Get Scrappy with Bookmarklets
Using a tool that falls short of what you need? Been there. Bookmarklets are a quick and easy way to leverage some simple JavaScript to get scrappy and fill in the gaps in the functionality of your tools. Here is how I have used this hack:
ZenHub is a project management tool that enables teams to put estimates on GitHub issues. My challenge was, the page I used quickly filter for relevant issues during weekly planning did not summarize the estimates of issues on that page. I needed to understand how many points the team was committing to without wasting a moment of team planning time. By using JavaScript to scrape the page and sum, I had my answer. I copy+pasta-ed this into a Bookmarklet and saved a few minutes in every sprint planning.
javascript: (function() { "use strict";var interval=setInterval(function(){if(document.querySelector(".zh-estimate-badge")){var a=0;document.querySelectorAll("span.zh-estimate-badge").forEach(function(b){a+=parseInt(b.innerHTML,10)}),clearInterval(interval),alert(a)}},1e3); })();
JIRA Ticket Template
My favorite use of the bookmarklet. For those of us using JIRA without admin rights, you likely cannot set a template for a JIRA description. Having a visible, accessible template that your team uses to communicate work can help you move fast and avoid miscommunications. Use this tool to create a customized bookmarklet and share it with your team.
