project

i've been trying to teach myself more about computer programming, but one of the hurdles is that i haven't been able to think of anything interesting that my computer does, that i wish it would do. that always makes it easier to give myself direction. it's all a bunch of commands and features, but if i can't apply it to making my computer do something that is cool or interesting, then it's hard for me to synthesize the information, use it, and make it stick.

i think i just came up with a project. it's definitely nothing new or groundbreaking [i'm sure someone has written something like this before], but i have a project that interests me, and would make something that i do on the computer anyway just a little easier to do. i'm going to write a shell script that makes blog posts. it's still in the flowcharting stage, and will require gaining some familiarity with the APIs of the sites that i like to use, but this seems like a fairly good project for me to get used to scripting. twitter will be the easiest, so i'll write that one first...blogger will probably come next, and then livejournal [since the options on that seem to be the most complicated]. who knows, i may add some other functions later, but that's plenty to start with--and those are the three sites i like to post updates on most frequently, so it only makes sense that a program i write for my own personal amusement will start with them.