WordPress is one of the most popular CMS solutions and argubly the best solution for non-technical people who don’t know HTML/CSS or how to code. 

While it’s touted as a blogging platform, it’s versatile in its applications and GirlDevelopIt’s Philly Chapter is holding a “Using WordPress to Build a Website for Beginners” class next week to help those who dream of creating their own site and don’t have the skills to do so. 

So just what can you do with WordPress? We’ve pulled random sites around the web. It’s your job to look at the screenshots below and guess whether or not they are built on WordPress. Some of them are easy and others may just fool you!

TechCrunch - #1 Tech Blog:

People.com - Gossip Site:

Phone.com - E-commerce Site:

Sanguine - Movie Trailer:

CaraDePoker.com - Social Network for Poker Players: 

They all look different, don’t they? 

*drumroll please*

All the sites above utilize the WordPress platform. As you can see, it’s not just for blogs. Pam Selle, our instructor, put together her own list of 5 reasons you should use WordPress when building your site. Check them out. 

This is a guest post from a student that GDI loves, Tracy Bartley. We wish Tracy the best in her new position, and appreciate her warming the cockles in our hearts. 

I graduated at the height of the “great recession” with a Master of the Arts and moved to New York City. I worked in restaurants, volunteered, interned and worked in restaurants again until I landed a salaried job in a field which I had little to no experience. Part of the job I had no experience in was website creation and management. I had never used Wordpress and the only HTML I knew was for inserting links, though I had no idea it was called “HTML”.

I ordered the “Idiots guide to HTML, CSS and XHTML”, but when the 1000 page text arrived it merely sat accusingly in the corner collecting dust and I felt more the idiot for bothering to purchase it.

Enter Girl Develop It! I stumbled across the group on Meetup.com and nearly jumped through the roof. An opportunity to learn the basics with other girls from a girl; YES, YES and YES! I was so thrilled to be able to take classes that fit with my schedule that gave me the comfort to “ask stupid questions”.

Over 6 months I took HTML/CSS, then a special HTML5/CSS3 weekend course, then Javascript, then PHP from the New York chapter. Then I moved to Austin, TX and got a job designing Wordpress pages!

GDI got me a job!

I also took HTML/CSS and PHP again from the Austin chapter. The great thing about these classes is, they are so packed with information, you really can take them twice and learn just as much.

Now I’m moving to Washington DC on a job offer in keeping with my original degree. I’ve come full circle, finally entering into the job market I had originally targeted and not (quite) on welfare or too far in debt. My only regret with the move is there’s not a GDI chapter in DC. Ladies, you’ve already got a groupie in the city, why not start a chapter there? (note to Tracy: we’re working on it!)

I’m happy to announce that the first GDI chapter in Canada has officially launched! 

We’re thrilled to be part of this incredible community. Learn more about some of the ladies involved in making this happen… 

Serena is a front-end developer and designer with a background in software development. She is passionate about mentoring and inspiring young females to explore fields of technology and it’s many different applications. The idea of starting a GDI chapter was born out of frustration from hearing a lot of talk about the lack of women in technology, but not seeing a lot of action being done to get more involved. Get your hands dirty and build something!

Gail is a PhD student in computer science at Carleton University, researching narrative, augmented reality, and educational games.  One of her passions is teaching and outreach, and she especially loves showing girls and women how much fun programming and computer science actually is! For her, it’s not as much about the low percentage of women in CS, but rather how many are missing out on trying something might love for the wrong reasons.  Outside of school, Gail enjoys everything from photography and scrapbooking to Taekwondo and snowboarding.

Barbora has a background in electrical engineering and physics. She has a wide range of experience working in radiation protection, particle physics, software development, to finance. From her experience, programming has played an integral part in every point of her career, and she believes that it is valuable to have an understanding of technology no matter field you are in.

Learn more about our group and first event on our Meetup page.

We’re ecstatic about our impending inaugural class this Thursday, August 25th (Yes, tomorrow!). As we finalize some last-minute details, we want to give you an opportunity learn more about the people behind the scenes. Most specifically, our teachers’ aides. 

We require at least one or two teachers’ aides for every class. This is to provide an extra helping hand to attendees, whether it’s a quick once-over to ensure they’re performing the exercises properly, to answer a question a student is unsure of, or to assist in solving a problem.

Every teachers’ aide volunteers their time and we’re immensely grateful not to have one or two, but three available for our Intro to HTML/CSS course tomorrow. 

Without further ado, I present you: 

Pam Selle, @pamasaur: When I was younger, I thought the internet was basically the coolest thing ever. As a teen, I poured my angst into a LiveJournal, and in the process learned HTML/CSS and the joy of design and creation online. I’ve been working in the web world for approximately 3 years and mostly build websites at the moment. I’m getting involved in GDI because I think others should experience the fun of seeing something YOU made appear on the web. In my spare time, I practice/teach yoga, ride my bicycle, and am involved with the Girl Geek Dinner Social Committee.

Chris Moyer, @berryhappy: My primary area of expertise is Database Programming and I am now involved in Open Source software. All about it is new, exciting and incredibly low cost to learn and master. Getting involved with Girl Develop It in Philadelphia is a way for me to learn, share and meet interesting people. I am also the organizer for the Chester County Brunch and Book Club which can be found on Meetup.com.

Allison Wagner, @alliwagner: I am a developer who thrives on transforming smart design work into quality markup and style. My formal training is in design and advertising. I attended Temple University in Philadelphia, graduating with a BA from the School of Communications. I started coding my own designs for the web, and found my true passion within the world of XHTML and CSS. As I honed my skills, I garnered a sincere appreciation for standards-based development practices. I’m currently a Developer at Happy Cog in Philadelphia.

A cross-post from GDI teacher Izzy Johnston who covered the event on her blog.

Big thanks to our sponsors Silicon Valley Bank and Gunderson Dettmer

You can check out the fruits of our weekend at http://commutingintraffic.com

During what may have been the first all-female* hackathon in NY, fifteen people banded together to use technology to take on the global problem of human trafficking. We were programmers, designers, writers and researchers. We came from a variety of backgrounds. We had an array of skills. And we all came to donate the most precious resource we had, our time.

For anyone who follows me on twitter (@izzy_johnston), you know that this weekend was the Girl Develop It Hamptons Hackathon for Humanity, sponsored by JumpThru. Deborah Jackson graciously hosted our hackathon at a beautiful location in the Hamptons and Buff Penrose supported us every step of the way with words of encouragement and food!

We really got started on the planning and programming at 8pm on Friday. And I ran out the door to catch the train at 8:15pm on Sunday. In that 48 hour period, the fifteen of us developed three amazing products.

Vanessa Hurst, database analyst for Paperless Post and fearless co-founder of Girl Develop It, and husband developed a Ruby on Rails platform that crawled and flagged Craigslist posts that were likely posts by or for human traffickers. To be honest, we all parted ways in such chaos that I have no idea how far they were able to get on this very complicated program. But don’t be surprised if the CIA and FBI have already whisked the couple away to work for the government.

Marianne, founder and creator of F.S. Publishing, worked tirelessly with others to aggregate data and create QR codes (those squares-within-a-square bar codes) that educate people on trafficking issues. Keep a look out for a possible guerrilla campaign to plaster them across New York City.

Most of us, however, worked round the clock on developing Commuting in Traffic, an online choose-your-own-adventure game that educates the player about issues of human trafficking that happen daily right here in NYC.

Sara Chipps, software developer and co-founder of Girl Develop It, and I were in charge of back-end development and functionality. Between her awesome Javascript powers and my PHP and MySQL database skills, we created a dynamic structure for the game. With our structure, the game is scalable, dynamic and can literally be played over 10 BILLION(!) ways. 

We had a spectacular design and front-end team—Christina Lutters, a designer and front end developer for a post-production team, Brenda Storer, a designer and developer at a design firm here in NYC, and Pamela Castillo, co-founder and creative director of Market Publique. There is no way we could have created such a beautiful, simple and elegant interface without their tireless work and amazing collaboration skills. This was one of the first chances I ever had to work closely with designers. Usually, I am given designs and told to implement them. What an opportunity to learn how the designer approaches a project! I honestly believe that if there were more opportunities for designer/developer collaboration, the tech world could come together in so many positive ways!

JumpThru intern, Jasmine, and community manager, Jamie, worked endlessly with Jennifer Hill, an attorney who specializes in advocacy for startups and entrepreneurs. They poured over content and statistics, sifting through the heartbreaking stories of women, men and children who have been trafficked. All of us agreed that the content was the hardest part of the endeavor. They expertly balanced the light-hearted story of the game with the sobering truth about human trafficking. If you learn anything from playing Commuting In Traffic, it is because of the dedication of these three amazing women.

All in all, through the lack of sleep, the frantic programming, the fist-shakings of frustration, and the spontaneous ovations for our little success—one thing will stick with me. No matter what your skill, your tech-savviness, or your background, we can all come together and program for humanity.

*Ok, we had one guy, but he’s awesome.

Girl Develop It is super excited to welcome our newest chapter in Austin, TX. We are huge fans of the Austin technology scene here in New York, and when we heard from Garann Means and saw her awesome website we knew we wanted her to lead the charge. You can her site at http://garann.com and her blog at http://www.garann.com/dev/. Garann is a software developer at Vast.com, and we hear great things about her from the community in Austin. She focuses on JavaScript, HTML/CSS, and general front-end development. 

GDI Austin started classes two weeks ago, and got a great turnout of ladies in the Austin area. Vast sponsored by donating their space, and Garann, assisted by Ashley Renee Price , Patricia Cifra, and Blair Mundy taught two extended HTML/CSS classes. So far the feedback on meetup has been great and they will be scheduling more soon. GDI Austin could really use some TAs to help with classes in the future. If you are interested in helping please reach out to her here.

We asked Garann to comment on her experience so far, and this is what she told us:

“I found the class really inspiring. It was awesome watching people piece things together and make the connections between concepts. Even better was seeing people begin to experiment - testing out different HTML and CSS properties beyond what we had in Alexis’  slides to verify the changes to their pages were what they’d expect. My hope is that we  see some of the same students back for other classes in the future, as they clearly have the makings of good developers.”

 We’re really encouraged to see how much they enjoyed it. It has been our experience here in New York that student relationships and seeing them absorb the content is very rewarding. It’s great to see that happening elsewhere.

 If you are in Austin and interested in taking Girl Develop It classes you can check out the meetup here. 

I love hackathons, but they are gross. 48 hours, no sleep or showers, and cheap food/beer. You build something awesome but you walk out smelling like PBR and Axe body spray (the preferred scent of college co-eds everywhere). 

Enter: Girl Develop It (cue: superhero theme music). Jump Thru founder and friend of Girl Develop It Deborah Jackson contacted us last month with an incredible offer. She told us that she had rented a six bedroom house in the Hamptons for the month of July, and asked if we could use it for anything. We were so ecstatic for the opportunity to plan our first hackathon. 

We are tired of the usual hackathon setup, and we’re doing our own take this time. We will have a pool, and wine, and delicious barbecue. While we are enjoying these things we will be building multiple solutions to help a charity we all believe in. 

Last week we gathered at Deborah’s home and together twenty-five women convened to plan the first ever hackathon to combat human trafficking in New York City. The event brought together a wide array of accomplished professionals, including Internet and social entrepreneurs, experienced front-end and back-end developers, and seasoned executives in strategy and marketing.

Christina Arnold, founder of non-governmental organization, Prevent Human Trafficking, and Reynolds Fellow in Social Entrepreneurship at NYU, was a guest speaker. She spoke to the group about her personal experiences encountering human trafficking as a child and about her innovative technical solution to prevent human trafficking in Southeast Asia using SMS, or short message service, technology. After the presentation, the group split into three focused groups to explore new technical solutions that would be created during the three-day long Hackathon scheduled for July.

We concluded that the weekend of July 15-17 we will be headed to the Hamptons, laptops in tow. We plan on attacking this problem from several different angles, and to do that we will be putting together several groups to work together over this long weekend. 

Be prepared for a lot of tweeting, eating, and developing. We will be keeping the public abreast of our goings on, by tweeting out the hashtag #GDIHHH and filling our streams with pictures of coding in the sun, developing on lounge chairs, and toasting long evenings over buzzing laptops. 

We have a handful of spots open to the public to join us. We are looking for a diverse mix of skills. You can apply here: http://bit.ly/jCpQpo. For those following along at home make sure to tune into #GDIHHH, look there or at this blog for what he have built on the conclusion of the weekend. 

As usual, thanks, and happy developing!

Girl Develop It is 6 months old!!!

How we’ve grown! We’ve learned a lot of things, and met many amazing people. Our students are our biggest inspiration; eager to learn and very bright. They organize study groups, stay after class for extra help, and ALWAYS do their homework. We’re proud of the progress we have made, and we thought it was time to show the world what we have been up to. 

Check out some data

272 unique students have attended our 45 classes, where we have covered:

• HTML/CSS
• Javascript/JQuery 
• Ruby on Rails 
• Datastructures with MongoDB
• Intro to Git

26% of those students have taken more than one class:

We have had eight teachers that we owe everything to:

• Myself (Sara Chipps)
• Alexis Goldstein
• Vanessa Hurst
• Tony Bacigalupo
• Avi Flombaum (Avi donated his pay for being a teacher right back to Girl Develop It!)
• Emma Persky
• Ana Hevesi
• Scott Reynolds

Our teachers get from 60-80% of class revenue, depending how active a role they play in helping to coordinate their class. They are our lifeblood and, besides teaching class, they have done a lot of curriculum development and one on one mentorship with students in exchange for merely gratitude. 

We have a Sydney location, run by the incredible Pamela Fox. It has offered many successful classes including Javascript and HTML/CSS, making us in New York very proud.

We have had countless teacher’s assistants that can’t all be named in this post. We thank every one of you, and I know our students do too.  

Many amazing organizations have hosted our classes, all of them donated or offered at a reduced rate, including:

• Meetup.com
• Fog Creek
• New Work City
• Weiden + Kennedy
• Etsy
• Hive at 55

We received 56 O’Reilly books from an anonymous donor. For the past two months of classes, most of our students have left with a brand new O’Reilly book to take home and continue learning with. Check out some of our happy ladies with their books:

What’s in the future for GDI? 

We are currently exploring programs to help continue our student’s education. Many have taken all of our classes and are learned but not experienced. We want to become a runway that curious women (and men) can depend on to take them from merely inquisitive to full fledged professional developer. We want to explore internships and apprenticeships. We also want to put together groups to go to hackathons together. It seems like there’s a hackathon every weekend in NYC these days, and we’d like our newbies to know they will have friends waiting for them there. 

Working on new classes

We are currently looking for sponsors for curriculum development for HTML 5 first, then Intro to OOP with Ruby on Rails. We used to have teachers build their own curricula, but once we realized how much goes into it, we started creating reusable curricula for our classes. You can check out our curricula here. 

Coming to a city near you

Girl Develop It has helped a lot of people to learn, but we’ve done a lot of learning ourselves as well. If you want to start a GDI branch in your city, we want to be in a position to help you get started and do it right. The level of commitment is high, but the rewards are much higher.

For now, we are warming up relationships with organizers in a few cities. Stay tuned for updates on that and, down the road, how you can bring GDI to your city too.

Looking ahead

We want to keep making software development accessible for everyone; women, and even *gasp* men. Low cost, an open environment, judgement-free, and easy to understand classes and programs. 

There’s a lot more work to do, and we can’t wait to tear into it. 

If you want to help, email us at board@girldevelopit.com. 

We are always excited to get feedback about our courses and hear what the students got out of them. Today, we are pleased to introduce Isabella de Medici, who blogs about social media and the political climate at Polichic.

Isabella recently wrote about women in technology, and her experience taking a class at Girl Develop It:

“Knowledge is not power - it is opportunity. In the United States, the gender disparity in technology is high, and a large chunk of the population is missing from the information technology idea pool:

“In 2009 women earned only 18 percent of all CS degrees. Back in 1985, women earned 37 percent of CS degrees. Only 11 percent of corporate officer positions at Fortune 500 technology companies are held by women. A study on U.S. technology patenting reveals that patents created by mixed-gender teams are the most highly cited (an indicator of their innovation and usefulness); yet women were involved in only 9 percent of U.S. tech patents.”

I don’t know what I don’t know; likewise, the tech industry cannot fully understand what it is missing. In turn, government entities, NGOs and private companies focusing on national security and information technology limit the scope of their projects with so few domestic, female employees to choose from.

The tides may be turning, and local tech groups that function to bring information technology to women are emerging. One group is Girl, Develop It! (GDI). This organization holds classes for women interested in low cost programming, HTML/CSS, and databases/querying. If you’re looking to enhance work skills or simply curious about what all those acronyms mean (PHP, BBQ or WTF), check out their site.

I took a series on HTML/CSS, and the instructor was Alexis Goldstein. She is the Director of Operations at GDI, and founded aut faciam, which develops iPad/iPhone applications. She is a terrific teacher, engaging and funny, and the team from GDI create a friendly environment for learning, no matter your skill set. I learned quite a bit, and will be going back another series.

GDI is a group steadily building the foundation for women entering tech, with public and private sectors reaping the benefits:

“By teaching women how to create their visions on the web, we hope to enable them to inspire those that come after. We believe that women are a great complement to an awesome industry.”

Thanks, Isabella! We would love to hear from other students, so feel free to drop us a line anytime at board at girldevelopit dot com!