Frogans site of the week: frogans*lab

16 November 2017 Frogans site of the week

Hello, everyone!

After frogans*fsdlreminder last week, this week we will focus on another great Frogans site called frogans*lab.

What is it?

Basically, frogans*lab is a laboratory of experiments using the Frogans technology. On this Frogans site, you can find different things: proofs of concept (e.g. a POC for an RSS reader), FSDL coding experiments, fully functional services (e.g. world weather checking), etc.

frogans*lab RSS reader POC

It is a great resource for an anyone who wants to grasp what is technically feasible with the Frogans technology by seeing it in action: content publishers, developers, internet users… For developers, it is the ideal complement to Frogans-lab.com, a blog on “tips, tricks and trys for authoring Frogans sites.”

frogans*lab weather consultation site

Interview of frogans*lab’s creator: Joe CADY

Hello, Joe, can you briefly introduce yourself?

Joe Cady

Hi, my name is Joe Cady, and I have been involved with the Frogans projects for many years. As a professional graphic artist, one of the first things I did was to design Frogans sites demos at a time when the FSDL language was still in a rudimentary form. As time went by, I did a lot of other things. For instance, I went to ICANN meetings to help find the right partners for creating the .frogans TLD, I took part in marketing research, in communication, etc.

Currently, on the sidelines of my work for the FCR Operator, I am a Frogans technology blogger with frogans-lab.com, where I address the Frogans community to help them in their initiatives. Lately, I have designed a bunch of Frogans sites, including demonstration Frogans sites like frogans*Beaches, the first version of a Frogans site for Frogans Addresses For All, a registration management company for Frogans addresses, available at frogans*Addresses, and of course frogans*lab.

How would you describe frogans*lab?

frogans*lab is a companion Frogans site for frogans-lab.com blog. It is notably the place where I demonstrate my Frogans sites under development. There is a section called “gallery” linking to many Frogans “sub-sites” that do not have their own Frogans addresses yet, including one that contains links to a number of other Frogans sites.

frogans-lab.com is geared towards anybody who wants to design Frogans sites, get them online, become involved in the Frogans ecosystem, but needs a bit of help getting started. On frogans-lab.com, they can find the basics of Frogans sites design, FSDL coding, Frogans addresses registration, etc.

FSDL sample code

What excites you in managing frogans*lab and frogans-lab.com?

First of all, it is fun to do. It is also exciting to think that for a lot of the stuff that I am presenting, I am the first person to do that. That is the pioneer thrill, if I may say! (laughs). Actually, there are tons of ideas, concepts, applications for Frogans sites that are not so difficult to do but that have not been explored yet. They are an opportunity for me to try a few things out!

When you see all the applications of Frogans sites that you are showcasing on frogans*lab,you can’t help but feeling a little bit frustrated that these are not available yet for the general public…

Well, enjoy that while you can. Frogans technology is still in an alpha state, more easily accessible to developers (although anyone can already download Frogans Player Alpha for developers and access Frogans sites for free). But I see this situation as an exciting opportunity to take part in the groundwork that needs to be done, before Frogans technology is actually available for the general public. In a way, the longer the delay before the beta version of Frogans Player is available to the general public, the more time I have to prepare the Frogans sites I am working on, hence the greater the impact on the first users. Until the launch day, no one knows what we are doing, essentially. It gives us more time to make the first impression.

What would be your advice for a developer wanting to create his very first Frogans site?

The first place to go is frogans-lab.com, of course! (Laughs) Also, on frogans.org, you can scroll down on the page to browse the documentation. The first document listed is the provisional FSDL specification. Specifically, I recommend the FSDL 3.0 Recap, that incidentally served as a basis for the conception of frogans*fsdlreminder (a Frogans site created by Vincent DECAESTEKE).

frogans*fsdlreminder home slide

Is there a way to give you a hand with frogans-lab.com and frogans*lab?

The biggest help I can receive is people reading my blog and experimenting with FSDL. The more people get involved, the more people who are already involved will benefit. This is a network-effect kind of project; we need to exchange ideas, to compete with each other to make the coolest sites , the most effective ones, that will achieve each and everybody’s goals.

Thank you Joe, see you then on frogans-lab.com and frogans*lab!