Dear all,
is there any Smalltalk development involved in this project ?
Regards,
On Mon, Feb 17, 2014 at 11:23 PM, Steve Thomas <sthomas1@gosargon.com> wrote:
> Kathleen,
>
> Great feedback, thanks. Below is an updated version:
>
> Many children can not communicate verbally whether due to nonverbal autism
> or some other factor. While there are many catalogs and websites with
> adaptive equipment and software but the prices are high. There is a OLPC
> deployment in Uraguay where a student uses his stuffed animal as an input
> device for using an XO and Etoys. We would like to build on this to make it
> easier and lower cost or these children and their parents to communicate and
> use computers. The software would be free and OpenSource and the hardware
> to hack a Stuffed Animal could potentially repurpose old keyboards [2] or
> under $10 by repurposing a used USB game controller (free if kids donate
> their old ones).
>
> In the first project a student would design and document how to hack a
> stuffed animal to be used as an input device similar to a joystick or arrow
> and a few other keys to allow a nonverbal child to use their favorite
> stuffed animal as an input device.
>
> Level: beginner
> Skills required: Maker skills. To Hack a stuffed animal. Etoys (If student
> knows Scratch, they can learn the skills needed in Etoys for this project)
>
> In the second project a student would design a set of picture boards that
> could be navigated using a joystick or arrow keys and arrow and few other
> keys. The project would also allow a parent or teacher to simply add and
> re-arrange pictures using a webcam, imported pictures or simple drawings
> that can be made using Etoys[1]. Etoys runs on Linux, Windows and Mac OS
> and is one of the core applications in the OLPC XO.
>
> Level: beginner
> Skills required: Etoys (If student knows Scratch, they can learn the skills
> needed in Etoys for this project)
>
> Mentor:
> Stephen Thomas <sthomas1@gosargon.com>
>
> [1] http://squeakland.org/
> [2] http://www.instructables.com/id/Hacking-a-USB-Keyboard/?ALLSTEPS
>
> On Mon, Feb 17, 2014 at 11:23 AM, Harness, Kathleen <kharness@illinois.edu>
> wrote:
>>
>> Steve,
>> You may want to emphasize in the application that this is a low cost
>> adaptive technology. There are many catalogs and websites with adaptive
>> equipment and software but the prices are high. A cost comparison might be
>> persuasive.
>> Regards,
>> Kathleen
>> ________________________________
>> From: etoys-dev-bounces@squeakland.org [etoys-dev-bounces@squeakland.org]
>> on behalf of Steve Thomas [sthomas1@gosargon.com]
>> Sent: Monday, February 17, 2014 12:19 AM
>> To: Bert Freudenberg
>> Cc: smalltalk-gsoc-mentors@googlegroups.com; etoys dev; Paolo Bonzini; The
>> general-purpose Squeak developers list
>>
>> Subject: Re: [etoys-dev] [gsoc-mentors] [GSoC ideas] Squeak/Etoys
>>
>> Many children can not communicate verbally whether due to nonverbal autism
>> or some other factor. There is a OLPC deployment in Uraguay where a student
>> uses his stuffed animal as an input device for using an XO and Etoys. We
>> would like to build on this to make it easier and cheaper for these children
>> and their parents to communicate and use computers.
>>
>> In the first project a student would design and document how to hack a
>> stuffed animal to be used as an input device similar to a joystick or arrow
>> and a few other keys to allow a nonverbal child to use their favorite
>> stuffed animal as an input device.
>>
>> Level: beginner
>> Skills required: Maker skills. To Hack a stuffedSerge Stinckwich
UCBN & UMI UMMISCO 209 (IRD/UPMC)
Every DSL ends up being Smalltalk
http://www.doesnotunderstand.org/
To some of us, writing computer programs is a fascinating game. A program is a building of thought. It is costless to build, weightless, growing easily under our typing hands. If we get carried away, its size and complexity will grow out of control, confusing even the one who created it. This is the main problem of programming. It is why so much of today's software tends to crash, fail, screw up.
When a program works, it is beautiful. The art of programming is the skill of controlling complexity. The great program is subdued, made simple in its complexity.
- Martin Harverbeke (from Eloquent JavaScript)