instance) but some others (e.g. Reddit and Tumblr) I needed to dive into.
The social media platforms obviously had the Community box ticked and some of them met the Formatting checkbox, but the Sessions and Nested-projects aspects were either not present or only half present.
I then looked into niche-based social media platforms – specifically those targeting writers (Wattpad, Scribophile, etc.) and game developers (Develteam). The issues were the same – no functionality that supported Sessions or Nested-projects.
Finally, I decided that there was no solution that met every criteria and I was going to have to improvise. I’d use WordPress to create a site, using categories to denote the “Project” which come with a neat hierarchy feature for nesting purposes and use posts for each session. With the IP being protected, nearly all the checkboxes were ticked except one: Community.
To solve the Community problem, the plan is two-fold.
- One: share the sessions on social media once they are live.
- Use some of the social media platforms that were nearly almost perfect to post “project summaries” reflecting on the project once it is complete.
I hope that second part helps garner interest. I’ve been doing the first one for a few years with little success.
This process – searching, testing, failing, etc. – took several sessions to complete. The next step is to design the system which won’t be straight forward. While WordPress is a great tool, figuring out exactly how to do this will be determined by what themes and plugins I can find then how I can manipulate them for the purposes of this project.
So the next session might also be a recap of the work that had been completed.