David Little

Greenwich tweets

Greenwich Tweets is an upcoming project I’ll be working on in my spare time  (when I have some of that).The plan is to look at ways of aggregrating Greenwich-based information from a number of different sources.

More information will follow as things develop. You can follow the project at @greenwichtweets on Twitter.

Why?

Because I want to have a go at creating a mini Web application that I can have complete control over. The scale has to be small because I don’t want to get lost in programming. This is mainly an exercise in applying some UI and visual design skills.

More altruistically, I thought it would be good to use my skills for the benefit of others too. The idea behind this, whether it comes off or not, is to create a site where you can get a quick overview of things happening in the area. So, if you’re a long-time resident or a tourist visiting for the first time, hopefully you’ll be able to find some useful information.

My idea is not an original one and is greatly indebted to similar projects such as Twitian and Balham Twits. However, I think it’s a good idea and hopefully I can add something extra to bring a tiny bit of originality to it!

How?

Here’s a rough outline of what I’ll be doing:

• Looking at python-twitter, a Python wrapper for the Twitter API, along with some other tools (quite likely including the Universal Feed Parser)
• Creating some basic functional prototypes in Zope (and possibly Plone)
• Sketching out the UI / interaction design and creating some wireframes
• Working on the visual design
• Bringing it all together

Why Python?

In my day job I use Zope and Plone. This means I’m pretty comfortable with using Python to get stuff done. I don’t want this to be a programming-led exercise so I want to stick with what I know, rather than say, having to relearn lots of PHP. I’ve also got access to some Python hosting which means I’ve got a way of getting this out.

When?

This is going to be a little side project taking place in the evenings and weekends, so I’m not sure when it will be ready. I’ll probably be able to start around July 2009 early 2010 in earnest when I’m done with some other commitments. Should be a fun project, I’m looking forward to it.

If you’d like to get involved, then drop me a line via email or by Twitter (@djlittle or @greenwichtweets).