TWiki Developer School

Kenneth Lavrsen came up with the idea for a TWiki Developer School. This topic is to document that idea, and hopefully expand on it. Kenneth defines this as: A kind of meetup similar to a Linux install party where people can join and get help with things like

• Getting a TWiki (dev environment) checked out of our SVN
• Getting the CPAN dependencies installed
• Getting a pseudo-install working
• Understanding how our bugs/SVN procedures work
• Getting an introduction to our unit test framework learning to write your own first little unit test
• Understanding the architecture of TWiki. How does things work?
• Understanding templates
• Understanding rest script
• Understanding Skins
• Understanding compatibility and what the existing customers expect and what they do not like today
• etc etc

Some comments have been raised already:

• But who will be managing it? I'm all for reaching out the community in various ways. However, at moment, there isn't an organisation that does anything. Or will TWiki.NET take this on? - KwangErnLiew
• it needs a long term entity supporting it - KoenMartens

It looks like this idea is supported by a number of people. So the question is, how can we make this work?

Here are some ideas:

1. Create public-domain training outlines at these levels:
   1. TWiki Application developer (beginnner)
   2. Skin developer
   3. Plugin developer
   4. Core developer (expert)
2. Identify people prepared (and competent) to deliver the training at the different levels. Allow trainers to add value by fleshing out the outlines.
3. TWIKI.NET may be interested in coordinating provision of this training as part of their offerings.
4. Establish more informal "self help" community sessions, where a bunch of people get together and collaborate to help eachother with their problems - e.g. Bar camps
5. Record training videos for YouTube (lotsa, lotsa work, and a bugger to keep up to date)

Who is interested to contribute

Discussion

I would probably be more interested in the community session idea, learning from eachother. That is not to say that more formal setups have their use. Eg. company x decides to go for TWiki and now needs its IT dept trained, pronto.

If you start asking money for the training, you may need to guarantee that the training is good i guess. And i don't mean just the technical part, but the educational part too. How would that work out?

See, i'd be happy to step up as a potential trainer, but do i have the educational skills? I have been teaching as a student-assistant during my years at college, is that enough to qualify?

Perhaps it is enough to just post a CV of the trainer, let potential 'buyers' judge by themselves based on available information.

-- KoenMartens - 25 Jan 2008

This is an interesting idea. If there's a demand for usability related stuff I would be interested to help out as a trainer. For most of the other things I would be a trainee not not a trainer I guess

-- CarloSchulz - 25 Jan 2008

Please, can we have some contributors who are not the usual suspects?

-- CrawfordCurrie - 26 Jan 2008