Difference between revisions of "Sugar Labs/Current Events"

Revision as of 11:48, 25 August 2010

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This page is updated each week (usually on Monday morning) with notes from the Sugar Labs community. (The digest is also sent to the community-news at sugarlabs.org list, blogged at walterbender.org, and archived here.) If you would like to contribute, please send email to walter at sugarlabs.org by the weekend. (Also visit planet.sugarlabs.org.)

Sugar Digest

1. I wrote about a discussion with John Gilmore in April. When John asked how many patches have been contributed by Sugar end-users, I responded that community members have contributed patches but that I was unaware of any patches contrinuted by children. I went on to argue that it is not relevant whether or not patches are submitted or accepted. The learning happens in creating the patch and in submitting it or sharing it with a friend. Hopefully, Sugar has instilled in children and their teachers the sense that they can be expressive with computing.

That said, the children are being creative with Sugar in ways that I had not anticipated. For example, Bernie shared this image from Caacupe of a surprising and wonderful use of the nickname field in Sugar. It may not be a patch to the Python code, but it certainly is a user contribution that extends and enhances Sugar, a great first step for a sixth grader.

2. In the US, there is a mid-term election in November. At Sugar Labs, we will be holding our mid-term election in October in order to fill three oversight board positions. (You may recall that we agreed to stagger the two-year terms of the board so that 3 or 4 positions are up for reelection every year.)

We have several tasks associated with election:

(1) Updating our member list, which is used to generate ballots. If you are already a member of Sugar Labs, your name will appear on the list and you will receive a ballot by email in October. If you are not a member and would like to be, please contact Luke Faraone, our membership administrator, who will add you to the list. Recall that the requirement to be a member of Sugar Labs is to engage with the project and the community. This can be as simple as asking a question.

(2) Gathering together a list of nominees. If you are interested in joining the Sugar oversight board, please contact me and I will add your name to the ballot. Also, please prepare a position statement about your candadicy on your "User" page in the wiki. There are no restrictions in regard to whom can run, e.g., whether you were born in Kenya or the United States, you are eligible.

In the community

3. There will be an OLPC/Sugar/Realness summit October 21 – 24 in San Francisco. The summit is being hosted by the San Francisco Bay Area OLPC community. More details are available at [1].

Tech Talk

4. Last week, we entered Feature Freeze for Sugar Release 0.90. This week we entered UI Freeze. Next week is String Freeze. Hard code freeze starts on September 13. Simon Schampijer is once again pulling together contributions from the community; the new release is looking great.

Sugar Labs

Gary Martin has generated a SOM from the past week of discussion on the IAEP mailing list.

2010 August 7th-13th (61 emails)

Visit our planet for more updates about Sugar and Sugar deployments.

Community News archive

An archive of this digest is available.

Planet

The Sugar Labs Planet is found here.

Sugar in the news

09 Aug 2010	ABC digital – Indicadores constatan el impacto positivo en el aprendizaje de niños
23 Jun 2010	ABC digital – Xo para todas las escuelas de Caacupé
21 Jun 2010	La Nacion – “Buscamos que los niños no solo usen softwares, sino que puedan crear uno”
20 Jun 2010	UltimaHora.com – La laptop une a padres, alumnos y docentes
15 Jun 2010	The H – OLPC XO-1.5 software updated
10 Jun 2010	engadget – Sugar on a Stick hits 3.0, teaches us about a new kind of fruit
27 May 2010	Pro Linux DE – Sugar on a Stick v3 freigegeben (German)
27 May 2010	NY Times – One Laptop Per Child Project Works With Marvell to Produce a $100 Tablet
27 May 2010	PC World – OLPC Rules out Windows for XO-3
03 May 2010	WXXI: Mixed Media – Interview with Walter Bender (audio)
03 May 2010	Linux Magazine – OLPC Computers for Palestinian Refugee Children
14 Apr 2010	National Science Foundation – XO Laptops Inspire Learning In Birmingham, Alabama (video)
02 Apr 2010	Dailymotion – Un jour... à Paris... ensembles pour OLPC et Sugar... (video)
15 Mar 2010	nbc13.com – Birmingham City students opt to spend spring break in class, XO computer camps (video)
18 Feb 2010	LWN – Karma targets easier creation of educational software
05 Feb 2010	iprofesional – La PC barata de Negroponte desembarca en la Argentina para pelear contra Intel
14 Jan 2010	AALF – Open Systems for Broader Change
03 Jan 2010	Educacion 2.0 – PLAN CEIBAL, El Libro
14 Dec 2009	xconomy – Sugar gets sweeter
10 Dec 2009	Ars Technica – Sugar software environment gets sweeter with version 2
09 Dec 2009	Wired – New Sugar on a Stick Brings Much Needed Improvements
08 Dec 2009	engadget – Sugar on a Stick OS goes to 2.0, gets Blueberry coating and creamy Fedora 12 center (video)
07 Dec 2009	Teleread.org – Sugar on a Stick: What it means for e-books and education
27 Nov 2009	CNET Japan – 「コードを見せて、もっと良くなるよ」と言える子どもが生まれる--Sugar Labsが描く未来
16 Nov 2009	zanichelli – software libero a scuola
12 Nov 2009	opensuse.org – openSUSE 11.2 Released
07 Nov 2009	My Broadband News – Mandriva 2010 packs a punch [and Sugar]
06 Nov 2009	GhanaWeb – Open education and an IT-enabled economic growth in Ghana: Musings of a dutiful citizen
26 Oct 2009	Linux Magazine ES – Software Libre como apoyo al aprendizaje
09 Oct 2009	interdisciplines – OLPC and Sugar: mobility through the community
08 Oct 2009	IBM developerWorks – 10 important Linux developments everyone should know about
01 Oct 2009	OLPC France – Interview Walter Bender au SugarCamp
25 Sep 2009	The Inquirer – One Laptop per Child marches on
18 Sep 2009	Groklaw – The Role of Free Software in Education
18 Sep 2009	Reuters – Sugar Labs and Free Software Foundation Celebrate Software Freedom Day
17 Sep 2009	ICTDev.org – Dream Again with One Laptop per Child
26 Aug 2009	Latinux – Azúcar en una memoria USB
03 Aug 2009	Wired: Geek Dad – Inventing a New Paradigm: SugarLabs and the Sugar UI
30 Jul 2009	Zanichelli – Sugar on a Stick: imparare insieme
23 Jul 2009	Everything USB – RecycleUSB.com - Donate your Flash Drives for a Good Cause
22 Jul 2009	OLPC France – Sugar : mauvaise presse et mise au point
13 Jul 2009	Spiegel Online – Das zuckersüße Leichtbau-Linux
07 Jul 2009	ComputerWorldUK – Gran Canaria Desktop Summit: a Study in Contrasts
06 Jul 2009	Windows Forest – USBメモリなどから“OLPC”用のOSを利用できる「Sugar on a Stick」が無償公開
02 Jul 2009	Howard County Library – Sugar on a Stick
27 Jun 2009	Deutschlandfunk – Süßes für die Kleinen: Sugar ist Linux speziell für Kinder (in Deutsch)
26 Jun 2009	EduTech – Sugar on a stick, and other delectables (praise for the lowly USB drive)
26 Jun 2009	Ars Technica – Sugar on a Stick brings sweet taste of Linux to classrooms
24 Jun 2009	BBC – OLPC software to power aging PCs
24 Jun 2009	Technology Review – $100 Laptop Becomes a $5 PC
15 Jun 2009	TechSavvyKids – Episode 10 FOSSVT: Sugar on a Stick (audio)
10 Jun 2009	LWN.net – Sugar moves from the shadow of OLPC
27 May 2009	LWN.net – Activities and the move to context-oriented desktops (subscriber link)
27 May 2009	Business Wire – Dailymotion Launches Support for Open Video Formats and Video HTML Tag
01 May 2009	Guysoft – Nokia N810 Running OLPC Sugar
29 Apr 2009	El Mercurio – Así se vivió la fiesta del software libre
27 Apr 2009	ostatic – Sugar on a Stick: Good for Kids' Minds (and School Budgets)
25 Apr 2009	Free Software Magazine – The Bittersweet Facts about OLPC and Sugar
24 Apr 2009	Ars Technica – First taste: Sugar on a Stick learning platform
22 Apr 2009	Betanews – Beta of Live USB Sugar OS opens
27 Mar 2009	Mass High Tech – Google promotes summer open-source internships
18 Mar 2009	Metropolis – A Good Argument
16 Mar 2009	Laptop Magazine – Sugar Labs’ New Version of Sugar Learning Platform Is Netbook and PC Ready
16 Mar 2009	Market Watch – Sugar Labs Nonprofit Announces New Version of Sugar Learning Platform for Children, Runs on Netbooks and PCs
14 Feb 2009	OLPC Learning Club – DC – Learning Learning on a Stick
05 Feb 2009	xconomy – Sugar Beyond the XO Laptop: Walter Bender on OLPC, Sucrose 0.84, and “Sugar on a Stick”
26 Jan 2009	Linus Magazine – Sugar Defies OLPC Cutbacks
19 Jan 2009	Feeding the Penguins – The status of Sugar, post-OLPC
16 Jan 2009	OLPC News – Sugar on Acer Aspire One & Thin Client via LTSP
12 Jan 2009	Bill Kerr – thoughts about olpc cutbacks
07 Jan 2009	Ars Technica – OLPC downsizes half of its staff, cuts Sugar development
06 Jan 2009	OLPC News – An Inside Look at how Microsoft got XP on the XO
30 Dec 2008	OLPC News – Sugar Labs Status at Six Months
22 Dec 2008	The GNOME Project – Sugar Labs, the nonprofit behind the OLPC software, is joining the GNOME Foundation
16 Dec 2008	Feeding the Penguins – Sugar git repository change
14 Dec 2008	NPR – Laptop Deal Links Rural Peru To Opportunity, Risk (Part 2)
13 Dec 2008	NPR – Laptops May Change The Way Rural Peru Learns (Part 1)
09 Dec 2008	SFC – Sugar Labs joins Conservancy
31 Oct 2008	Linux Devices – An OLPC dilemma: Linux or Windows?
10 Oct 2008	Feeding the Penguin – Sugar on Ubuntu
21 Sep 2008	Groklaw – Interview with Walter Bender of Sugar Labs
17 Sep 2008	Bill Kerr – Sugar Labs
16 Sep 2008	Open Source – Sugar everywhere
28 Aug 2008	OLPC News – An answer to Walter Bender's question 22
20 Aug 2008	OLPC News – Sugarize it: Intel Classmate 2
08 Aug 2008	Investor's Business Daily – 'Learning' Vs. Laptop Was Issue
06 Aug 2008	OLPC News – Twenty-three Questions on Technology and Education
18 Jul 2008	Bill Kerr – evaluating Sugar in the developed world
28 Jun 2008	OLPC News – A Cutting Edge Sugar User Interface Demo
18 Jun 2008	PC World – OLPC Spin-off Developing UI for Intel's Classmate PC
17 Jun 2008	Datamation – If Business Succeeds with GNU/Linux, Why Not OLPC?
11 Jun 2008	LinuxInsider – The Sweetness of Collaborative Learning
06 Jun 2008	Bill Kerr – untangling Free, Sugar, and Constructionism
06 Jun 2008	Open Education – Walter Bender Discusses Sugar Labs Foundation
06 Jun 2008	BusinessWeek – OLPC: The Educational Philosophy Controversy
05 Jun 2008	Code Culture – The Distraction Machine
05 Jun 2008	BusinessWeek – OLPC: The Open-Source Controversy
27 May 2008	The New York Times – Why Walter Bender Left One Laptop Per Child
26 May 2008	Ars Technica – OLPC software maker splits from X0 hardware, goes solo
22 May 2008	BetaNews – Linux start-up Sugar Labs in informal talks with four laptop makers
16 May 2008	OSTATIC – OLPC's Open Source Sugar Platform Aims for New Hardware
16 May 2008	PCWorld – Bender Forms Group to Promote OLPC's Sugar UI
16 May 2008	MHT – Bender jumps from OLPC, founds Sugar Labs
16 May 2008	News.com – Sugar Labs will make OLPC interface available for Eee PC, others
16 May 2008	Feeding the Peguins – The future of Sugar
16 May 2008	Sugar list – A few thoughts on SugarLabs
16 May 2008	xconomy – Bender Creates Sugar Labs—New Foundation to Adapt OLPC’s Laptop Interface for Other Machines
16 May 2008	BBC – '$100 laptop' platform moves on
15 May 2008	OLPC wiki – Dual-boot XO Claim: OLPC will not work to port Sugar to Windows.
16 May 2008	Softpedia – Bender Launches Sugar Labs for Better Development of OLPC's Sugar UI

Press releases

See our Press Page

@@ Line 5: / Line 5: @@
 ==Sugar Digest==
-. The ''New York Times'' reported on a FailFaire gathering last month "over drinks and finger food", where MobileActive, "a network of people and organizations trying to improve the lives of the poor through technology", presented a prize for the worst ICT for Development project. The prize was an OLPC XO laptop, "a program that MobileActive members regard as the emblem of the failure of technology to achieve change for the better." ''The Chronicle of Philanthropy'' subsequently picked up on the article: "One Laptop Per Child was recently laid off some staff members [SIC] after falling far short of its goal of providing inexpensive laptop computers to tens of millions of children in the developing world."
+. I wrote about [[Archive/Current_Events/2010-04-01|a discussion with John Gilmore]] in April. When John asked how many patches have been contributed by Sugar end-users, I responded that community members have contributed patches but that I was unaware of any patches contrinuted by children. I went on to argue that it is not relevant whether or not patches are submitted or accepted. The learning happens in creating the patch and in submitting it or sharing it with a friend. Hopefully, Sugar has instilled in children and their teachers the sense that they can be expressive with computing.
-I asked Katrin Verclas, a founder of MobileActive, for the evidence that OLPC was a failure and she said "OLPC was not discussed or presented at the FailFaire." It seems she has no evidence and yet she is sufficiently tone-deaf to be unconcerned that her using the XO as an emblem of failure might be damaging to the efforts of the thousands of people trying to help the millions of children who are using the XO and Sugar. I would expect better from the ''New York Times'', the ''Chronicle of Philanthropy'', and from an organization that purports to shed some light on what works/doesn't work in development. I recommended that Verclas read ''Aristotle and and Aardvark go to Washington'' as she might learn a few more techniques for character assassination from Cathcart and Klein.
+That said, the children are being creative with Sugar in ways that I had not anticipated. For example, Bernie shared [http://codewiz.org/wiki/pictures/sugar/deployment/paraguay/caacupe/scratcheros/00003.jpg this image] from Caacupe of a surprising and wonderful use of the nickname field in Sugar. It may not be a patch to the Python code, but it certainly is a user contribution that extends and enhances Sugar, a great first step for a sixth grader.
-. On a positive note, I've archived a short exchange on the #sugar channel on irc.freenode.net.
+. In the US, there is a mid-term election in November. At Sugar Labs, we will be holding our mid-term election in October in order to fill three oversight board positions. (You may recall that we agreed to stagger the two-year terms of the board so that 3 or 4 positions are up for reelection every year.)
- <marcopg> erikos: approve my trivial patch! :) I want to push again to sugar after so long :)
+We have several tasks associated with election:
- <erikos> marcopg: just because you have just one module does not mean to not need to specify the module anymore!
- <erikos> marcopg: r!
- <erikos> marcopg: welcome back! :)
- <marcopg> erikos haha
- <marcopg> thanks :)
-For those of you who a relatively new to Sugar, Marco was a lead developer on the Red Hat team that worked with OLPC and Pentagram to develop Sugar. He helped found Sugar Labs but has been missing from our ranks over the past 12 months due to other obligations. It is great to have Marco contributing again.
+(1) Updating our [[Sugar_Labs/Members/List|member list]], which is used to generate ballots. If you are already a member of Sugar Labs, your name will appear on the list and you will receive a ballot by email in October. If you are not a member and would like to be, please contact Luke Faraone, our membership administrator, who will add you to the list. Recall that the requirement to be a member of Sugar Labs is to engage with the project and the community. This can be as simple as asking a question.
-. Dinko Galetic, Lucian Branescu Mihaila, and Sebastian Dziallas all successfully completed their Google Summer of Code projects. Congratulations and thanks to Google for sponsoring the work and to their mentors Stefan (Dogi) Unterhauser, Luis Gustavo Lira, Michael Stone, and Sascha Silbe, and to Tim McNamara for organizing the Sugar Labs GSoC program.
+(2) Gathering together a list of nominees. If you are interested in joining the Sugar oversight board, please contact me and I will add your name to the ballot. Also, please prepare a position statement about your candadicy on your "User" page in the wiki. There are no restrictions in regard to whom can run, e.g., whether you were born in Kenya or the United States, you are eligible.
-. This review was posted on the Physics page on activities.sugarlabs.org. I had to share it:
-:I love it! It's doodling for inventors! I've had so many ideas from this. Starting live is the only thing that makes sense. Otherwise it would not be obvious what the thing does, silly! Also, stopping time is for losers. build stuff on scaffolding, big tall blocks, then delete them when everything is pinned, or jointed, just like real life. :-) --dlotts
 ===In the community===
-. There is a call for presentations for an on-line global education conference that may be of interest to the Sugar community (See [http://www.globaleducationconference.com/call-for-presentations.html [1]]).
+. There will be an OLPC/Sugar/Realness summit October 21 – 24 in San Francisco. The summit is being hosted by the San Francisco Bay Area OLPC community. More details are available at [http://olpcsf.org/CommunitySummit2010/].
-. There is a comprehensive write up of last week's education summit at LinuxCon (See [http://mairin.wordpress.com/2010/08/16/mini-education-summit-linuxcon-boston-2010 [2]]).
 ===Tech Talk ===
-. We are making great progress towards Sugar 0.90. Follow the fun at [[0.90]].
+. Last week, we entered Feature Freeze for Sugar Release 0.90. This week we entered UI Freeze. Next week is String Freeze. Hard code freeze starts on September 13. Simon Schampijer is once again pulling together contributions from the community; the new release is looking great.
 ===Sugar Labs===