S:Team

A couple of years ago I started teaching myself computer programming. But not being the sort of person who can go step by step through the usual "Hello World!" routines I decided instead to create a couple of applications that I thought would be useful.

The first, Daydreamer XMLwas a rudimentary content management system for Dreamweaver that predated "Contribute" and was designed to solve a particular problem I was having in my job at the time. If you use Dreamweaver, give it a go. Version 2 is nearly complete but after Macromedia brought out contribute I gave up. MacUser, a UK magazine actually featured DayDreamer as a "Top 10 Web Utility" on their cover CD so maybe I was on to something!

My current project is something called "S:Team" (i.e. "esteem" - geddit?)

"S:Team is an online tool to help you identify your strengths and weaknesses when working and studying as part of a team. S:Team will help you identify your teamwork tendencies, and to identify the roles that others can play too."

It's a tool initially designed for students after i got fed up with colleagues sticking them into groups and expecting them to get on with each other for team-based projects. I created a version in Javascript and, simultaneously, in REALbasic, and it works quite well. I even sold a copy!

Last Christmas I decided to improve it and started on version 2, this time in Flash using Actionscript 2. Again, it's just about finished but the last six months have been quite hectic. I'm hoping to sort it out over the summer. But last week S:Team was "announced" to the art and design academic community in a publication my department produces, so the past few days I've been busy making the site a bit more user-friendly. Feel free to give it a go - the online version works and is free for individual use. If you want to use it with staff or students you need to buy a site license. Version 2, which will be free to owners of version 1, should be out in September and it's looking much better.

When I used S:Team with students back in 2002 it worked a treat - none of the teams had any problems that couldn't be sorted out. Teamwork is something that should be taught properly, not just used as a quick fix to staffing problems. S:Team helps that process, I hope.