Weekly Update 4 – Going to WordCamp Sydney 2018

Week ending: 15th of June 2018

I’ll be going to WordCamp Sydney this year and best of all I’ve been approved to be a volunteer.

I’ve volunteered at a few DrupalCamps in the past and highly recommend you do it; especially if you’re new to the community. It’s the best way to meet new people.

And, this is the important part, it’ll force you to interact with others.

If you go to a new place with new faces it’s very easy to hide in the corner drinking coffee and not network with anyone. For me personally, volunteering puts me in a different state of mind and I have no problems talking to other attendees.

Long story short, put your hand up to volunteer.

A lot of these camps/conference need people just during the event to help with registration, monitor rooms or being an extra pair of hands.

Media Webinar in Drupal 8

Performed a webinar on managing media in Drupal 8. The live presentation went well and got a few good questions.

Weekly Update 3 – Great Momentum

Week ending: 8th of June 2018

I spent the whole week recording the new Webform course for WebWash. I was hoping to record during the day but couldn’t because there was too much background noise.

Protip: when buying mics make sure you understand the difference between condenser and dynamic mics.

So I recorded during the night and edited and prepared videos during the day.

Preparation plays an important part when you record screencasts. By the end of the week, I had significant momentum. Prepare by day; record by night.

Live Stream

I also did another live stream on Drush and Drupal Console and had loads of fun.

But I’ve decided to change my live stream/webinar strategy, again. 🙂

I’m focusing on webinars (which users register for) and then live stream the webinar to YouTube, Facebook, Twitch, and Twitter.

The biggest difference for me regarding live streams or webinars is that I can collect email addresses if viewers register for a webinar. Getting emails from viewers on a live stream is much harder.

Weekly Update 2 – Finally on Course

Week ending: 1st of June 2018

I spent half the week finishing a contract and the last two days outlining a new course on Webform for WebWash.

In the past, I’ve been terrible at sticking to deadlines while producing courses. So I gave myself two days to outline the course and made sure I was prepared to start recording it ASAP.

Producing Course

My goal was to start recording the following week instead I decided to start recording the videos on Friday. One thing I’ve learned is that if you give yourself 2 or 5 days to complete a task then it’ll take that long. So give yourself a tight deadline that you’re not comfortable with and sprint to get it finished.

Lost and Founder By Rand Fishkin

I started listening to Lost and Founder: A Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World on Audible and so far I’m really enjoying it.

Weekly Update 1 – Lots of Live Streaming

Week ending: 24th of June 2018

Life seems to fly past quickly as you grow older, especially if you have kids. Days and weeks fly by at a blink of an eye.

So I’ve decided to document my small wins in a weekly blog post which I can look back in the future and appreciate the little achievements.

This idea is not mine. I got inspired by Troy Hunt who does the same thing.

Alas, mine won’t be as entertaining as his weekly updates, and they’ll be text for now and not video.

Live streams

On Tuesday I did my first WebWash live stream. I’ve done test live streams in the past but this is an official one. It was to practice a presentation which I was to give on Thursday night remotely to the Sydney Drupal User’s Group.

The presentation was on using the core Media module in Drupal 8.

The live stream went well and I had a great time doing it. I’m pretty impressed with OBS Studio which is an open source live streaming software. It didn’t take that long to get working.

You need good internet with decent upload speeds.

Deep Work by Cal Newport

I finished the audiobook of “Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World” and was really impressed with the book.

In the last couple of years I’ve noticed that workplaces have changed in how we communicate.

Email is no longer the preferred way, it’s instant chat such as Slack. Nothing can destroy your concentration more than getting pinged on Slack.

The book discusses tips and strategies and the importance of “going deep” and focusing.

Create a Bootstrap Sub-theme in Drupal 8

In my first tutorial of 2018 over at WebWash, I show you how to create a Bootstrap sub-theme using Drupal 8.

I start the tutorial off by talking about Bootstrap and what it is. Then we jump right into things by showing you some of the theme’s settings and more.

After that, you’ll learn how to create a sub-theme and compile Sass using laravel-mix.

Link: Getting Started with Bootstrap in Drupal 8

Using a Pen and Paper to Avoid Distraction

In this video, I talk about how writing with a pen and paper can get the juices flowing when you’re stuck.

If you have “writer’s block”, sometimes it’s best to remove yourself from the computer and start writing on paper.

I find it easier to get into “flow” when writing on paper than typing on a computer. I think it’s because I try to edit while writing, whereas when you write on paper, you can’t revise.

You can’t delete the last sentence and start again; this helps me get into “flow”.

Continue reading “Using a Pen and Paper to Avoid Distraction”

Using Display Suite in Drupal 8: How to Use Switch View Mode Sub-module

The “Display Suite Switch View Mode” sub-module which comes with Display Suite, allows you to switch which view mode is used when displaying a node page.

It allows you to implement multiple layouts and then an editor can easily switch between them.

Link: Using Display Suite in Drupal 8: How to Use Switch View Mode Sub-module