Recommendation: Replacing Existing JSON File in Shell Lesson

[RabeaMue]

How could the content be improved?

Dear maintainers,

I am submitting this pull request to propose a change in the Shell Lesson of Library Carpentry. Currently, the existing JSON file in shell-lesson.zip is quite lengthy and does not provide an optimal structure for demonstrating what a JSON file looks like to learners.

As an alternative, I suggest replacing the existing JSON file with the one available at this URL: https://api.crossref.org/v1/works/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1004668. This alternative JSON file is significantly shorter and presents a clearer and more concise structure for learners to understand.

I believe this change will enhance the learning experience for participants of the Shell Lesson, making it easier for them to grasp the essentials of JSON data structures.

Please review this proposal, and I am open to any feedback or suggestions for improvement. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely, Rabea

Which part of the content does your suggestion apply to?

https://github.com/LibraryCarpentry/lc-shell/blob/main/episodes/data/201403160_01_text.json

[kaitlinnewson]

Hi @RabeaMue, thanks for your suggestion. While I agree that the Crossref JSON is better structured, the point of this lesson is not for the learner to understand JSON file structures, but to understand how to manipulate them (or any text-based file). This change would also require significant updating to the exercise in Episode 6 as the commands there would no longer work. At this time I don't believe this change is necessary, but I will leave this issue open for further discussion.

@jmjamison @annaoates What do you think about this proposed change?

[kaitlinnewson]

Closing this issue for now, but will re-open if further discussion is needed.