Okay, welcome back to the deep dive.
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You've shared some source material with us and, uh, well, you want us to
unpack what's really key inside it.
And that's exactly what we do here.
So today we're looking at something called, uh, it tools, right?
And our source for this is it's GitHub repository.
Basically, you know, where the project lives online, the home base.
And for this particular deep dive, our mission really is accessibility.
We want to make this understandable, easy to get into, especially if
you're maybe newer to this sort of tech stuff, right?
Exactly.
Whether you're deep in it or just, you know, curious.
Perfect.
And, uh, before we really jump in, we absolutely have to thank our sponsor.
Oh, definitely.
This deep dive is possible thanks to safe server.
They're all about hosting and supporting your digital transformation.
Think, uh, infrastructure experts, wizards behind the curtain.
Kinda.
You can find out more about them at www.safeserver.de.
And they really get the, you know, the nuts and bolts of running things online,
which actually ties in quite nicely with what we found in the source material
about these tools.
It really does.
Yeah.
Okay.
So let's, uh, let's open up this GitHub page metaphorically and see what we
can find about it tools.
Okay.
So right off the bat, the source gives a pretty clear description.
It calls it a collection of handy online tools for developers.
Okay.
Handy tools with great UX that's user experience.
Ah, right.
And the, the source also points out pretty quickly.
It's not just for like hardcore developers.
No, exactly.
It specifically mentions.
It's also useful for people working in IT.
So a bit broader than maybe the name implies initially.
Yeah, definitely cast a wider net.
The main idea, you know, reading between the lines a bit in the source is to give
you one reliable, well-designed place for all those little online utilities.
The ones you're always Googling for
precisely instead of bouncing between like 10 different random sites.
It aims to be the spot.
Makes sense.
And they give the website address right there too.
Yep.
It's in the source it dash tools dot tech.
Nice and simple.
Easy enough to check out.
Okay.
So that's what it is.
But this being GitHub, the source tells us more, right?
About like how popular it is.
Oh yeah, absolutely.
The repository itself gives us clues.
The source highlights, um, 30.3 K stars and 3.6 K forks.
Okay.
Let's break that down a bit for folks who maybe aren't living on GitHub stars.
What that signify?
Think of stars as like a public thumbs up or a bookmark.
Someone sees the project.
They like it.
They want to follow it.
They star it.
So over 30,000.
That's a lot of thumbs up.
It's huge.
Yeah.
It shows massive interest.
A really popular project.
Okay.
And forks, 3,600 of those.
What does that number tell us?
So a fork is when someone basically copies the entire project's code
into their own GitHub account.
Why would they do that?
Well, lots of reasons.
Maybe they want to suggest changes back to the original.
So 3,600 forks suggests a really engaged community.
People aren't just using it.
They're looking inside, tinkering, maybe contributing.
That leads kind of naturally to the license, doesn't it?
The source mentions GPL 3.0.
Why is that little detail important, especially for beginners?
It's super important.
GPL 3.0, that tells you it's open source, which means the actual code, the
instructions that make the tools work is publicly available.
Anyone can look at it, learn from it, even modify it or share it under
the rules of that license.
So it's not a black box.
Not at all.
It's transparent and it really allows for that community involvement
we were just talking about.
People can help build it together.
Right.
Okay.
So it's open source.
It's popular.
There's a community.
How do people actually use these tools then beyond just going to
website it data tools.tech.
What did the source say?
Ah this is where it gets quite practical especially for that I.T.
crowd.
The source talks a lot about self hosting self hosting meaning running
it yourself.
Exactly.
You can actually download and run this whole collection of tools on your
own server or even just your own computer maybe.
Okay.
That sounds potentially a bit technical though.
Does the source give specifics on how it does list a few ways.
It mentions using Docker which is a really common tool for packaging
applications.
Right.
I've heard of Docker so you can pull the it tools image from places called
Docker hub or GitHub packages.
There are specific commands listed but the point is Docker is a well-known
option.
Okay.
So Docker is one way.
Any others mentioned.
Yep.
The source also lists a few platforms specifically designed to make self
hosting easier names like Cloudron, Tippy and Unraid.
Okay.
And it even uses the term Home Lab.
Oh yeah. People running their own server racks at home that kind of thing.
Pretty much.
So mentioning Home Lab suggests they know some of their audience are tinkerers
people running their own gear.
So the message seems to be use our website.
It's easy.
Or if you're into it here are several ways to run it yourself.
That's quite flexible.
I'm pretty flexible.
It caters to different needs and skill levels you know.
And just quickly what about the tech behind it.
Did the source mention what it's built with.
It did.
Yeah.
Just briefly it lists the main technologies as view TypeScript and
JavaScript.
Okay.
Again don't need a deep dive into web development right now but those
sound like fairly standard modern web technologies.
They are very common which probably makes it easier for people to
understand the code contribute and maybe even self host it like we were
saying it all connects which brings us back to the community.
Since it is open source how did someone actually chip in.
Can you suggest things.
Totally.
The source makes it pretty clear they welcome that.
It says you can submit a feature request.
So if you have an idea for a cool new tool they should add.
Yep.
You can suggest it.
And it's not just talk either.
Also the source explicitly mentions a contributor section and it gives big
thanks to all the people who have already contributed.
Nice acknowledging the help.
Exactly.
It also credits the creator.
Corentin Thomas says it was coded with ERR and mentions it's deployed using
Vercel so you get a picture of a real active project.
OK so let's step back a bit.
We've got the what, the how, the who.
What's the bigger picture here?
Why should you, listening now, especially if you're newer to IT, care
about this it tools thing?
Well I think there are a couple of layers.
On the surface just having one place for lots of common IT and developer
tools is obviously handy.
Saves time.
Right.
Definitely.
Less hunting around.
Well remember that phrase from the description?
Rate UX.
User experience.
Right.
Easy to use.
Looks nice.
Easily.
And I think that's quite significant.
Here you have an open source project likely started by one person built with
community help and it's explicitly prioritizing making it pleasant and
intuitive to use.
Yeah.
That wasn't always the focus in older open source stuff.
You know sometimes it was just about function.
Good point.
Function over form sometimes.
Yeah.
So this shows a maturity I think.
Open source competing on usability on design not just features.
It wants to be genuinely helpful and nice to use.
And what about the self hosting angle.
What does that tell us.
I think that signals who they value as users too.
By highlighting Docker unraid home lab they're clearly appealing to people who
like control who maybe run their own infrastructure people who value tinkering
and owning your tools perhaps precisely.
It's not just for the casual click and use person although it serves them well on
the Web site.
It also embraces the I.T.
Pro the enthusiast who wants flexibility and ownership.
So for a beginner it's kind of the best of both worlds.
Easy access online yet it dash tools dot tech but also a path to explore deeper
concepts like self hosting or even looking at the code if they get curious.
Exactly.
It provides that on ramp low barrier to entry but with depth available if you want
it.
Fascinating.
OK let's try and boil this down.
Quick recap of the essentials we pull from the source.
OK so it tools.
It's a popular open source set of online tools aimed at developers and I.T.
folks key feature designed for great UX.
So it's easy and pleasant to use.
You can use it right away at the Web site it dash tools dot tech or if you're
inclined you can run it yourself self host it using things like Docker or
platforms like cloud run tippy unraid under the hood.
It's built with modern Web tech like Vue and TypeScript and it's kept alive and
growing by an active community alongside the creator and the kind of deeper
insight here is how it blends that user friendliness that good design with the
flexibility and community spirit often found in open source especially appealing
to IT pros.
Yeah it's a great example of how much you can learn just by looking closely at a
project's you know main page like its GitHub repository.
You really can get the purpose the tech the community vibe how to use it all from
that one source.
Which leaves us with a thought for you to take away.
If you can discover something this useful and understand it this well just from
exploring its online home.
What other amazing tools or projects might be out there waiting for you to find
them with your own little deep dive.
We're thinking about and of course our exploration today this deep dive was made
possible with support from safe server.
That's right.
They help with digital transformation needs including the kind of hosting stuff
we touched upon today.
You can learn more at WW debt safe server dot D.E.
Indeed.
Well thanks for joining us for this deep dive.
We'll catch on the next one.
We'll catch on the next one.