Additional Tools you can build from source

Make sure you do this first: all of the applications here require npm (the Node Package Manager), and Python. Make sure you have both of them installed and available from the command line. This is just a precaution; the CMDT machines should all have these tools installed. If not, try another lab location in the faculty. How to check:

Use the command prompt. Type the following commands and check that you get the following responses:

H:\>npm -v
5.6.0

H:\>python --version
Python 3.6.2

H:\>pip --version
pip 18.1 from c:\python36\lib\site-packages\pip (python 3.6)

Evolus Pencil

Evolus Pencil is a prototyping and wireframing tool, which is ridiculously easy to use, and which exports your wireframes to html - so you can show them off, on GitHub Pages. It's simpler to master than AxureRP, and gives you results in half the time.

Building Evolus Pencil from source

1. Using GitHub desktop, clone the Pencil repo to your H:\ drive.
2. In a cmd.exe (Command Prompt) window, go to the directory you cloned to.
3. Type the command npm install. This will cause the Node Package Manager to download all the project dependencies listed in its package.json file.
4. This should complete without errors (some warnings are OK)
5. Type the command npm start.
6. Evolus Pencil should start, just as if you had installed it.

Exporting as a webpage

Once you've installed Pencil, don't forget to add the Evolus Pencil Pretotype Plugin. It will allow you to export really fine html, which you can publish onto GitHub pages.

Full instructions for use:

Your mockup must have one page called "Start"! If you do not do this, the template will not know which of your pages to show first.

1. Install the template through the Pencil > Tools > Manage Export Template menu
2. Export your mockup with the template by using the Document > Export Document... wizard.
3. Choose to export a Single web page for the Output format
4. Select All pages in the document for pages to export
5. Select the Pretotype Template as your export template, provide a destination and click Done

OmniDB

OmniDB is a full featured Postgres database tool, which can be used from the browser. You can use this tool to connect to an empty database, and build it completely from scratch, using a nice GUI, rather than PSQL. Once done, you can export the whole thing or just its schema. Point is; it gets you moving quickly, getting your database up and running. It works on both local databases, and those accessible via a Postgres connection URL (Hosted, Heroku, AWS)

1. Using GitHub desktop, clone the OmniDB repo to your H:\ drive. (Make sure that it is the 2.12.0 version. Check here for releases)
2. In a cmd.exe (Command Prompt) window, go to the directory you cloned to.
3. Type the command pip install -r requirements.txt
4. This uses the Python package manager, Pip, to install all the dependencies found in requirements.txt
5. Once done, cd OmniDB
6. Then, python omnidb-server.py
7. A Django server should start running from the command prompt:

Starting OmniDB websocket...
Checking port availability...
Starting websocket server at port 25482.
Starting OmniDB server...
Checking port availability...
Starting server OmniDB 2.12.0 at 127.0.0.1:8000.
Starting migration of user database from version 0.0.0 to version 2.12.0...
OmniDB successfully migrated user database from version 0.0.0 to version 2.12.0
Open OmniDB in your favorite browser

DON'T FORGET!! the server is running at

localhost:8000

You will need to login to the OmniDB service. Use the following default credentials:

username: admin
password: admin

That's it!