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This page is updated every few weeks with notes from the Sugar Labs community. (The digest is also sent to the community-news at sugarlabs.org list, blogged at [http://walterbender.org/ walterbender.org], and [[Archive/Current Events|archived here]].) If you would like to contribute, please send email to [[User:walter|walter]] at sugarlabs.org by the weekend. (Also visit <span class="plainlinks">[http://planet.sugarlabs.org planet.sugarlabs.org].</span>)

This page is updated every few weeks with notes from the Sugar Labs community. (The digest is also sent to the community-news at sugarlabs.org list, blogged at [http://walterbender.org/ walterbender.org], and [[Archive/Current Events|archived here]].) If you would like to contribute, please send email to [[User:walter|walter]] at sugarlabs.org by the weekend. (Also visit <span class="plainlinks">[http://planet.sugarlabs.org planet.sugarlabs.org].</span>)

== Sugar Digest ==

==Sugar Digest==

1. I gave a talk at [http://www.aldeadigitalmx.com Aldea Digital] &mdash; a two-week long public event in Mexico DF that is sponsored by the Carlos Slim Foundation &mdash; at the same time that the New Horizons space probe was passing the orbit of Pluto. The path to Pluto was anything but straight. NASA utilized multiple gravitational slingshots to accelerate the spacecraft, and direct and redirect its path. E.g., New Horizons approached Jupiter not to visit Jupiter, but to use the planet’s speed around the sun to increase the spacecraft's velocity (relative to the sun). I used the occasion to make an analogy to Sugar: we have built a FOSS platform that we intend as intellectual slingshots. Our goal is not to simply immerse the student in learning a particular language or toolkit or achieve a particular curriculum goal, but to use the immersion as a means to stimulate them to pursue their own goals and ambitions.

1. Google Summer of Code 2015 is wrapping up. The students have been writing their final blog reports, submitting last-minute patches, and uploading their code to Google. I want to take this opportunity to thank all of our students and their mentors for all their hard work this summer. (Also, thanks once more to Google for supporting this program.) Great strides along many fronts were made. Specifically,

New Horizons, regardless of the success of its science mission, has already succeeded in tapping into a very human trait, the desire to explore the unknown and reach to new heights, hopefully enthusing the next generation of children to push even further. It is my hope that Sugar, in its small way, taps into the same human trait, also enthusing the next generation of children to push their limits.

* Michaël Ohayon worked on Web versions of some core activities for the Sugarizer project: Calculate, Paint (with collaboration, Record, and Memorize. He also submitted patches to Turtle Blocks to make it compatible with Sugarizer. Michaël's [blog http://sugarizingparis2015.blogspot.fr/] and git [repo https://github.com/mikklfr] are worth visiting. (Mentor: Lionel Laske)

2. Another Turtle workshop, also at Aldea Digital. I did an impromptu Turtle workshop here last year, using Sugar on a Stick to boot a bunch of Windows computers into Sugar. This year I used the web version of Turtle Blocks. The kids did fun projects and I am hoping because it is web based there may be some follow up this time. Carla Gomez Monroy (and her son Ian) joined me at the workshop, which made it extra fun.

Yash Khandelwal worked on Music Blocks AKA Mouse Music. This is a powerful, playful model for music in a block language. Yash's [blog [https://sugarizingmusic.wordpress.com/] and git [repo https://github.com/khandelwalYash/Music-Blocks] are also worth visiting. (Mentors: Devin Ulibarri and Marnen Laibow-Koser)

=== In the community ===

* Ishan Sharma revisited the Turtle 3D concept, rewriting it in Javascript. His results ([blog https://turtle3d.wordpress.com/2015/08/24/final-update/], demo and git [repo http://ishan28mkip.github.io/turtle3D/]) are robust, scalable, and extensible. (Mentor: Walter)

3. Call for papers for the special issue of RED (Journal of Distance Education):"Skills for coding and pre-coding":

* Amit Kumar Jha worked on extensions to Turtle programming this summer. He added argument passing and return values to procedures, passing arguments to and returning values from Turtle programs so that Turtle Blocks can be used for in-line programming by all Javascript activities, and he developed a unit=test framework for Turtle Blocks JS that can be extended to all of our Javascript activities. See his [blog http://sugarlabs-artista.blogspot.in/] and the master Turtle Blocks JS [repo http://github.com/walterbender/turtleblocksjs/] for more details. (Mentor: Walter)

Publishing standards and guidelines for authors can be found at [http://www.um.es/ead/red/normasRED.htm#_Toc324610817].

Llamada a contribuciones para el número especial de RED (Revista de Educación a Distancia): "Competencias para la codificación y la precodificación":

* Richa Sehgal worked on a framework to support off-line Web programming, an interactive Javascript shell. She's submitted patches to the upstream Browse activity. Meanwhile, checkout her git [repo https://github.com/richaseh]. (Mentor: Tony Anderson)

* Fecha límite para enviar manuscritos: 31deJuliode 2015

 

* Fecha estimada para la publicación: 15 de Septiembre de 2015.

* Vibhor Sehgal and Utkarsh Dhawan, although not officially GSoC students, worked with Tony and Richa on a parallel project, [Web Confusion https://github.com/sehgalvibhor/WebConfusion], a series of programming challenges in the spirit of Turtle Confusion to encourage students. (Mentor: Tony Anderson)

Normas de publicación y pautas para los autores [http://www.um.es/ead/red/normasRED.htm#_Toc324610817].

 

* Abhinav Anurag made some progress on a Web collaboration framework for our Javascript activities. See his [blog https://summerofcode2015.wordpress.com/] and [code https://github.com/abhinavanurag18/turtleblocksjs]. (Mentors: Martin Abente and Lionel Laske)

 

 

2. We will be holding an election for the Sugar Labs oversight board (SLOB) at the end of the calendar year. If you are interested (or know someone who is interested) in running for a board seat (all seven seats will be open), please see [[Oversight_Board/2014-2015-candidates]]. Also, whereas ballots are only available to "members", please [[officially join Sugar Labs|Sugar_Labs/Members#Applying_for_membership]].

 

3. Mariah Noelle Villarreal has submitted a panel proposal, "Building Free and Open Education Communities", to the South by Southwest Conference (SXSW). The panelpicker voting period is now open until September 4th. If you have time, please [vote and share http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/vote/48985] with any appropriate channels as well as a [video that was created for the proposal https://youtu.be/jh_3taqRPEc].

 

4. Sweet: Sugar contributors Mariah Noelle Villarreal and Ruben Rodriguez got married this summer!!!

 

5. There were three RED ([Revista de Educación a Distancia http://www.um.es/ead/red/46]) submissions from Sugar community members:

* Sensores Tortuga 2.0: Cómo el hardware y software abiertos pueden empoderar a las comunidades de aprendizaje (Turtle Sensors 2.0: How open hardware and software empower learning communities) by Guzmán Trinidad, Andrés Aguirre, Alan Aguiar, Tony Forster, Walter Bender, Facundo Benavides, and Federico Andrade

 

6. The Sugar/OLPC program in Caacupe is expanding!!!

=== Tech Talk ===

=== Tech Talk ===

4. Please help Martin and the Developer Team [[0.106/Testing|test Sugar 106]]. Your feedback is important to us.

7. Peter Robinson announce quite some time ago that the [Sugar on a Stick 21 Beta https://fedoraproject.org/get-spin-prerelease] is now out as part of Fedora 21 Beta ([Details https://lists.fedoraproject.org/pipermail/announce/2014-November/003238.html]), but I think I neglected to ever pass on the information to the Sugar community.

 

8. Also worth mentioning again: Ruben Rodriguez released Trisquel 7.0 released. [TOAST (Trisquel with Sugar) http://trisquel.info/en/download] is an official edition.

=== Sugar Labs ===

=== Sugar Labs ===

5. Please visit our [http://planet.sugarlabs.org planet].

9. Please visit our [planet http://planet.sugarlabs.org].

== Community News archive ==

== Community News archive ==