TowerBuilder

TowerBuilder is a system to generate websites with data visualizations that mix open contracting and beneficial ownership data, all without requiring programming knowledge. It is designed to follow the money in large contracting processes and has been used in both big public works (TorreDeControl.org <www.torredecontrol.org>) and in medicine procurement (VivirConVIH.org <https://livingwithhiv.quienesquien.wiki>).

You can find full documentation in TowerBuilder manual, where you’ll find step-by-step instructions on how to use this tool to create your own website.

What do I need to create my own TowerBuilder website?

• Get an OCDS-format contracting list..
• Create a spreadsheet shared with contracting businesses owners.
• Write and edit text in MarkDown-format.
• A GitHub.com account.

What are the advantages of creating websites using TowerBuilder?

• Default design doesn't require any coding or web hosting, everything is done in GitHub.com.
• Visually impressive data visualization and a useful contracting search system.
• If you already have the data, you'll be able to create your website within minutes.
• Highly customizable design.
• You can use open data from your country's government and show how useful the open contracting standard (OCDS) is for journalism.

What are the steps?

1. Fork the repository
2. Edit configuration
3. Import data
4. Edit texts
5. Publish the website

If you find any problem not contemplated in the documentation, or need any help creating your website, you can email PODER: [email protected]. You can also use GitHub’s own issue system: https://github.com/ProjectPODER/TowerBuilder/issues.

Install the development kit

If you're a developer and wish to run TowerBuilder locally, follow these steps:

1. In the terminal, clone the repository: git clone https://github.com/ProjectPODER/TowerBuilder.git

2. Enter the project: cd TowerBuilder

3. Once in the folder, install all the needed units for the project: bundle install

4. Build the website and make it available at localhost: bundle exec jekyll serve

5. Browse to http://localhost:4000

Next steps

• Make Visualization section's graphic optional.
• Allow other kinds of visualizations in this section.

Launched projects

• Living with HIV - http://livingwithhiv.org/

Contact us to add your project created with TowerBuilder through the following e-mail address: [email protected].

Demos

You can see an example page at:

Spanish: http://es.towerbuilder.projectpoder.org/

English: https://towerbuilder.projectpoder.org/

Documentation

Spanish: https://towerbuilder.readthedocs.io/es/latest/index.html

English: https://towerbuilder.readthedocs.io/en/latest/index.html