WPW: a maker's manifesto, revised

Last night, the HTML5 meetup in Sacramento, California, invited Rebecca Hauck, Larry McLister, and myself to talk about Test the Web Forward and WebPlatform.org. We met up at the Hacker Lab, where there is also a maker's lab. So while we were talking about the Open Web, there was a laser-cutting workshop going on in the back. By now, the relationship between the rise of the maker's movement and hackerspaces has been codified in Wikipedia. But the Sacramento Hacker Lab summaries it nicely on their meetup page: "Hacker Lab is a collaborative workspace and organization of hackers, makers, and entrepreneurs. We foster technology through community education and mentorship. Together we are building a startup community and innovative ecosystem! Join us! BUILD CODE UNITE!"

BUILD CODE UNITE! I don't know where that manifesto came from, but sign me up! Whether you were wandering around Silicon Valley electronic surplus stores in the 70s or have recently encountered NodeBots, you know how addictive it can be to gather up components and create something of your own. And that's what hackers/makers/creatives are doing every day. And open web designers and developers are definitely part of this movement.

Of course, I'd like to insert a little edit into that manifesto: BUILD CODE DOC UNITE!

We need to document what we're doing: we need to build and code the web, but also, communicate, introspect, customize, and improve the web. So, please join us. Help us build this site. Share some of your coding best practices. Write an article about a topic you know and love. Edit a reference page so it is clearer to that genius child who is tinkering with -- or inventing -- the next web technology.

That genius child just may need a quick reminder about the latest layout properties, which is where our focus is right now. To help with the CSS properties project, visit the Web Platform Wednesdays page. Go through the Web Platform Wednesday past reports and choose one that hasn’t been completed. Coordinators are ready to help you help others, so hop on to the #webplatform IRC Channel or sign up for the mailing list. Let us know you're ready to join the movement!