This document provides an overview of coding for librarians. It discusses why coding is relevant for libraries, including better understanding information systems, improving communication with IT, and participating in development projects. Common coding terms like XML, PHP, and JavaScript are defined. The document also gives examples of how coding skills could be used, such as adding columns to data or automatically adding a library proxy. Tips are provided, such as setting small goals and commenting code. Resources for learning coding include Codecademy, code4lib, and online tutorials.

1. CODING FOR LIBRARIANS
PART 1:WHY CARE ABOUT CODING?
Bohyun Kim
Associate Director, Health Sciences & Human Services Library
University Of Maryland, Baltimore
ReachingAcross Illinois Library System -Webinar
Tue, May 31, 2016 10:00Am - 11:00 Am Cdt

2. WEWILL COVERTODAY:
A. Why care about coding?
B. Why is coding relevant to libraries?
C. What does ‘coding’, ‘scripting’, ‘programming’ exactly mean?
D. What would I use the coding skill for?
E. Tips & Resources

3. SOME QUESTIONS FORYOU
• Q1. At what type of library & in what area of the library service do you
work?
• Q2.Why are you interested in coding?
• Q3. Do you have any experience with coding, and if so what is it?
• Q4. Have you tried teaching yourself how to code before, and if so what
where some of the difficulties?

4. A.WHY CARE ABOUT CODING?
• An increasing emphasis on coding in the K12 education
• People in many different professions - both academics and professionals -
are using the coding skill for their work.
• Code literacy? – Knowing how everyday software does what it does.
• Education – One of the library’s important mission
• More and more people are interested in learning how to code.
• Wider adoption of programming in academia across many different
disciplines

5. http://www.parentherald.com/articles/45853/20160526/why-coding-taught-
second-language-primary-school-children-according-apple-ceo-tim-cook.htm

6. https://code.org/

7. https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-03-26-choosing-a-
summer-coding-camp

8. http://www.codecademy.com/

9. http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-16440126

10. http://techcrunch.com/2014/12/08/barack-obama-becomes-the-first-president-to-write-code/

11. http://codeactually.com/

12. https://www.quora.com/Sho
uld-I-learn-how-to-code-if-I-
plan-on-being-a-full-time-
real-estate-investor?share=1

13. https://cyber.law.harvard.edu/node/95731

14. http://mith.umd.edu/

15. http://software-carpentry.org/

16. http://medhacks.org/

17. https://library.nd.edu/hackathon/

18. B.WHY IS CODING RELEVANTTO LIBRARIES?
• A better understanding of information systems & applications
• Improve communication and collaboration with IT.
• Participate in development projects as a partner rather than a
client simply asking for a product
• Being Able to do custom design / development for your library

19. Knowing how
the access to e-
resources Is
controlled
http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/journals/10.1163/15685284-12341297

20. http://www.hshsl.umaryland.edu/resources/databases/index.cfm

21. http://survey.hshsl.umaryland.edu/?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&bquery=(introduction+AND+to+AND+biostatistics+AND+sokal)&cli
0=LB&clv0=LB+Hea*&type=0&site=eds-live

22. http://libguides.luc.edu/

23. https://www.docdel.umaryland.edu http://ares.hshsl.umaryland.edu/

24. http://search.library.utoronto.ca
http://search.library.utoronto.ca

25. http://search.library.ut
oronto.ca

30. https://www2.hshsl.umaryland.edu/3d/

33. http://d.lib.ncsu.edu/myhuntlibrary/about

36. INFO DESK
SERVICES
STATISTICS
THROUGHOUT
THEWEEK

37. WHICH
SCHOOL
BORROWS
MOST
ARTICLES
THROUGH
OUR ILL
SERVICE?

38. E-BOOKS
USERS
WANT
BUTWE
DON’T
HAVE

39. DATABASES
THAT NEED
MORE USER
SEATS

40. C.WHAT DOES ‘CODING’, ‘SCRIPTING’,
‘PROGRAMMING’ EXACTLY MEAN?
• XML
• BOOTSTRAP
• PHP
• API
• R
• HTML5
• JAVASCRIPT
• PYTHON
• Node
• MashUp
• RoR
• CSS
• .NET
• Regex
• XPATH
• C++
• Drupal
• VB
• Django
• XSLT
• RDF
• Ruby
• SPARQL
• CakePHP
• MySQL
• Apache

41. MARKUP LANGUA
http://www.w3schools.com/css/tryit.asp?filename=trycss_list-style-type_ex

43. WHAT IS PROGRAMMING?
• Markup language vs. Programming language
• Is it knowing how to use a CMS (Wordpress, Drupal) or a certain computer
software like Dreamweaver?
• Is it knowing how to edit HTML, CSS, XML?
(http://www.cs.tut.fi/~jkorpela/prog.html )
• Programming is knowing and writing the logic for a computer to execute in
a programming language that a computer understands.

44. • JavaScript
• PHP
• PHP
• Python
• var a = ["do", "re", "mi", "fa"];
var len = a.length;
for (var i = 0; i < len; i++) {
console.log(a[i]);}
• $a = array("do", "re", "mi", "fa");
for ($i=0; $i<count($a); $i++){
echo $a[$i]."<br/>";}
• $a = array("do", "re", "mi", "fa");
foreach ($a as $i=>$note){
echo $note."<br/>";}
• a = ['do', 're', 'mi', 'fa']
for i in a:
print i

47. PROGRAMMING ENABLES THE DYNAMIC
MANIPULATION/TRANSFORMATION OF THE INPUT.

48. CODE, SCRIPT, PROGRAM
• Usually the term, ‘coding,’ refers to the knowledge of a programming language, not a
markup language. (Web designer vs programmer)
• http://blogs.jbllanda.com/markup-language-versus-programming-language/
• Code and scripts are also generally much smaller than a full-blow program.
• Here, I will use both terms – coding & programming – interchangeably.
• See the difference between scripting vs. programming:
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scripting_language
• http://stackoverflow.com/questions/17253545/scripting-language-vs-programming-
language

49. D.WHATWOULD I USETHE CODING SKILL FOR?

50. Need to add an empty
column in the front for
the ID to import the
file into a db table.

51. Excel messes
things up.

52. A Python script
takes care of
this!

53. http://stroke.ahajournals.org/content/47/6/1421.full
http://stroke.ahajournals.org/content/47/6/1421.full
Help those
users who
forget to log in
through the
library proxy
and can’t get to
the full-text!

54. https://login.proxy-
hs.researchport.umd.edu/
login?qurl=

55. The
library
proxy
automatic
ally
added!
http://stroke.ahajournals.org.proxy-
hs.researchport.umd.edu/content/47/6/1421.full

56. MORE INFO
• Playing with JavaScript and JQuery – the Ebook link HTML string generator
and the EZproxy bookmarklet generator
http://www.bohyunkim.net/blog/archives/255

57. WHATWOULD I USETHE CODING SKILL FOR?

59. “Building a Faculty Publications Database” presented at LITA Forum 2014
http://www.slideshare.net/bohyunkim/building-a-faculty-publications-database

63. E.TIPS & RESOURCES
Photo from Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/51035800575@N01/94995636/

64. TIPS
• Don’t be discouraged or frustrated.You are teaching yourself a language.
• Be persistent and realistic.
• Set small goals that solve real-life problems.
• Form or join a study group & find like-minded folks!
• Comment your code and document since you will forget what you have
learned and made.

65. COMMON OBSTACLES
• Coding can be more tedious than exciting.
• Not enough attention to the syntax
• More time will be spent on debugging than code writing!
• A slow learning curve
• Not enough time for intensive learning
• Not always a clear connection with your library work
• Life events

66. http://www.vikingcodeschool.com/posts/why-learning-to-code-is-so-damn-hard

67. http://www.vikingcodeschool.com/posts/why-learning-to-code-is-so-damn-hard

69. RESOURCES
• Many resources online – discussions, tutorials, books…
• W3SchoolsTutorials
• Tuts+
• MOOC
• Codecademy / CodeYear
• Lynda.com;Treehouse; Code School
• Pick One and ACTUALLY DOING IT
• Code4Lib listserv/IRC/journal/conference (http://code4lib.org/)
• LibTechWomen (http://libtechwomen.org/)

71. For the AfternoonWorkshop,
follow the instructions
in the Set-up Section below:
https://github.com/bohyunkim/exam
ples/tree/master/rails

72. QUESTIONS?
IT’S JUST SOME CODE!
¯_(ツ)_/¯