Ward and Stake calling pictureboard
Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2011 12:39 pm
I am an assistant clerk in my singles ward. Our leadership tracks current callings with a Google Docs spreadsheet. They also maintain a large, physical board on which they stick members' names and their current callings. It is difficult to keep current.
I programmed a Javascript script that parses CSV data from the spreadsheet and generates an HTML file that performs the same function as the large calling board; it lists all current callings with their associated member name and picture.
Three problems:
1. Javascript was my language of choice in that it doesn't require a server or virtual machine to execute, and will execute on any machine with a browser. The problem with Javascript is that it cannot read or write data, which is why currently, the user has to manually paste CSV data in and copy HTML code out.
2. Since Javascript can't read files, it merely links to sources images from a local folder. Therefore, generated HTML files are not standalone files, and must be kept in the same directory as the images folder.
3. The source images folder must be manually updated.
Utilizing a server-side script would solve problems 1 and 2, as it could embed image data as a <img src="data:image/png;> tag and write the resulting HTML code to a downloadable file. However, the images folder would still have to be kept current.
The attached image has all identifiable information stripped, for privacy concerns.
My suggestion is that hopefully in the future, ward and stake websites will allow leaders to track current callings, and offer a view similar to the one I generated. Images would be current, being sourced from the members' LDS.org accounts.
P.S. Let me know if there's any other langauge that I could use that would fix these problems, and still be universally executable with little to no technical know-how.
I programmed a Javascript script that parses CSV data from the spreadsheet and generates an HTML file that performs the same function as the large calling board; it lists all current callings with their associated member name and picture.
Three problems:
1. Javascript was my language of choice in that it doesn't require a server or virtual machine to execute, and will execute on any machine with a browser. The problem with Javascript is that it cannot read or write data, which is why currently, the user has to manually paste CSV data in and copy HTML code out.
2. Since Javascript can't read files, it merely links to sources images from a local folder. Therefore, generated HTML files are not standalone files, and must be kept in the same directory as the images folder.
3. The source images folder must be manually updated.
Utilizing a server-side script would solve problems 1 and 2, as it could embed image data as a <img src="data:image/png;> tag and write the resulting HTML code to a downloadable file. However, the images folder would still have to be kept current.
The attached image has all identifiable information stripped, for privacy concerns.
My suggestion is that hopefully in the future, ward and stake websites will allow leaders to track current callings, and offer a view similar to the one I generated. Images would be current, being sourced from the members' LDS.org accounts.
P.S. Let me know if there's any other langauge that I could use that would fix these problems, and still be universally executable with little to no technical know-how.