The Wire

Duk Tales General web Duktape [duktape] is an embeddable JavaScript engine, focused on being small and portable. Here’s an introduction to Microsoft’s (now-open source) .Net Core [blogs.msdn]. Here’s a review of the state of JavaScript in 2015 [breck-mckye]. Concise [github/elliotchance] is a unit test framework for PHP emphasizing plain English and minimal code. commonmark-php [github/colinodell] is a PHP Markdown parser, following the CommonMark spec. Docker has unveiled three new services: Docker Machine, Docker Swarm and Docker Compose. Here’s an introduction direct from the horse’s mouth [blog.docker]. Flakes [flakes/kumailht] is an admin template framework intended to be used for business-facing web apps.

Stick At It Design A bit of a clickbaity title, but a good read: The 5 Most Common Mistakes in Design [medium]. Everyone loved that CSSstats site linked to last week, but here’s a guide to making sense of that CSS data [webdesign.tutsplus]. Skyline [skyline] is CSS architecture, a starting point for building your own CSS framework, promoting object oriented CSS. GluePrint [glueprintapp] is a tool for turning mockups into floating guides. And Supersonic [appgyver] is a UI framework designed to help build hybrid mobile apps.

March of the Penguins SitePoint First up on SitePoint: A guide to creating awesome infographics without any artistic skills Then Craig Buckler takes a look at the latest version of Firefox, which has some kind of weird inclusions. And here’s a guide to creating CSS sprites using Sass and Compass. Lastly, for this section, we’re currently in Christmas mode here at SitePoint HQ. Every day we’ve had new deals coming through, but the biggest response we’ve had so far has been our Penguin Foundation-supporting two-year-for-the-price-of-one Learnable membership deal. We'd hoped to raise $10,000 for the foundation, as this email is being composed, we're edging up to $30,000! Sign up, save a whole bunch of money ($144 to be precise), and help out some penguins!

Pass it On News/business Google has launched a great holiday intiative to inspire girls to pursue their dreams with code [madewithcode]. Quite a bit better than that Barbie “I can be a… computer engineer” book, that’s for sure. The Pay it Forward Bundle! is really, really worth investigating/supporting [payitforwardbundle].

The Wire Off-topic Wire [wire] is a new communications app by one of the guys behind Skype, which looks to be a modern way to communicate. Except some are concerned the app’s encryption isn’t all that’s promised [motherboard.vice]. Here’s Spotify’s fancy 2014 music summary site [spotify-yearinmusic]. Maptia [maptia] looks to be a social network/storytelling medium for stories from around the world, based on a map of the world rendered in hexagons. Didn’t we prove the world wasn’t made of hexagons hundreds of years ago? Meanwhile, new technology will allow astronauts to drink an espresso in space [motherboard.vice] Finally, this is one of those occasions where the headline the publication chose is impossible to improve: Pizza Hut Wants to Read Your Mind [washingtonpost].

Those are our links for the week. The whole week! We're going to go order some pizza, for some reason we're craving some. Maybe with a space espresso. We'll be back next week, see you then!