squeakland May 2007

squeakland@lists.squeakfoundation.org

24 participants
27 discussions

Discovering Pi in Squeak
by subbukk 31 May '07

31 May '07

Hi, I am trying to create an experiment to help children my kids discover numbers like Pi. I don't want Pi to be introduced to kids as an "irrational" number. It is a real number that exists in curved shapes. While countables can be understood with beads or pebbles and fractions with slices, numbers like Pi will need continuous things like sticks and strings[1]. The kids start the play by placing two sticks in a V-shape and use a string to span the other ends. Add another stick to the mix and spread the sticks out radially. Extend the string to the tip of the new stick and back again to the starting point to form a triangle. Keep increasing the number of sticks and use the string to form squares, pentagons and so on. Soon a circle takes shape and the string converges to its perimeter. Now get the child to mark this length and express it in terms of stick units (fractions allowed). Repeat with different lengths of sticks. Let the child discover that some measures are not countable or even expressible easily as a fraction. Now the name 'Pi' can be introduced and the perimeter could be expressed as 2*Pi. Pictures of village blacksmith trying to cut a strip of iron to rim a bullock cart wheel set the tone for the exercise. As a parent of two young kids, I worry about kids hurting themselves with the sticks. Squeak is a lot safer for such experiments. The nearest object that I could use in Squeak is the Star. But the number of sticks (vertices count) or stick length (distance between center and vertex) or the string segment length (distance between adjacent vertices) are not computable from the properties visible in the viewer. Did I miss something or is there a better way to do this in Squeak? Thanks in advance .. Subbu [1] Sutra in Sanskrit. The humble string is so useful in conveying complex concepts that the term Sutra also gets applied for formulae (e.g. E=mc^2) and theory, theses etc.

3 9

Help with install squeakland on kubuntu
by crazy_bus 31 May '07

31 May '07

I installed Squeak on kubuntu edgy 6.10 using the provided deb on squeaklands website. To install this package kubuntu downloaded and installed squeak-vm from its own repositories. This caused squeak and squeakland items to be put into the menu. Clicking on squeakland opens the program. However I have two problems. The first is that program is in a language other than english and I can't find the option to change it. The second is that I can't see the animation here http://www.squeakland.org/plugin/launch.html in firefox or konqueror Thanks everyone in advance for your help -- View this message in context: http://www.nabble.com/Help-with-install-squeakland-on-kubuntu-tf3832564.htm… Sent from the SqueakLand mailing list archive at Nabble.com.

6 17

squeak plugin install not working on I.E 6
by Mike Stramba 27 May '07

27 May '07

* edit * Just tried installing the plugin on another computer ... same thing ... I.E. just keeps trying to re-install the plugin every time I attempt to open any of the examples on Squeakland. I've enabled everything that I can see in the I.E. security settings. Greetings, I'm trying to run the SqueakPluginInstaller on I.E6, well actually I'm trying to load any .pr files, but everytime I try to load a .pr file, I.E6 just tries to re-install the plugin. I'm guessing that whatever I.E. uses to determine if a plugin is installed is not returning the correct info. The plugin does get installed "successfully", well there are no error messages anyway. This is on Win XP pro. Any ideas? (I have the Flash plugin installed, so it *will* install plugins ) Mike

1 0

Install Plugin on I.E. 6 / Win XP
by mstram 27 May '07

27 May '07

Greetings, I'm trying to run the SqueakPluginInstaller on I.E6, well actually I'm trying to load any .pr files, but everytime I try to load a .pr file, I.E6 just tries to re-install the plugin. I'm guessing that whatever I.E. uses to determine if a plugin is installed is not returning the correct info. The plugin does get installed "successfully", well there are no error messages anyway. This is on Win XP pro. Any ideas? (I have the Flash plugin installed, so it *will* install plugins ) Mike -- View this message in context: http://www.nabble.com/Install-Plugin-on-I.E.-6---Win-XP-tf3817839.html#a108… Sent from the SqueakLand mailing list archive at Nabble.com.

1 1

Lack of documentation frustrating
by Guyren Howe 27 May '07

27 May '07

Hi, I am volunteering at a local school, and will be doing squeakland once a week with some fifth graders. Squeakland (etoys?) seems ideal for these kids, except that I'm frustrated by the lack of documentation. I've spent ages looking through the website and searching online, and I can't really find the kinds of things I'm looking for. I went through some of the tutorials myself, and those will be great to get started, but I would like to give the kids fairly free reign, and be able to answer most of their questions. I tried to do some little projects myself, but I kept coming up with seemingly simple things I wanted to do, and not finding any obvious way to do them (or, as I say, any documentation suitable for answering the questions). For example: I wanted to make an etoy follow the mouse pointer around. I can't see any way of even obtaining a reference to a mouse object. I would also like to do loops and suchlike. Not obvious how to do that. I can see that if I can dive down into the smalltalk level, I could do it, but this seems like the kind of thing that's probably at the squeakland (etoy? What do I call the kids' environment?) level. But as I say, what I'm really looking for is not this particular fish, but how to fish for myself. I would buy a book, but the one pointed at from the website appears to just be a set of projects, rather than the kind of documentation I'm looking for. Squeak: Learn Programming by Controlling Robots looks like it might be sort of what I'm looking for, although I'm interested in a broader range of Squeakland projects than just the turtle graphics mentioned in the summary of the book. So: where is the documentation it seems ought to be there? Thanks.

14 21

Weird Heading numbers
by mstram 26 May '07

26 May '07

While playing with the Etoys, I've noticed the "weird" heading numbers. By that I mean when the object's heading passes 180 degrees, instead of continuing on to 190 ... 270 .. 360, we get the negative numbers. Why was this convention adopted ? I think if kids ... and some us "older" kids are going to be using headings it would be more educational and instructive to use "real" headings. Maybe an option / preference could be setup on which heading numbering system to use. The only minor problem I can see is whether it should be "0" or "360" to begin with. Just for the fun of it, I'm digging in and seeing if I can construct my own subclass to use the "360" system. I have an idea for an ATC simulation I'd like to do and "real" headings .. or at least converted for input and output would be a must. Mike -- View this message in context: http://www.nabble.com/Weird-Heading-numbers-tf3818581.html#a10811065 Sent from the SqueakLand mailing list archive at Nabble.com.

5 7

Squeak booth at 8th Libre Software Meeting
by Serge Stinckwich 25 May '07

25 May '07

Hi all, the french Squeak and Smalltalk community will share a booth with RubyFrance at the 8th Libre Software Meeting (http://www.rmll.info/?lang=en) in Amiens, France (not too far away from belgium or germany). There is more than 1500 visitors each year. We setup an organization page on the french Wiki : http://community.ofset.org/wiki/Squeak_au_RMLL_2007 We are also looking for help :-) The access is free and the hosting are very cheap (less than 10 euros/per night). Damien Cassou and i will also make a talk about Smalltalk and Seaside. -- Serge Stinckwich http://doesnotunderstand.free.fr/

1 0

SqueakFest '07 - Register Now!
by Kim Rose 24 May '07

24 May '07

Greetings -- Online registration is now available for SqueakFest '07! http://imamp.colum.edu/eceim/squeakfest07/index.php We're putting together a great three day program including hands-on workshops, panels, presentations, casual sharing time and fun social events. Alan Kay will give a talk about the One Laptop Per Child Initiative, the "xo" machine and Squeak Etoys on this platform. Registration for the entire program is $125.00. Please register early as this will be helpful for our planning. We also encourage you to BOOK YOUR HOTEL ROOM(s) EARLY! Chicago will host numerous summer events and hotels are already near capacity for August 1-3. Some suggested accomodations appear on the SqueakFest website: http://imamp.colum.edu/eceim/squeakfest07/accommodations.php Please forward this email to anyone you know that may be interested in attending. Come join us in Chicago! We look forward to seeing you there. cheers, Kim

1 0

ideas to promote squeak in telecenters in Brazil
by Marta Voelcker 23 May '07

23 May '07

Dear Squeakers, As one of the researchers from the University that is running the OLPC pilot project in Porto Alegre, Brazil, I was introduced to squeak, last February, when I could bring an XO home during a weekend. But now, my work is related to promote capacity building to the staff of organizations that run TELECENTERS. Telecenters, in Brazil, are rooms with an average of 12 computers(PCs) with access to Internet inside NGOs or grassroots organizations, located in low-income communities in Brazil. I am the coordinator of a Foundation that promotes capacity building to the staff of these organizations, to implement curses in telecenters. Our methodology has the same line of constructionism... We have been working "IT Basic knowledge" through project-based learning, now we want to start using Squeak. In Brazil, schools work on shifts. Children go to school in the morning (8:00 to 12:00) or in the afternoon (2:00 to 18:00). If the child goes in the morning, during the afternoon he or she might get a vacancy in an after school program offered by an NGO or grassroots organization, or religious organization. Government helps supporting these organizations to implement this after school programs. Those organizations are frequently receiving refurbished computers and building partnerships to create their telecenter. Than, they come to us, asking for guidance about what to do with the telecenter. So, we have telecenters as informal educational environment to work with children and teenagers. We dont need to relate our work to school curriculum, we can promote any kind of curses, workshop, guided playtime... any thing! We have about 45 of these NGOs equipped with telecenters in Porto Alegre, already working with us (from a total of 150 NGOs partners from other cities). Our motivation is strongly related to develop programming skills on children and teenagers. We are thinking about to start with a group of age around 10 and another group around 15. We would choose one telecenter and plan to work there ( instead of train their staff). But what would we teach? Should we keep thinking in project-based learning? When we use other software we frequently start working with identity construction, and after some exploration of the software, the group starts a project... But to understand the basis of squeak, the "drive a car " project seems so important!!! Well, sorry guys to be so long in this Sunday night! Seems that to write to you already made some goals clear to me! Ideas, experiences and suggestions are welcome! regards, Marta Voelcker

6 5

Re: [Squeakland] ideas to promote squeak in telecenters in Brazil
by Alan Kay 22 May '07

22 May '07

Yes, Scratch is another Squeak based authoring system for young people. MIT did a nice job with it. It is aimed at teenagers and is more of a productivity tool than an educational authoring environment. Cheers, Alan --------------- At 02:18 AM 5/21/2007, José Luis Redrejo wrote: >For telecenters, I would take a look to Scratch >( ><http://scratch.mit.edu/>http://scratch.mit.edu/ >), even if at their homepage they only speak >about windows and macintosh, it works under >linux too (only some issues with the midi >support are still remaining, but the rest of the >tool works ok). I think Scratch is specially >thought for places as telecenters. >Regards > >2007/5/21, Marta Voelcker ><<mailto:marta@pensamentodigital.org.br>marta(a)pensamentodigital.org.br>: >Dear Squeakers, > >As one of the researchers from the University >that is running the OLPC pilot project in Porto >Alegre, Brazil, I was introduced to squeak, last >February, when I could bring an XO home during a weekend. > >But now, my work is related to promote >capacity building to the staff of organizations that run TELECENTERS. > >Telecenters, in Brazil, are rooms with an >average of 12 computers(PCs) with access to >Internet inside NGOs or grassroots >organizations, located in low-income communities in Brazil. > >I am the coordinator of a Foundation that >promotes capacity building to the staff of these >organizations, to implement curses in >telecenters. Our methodology has the same line of constructionism... >We have been working "IT Basic >knowledge" through project-based learning, now we want to start using Squeak. > >In Brazil, schools work on shifts. Children go >to school in the morning (8:00 to 12:00) or in >the afternoon (2:00 to 18:00). If the child goes >in the morning, during the afternoon he or she >might get a vacancy in an after school program >offered by an NGO or grassroots organization, or >religious organization. Government helps >supporting these organizations to implement this >after school programs. Those organizations are >frequently receiving refurbished computers and >building partnerships to create their >telecenter. Than, they come to us, asking for >guidance about what to do with the telecenter. > >So, we have telecenters as informal educational >environment to work with children and teenagers. >We don't need to relate our work to school >curriculum, we can promote any kind of curses, >workshop, guided playtime... any thing! > >We have about 45 of these NGOs equipped with >telecenters in Porto Alegre, already working >with us (from a total of 150 NGOs partners from other cities). > >Our motivation is strongly related to develop >programming skills on children and teenagers. > >We are thinking about to start with a group of >age around 10 and another group around 15. We >would choose one telecenter and plan to work >there ( instead of train their staff). > >But what would we teach? Should we keep thinking >in project-based learning? When we use other >software we frequently start working >with identity construction, and after some >exploration of the software, the group starts a project... > >But to understand the basis of squeak, the >"drive a car " project seems so important!!! > >Well, sorry guys to be so long in this Sunday >night! Seems that to write to you already made some goals clear to me! > >Ideas, experiences and suggestions are welcome! > >regards, > >Marta Voelcker > >_______________________________________________ >Squeakland mailing list ><mailto:Squeakland@squeakland.org>Squeakland(a)squeakland.org >http://squeakland.org/mailman/listinfo/squeakland > > >_______________________________________________ >Squeakland mailing list >Squeakland(a)squeakland.org >http://squeakland.org/mailman/listinfo/squeakland

3 2

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

squeakland May 2007