Frustration -- yup. However, let's try to come up with a way forward that solves the problem in the sort-of near term, and the frustration in the very near term. I too have been trying to run sugar on ubuntu and having frustration.  So, what I think would minimize the frustration is a known place to look for the current state of what works, what doesn't work and why, and a way to work around the problem till it has a permanent fix.  It's obvious from the sugar-ubuntu list that quite a few people are finding and fixing bugs, but the fixes are in various stages of hitting the repositories. E.g. and correct if this is inaccurate, it looks to me like the first problem you hit with write and jigsawpuzzle is that abiword hasn't been repackaged to provide a "libabiword", and the people who can actually do that (the abiword project) haven't bought into or gotten around to this yet.  So can someone provide a different package, even an rpm that could be installed with alien?  and could the location of where to get this be noted in the "state of the sugar ubuntu nation"?  Same with other known problems that have been figured out but not percolated into a distributed fix. Rinse and repeat for SOAS and any other distros floating around.  This would at least make clear what is known to be wrong, and steps underway to fix. As for the second point, namely providing activities requested by teachers, I agree it is important, and I think Wade has an almost-ready typing tutor (google these lists for a prior thread on this). <div class="gmail_quote">On Tue, Feb 10, 2009 at 6:14 PM, David Van Assche <<a href="mailto:dvanassche@gmail.com">dvanassche@gmail.com</a>> wrote: <blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;"> ok? I guess this will be contreversial but it must be said and acted upon (much more importantly) Im gonna try and make this easy: SoaS - the latest fedora core based I tried to impress my 9 year old gescwister... (related one) Speak - it will not even launch.... why is it then on a disitributed stick? ubuntu - no read no write no jiggzawpuzzle etoys scratch epathi measure anything tam tam based until very recently even browse pdf reader of any kind measure distance slider video chat abc flower (thing doesnt even exist) ok, that is about 50% of the failed testtube babies... what is the solution: we test the damn tings before release.... we do what greg dekoenigsberg quite elegantly suggested. a 3 tier solution: 1. make an educator mailinglist.... we get every educator we know on the list. We start off the discussion with what is really needed... the simple stuff... the stuff u guru coders can whip up in days: Examples: 1. typing tutor... all it should do is allow kids to follow whatever the teacher is directing. speed of typing is recorded? accuracy; graph based report; printable to parents... stars given to best pupils... guys these are real world scenarios... not invented by devs.. asked for by teachers qnd not surprisingly thinking why it does not yet exist. 2 same for maths... times tables/division/addition/substraction.... groupings of kids, reports, printibale to both parents ant teachers... 2. (gdk) guys this is what teachers want... I reallly hate to say this; but the stuff right now on sugar apart from speak, which when working every teacher loves, is an absolute waste of educators time... yes the activities can be properly used... but basics first! mailing list to get the, involved; we mention the activities that we (welll actually they) have come up with, we discuss very briefly; 3: (gdk)then make a moodle/wiki page where educators and devs get together to create the tools that we actually need (the ones that will really chqnge the world) I hope no one takes this is as a critcism of the effort put into creating activities till now; but people... lets frocus... lets sugar mean something for teachers David (nubae) Van Assche _______________________________________________ IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!) <a href="mailto:IAEP@lists.sugarlabs.org">IAEP@lists.sugarlabs.org</a> <a href="http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep" target="_blank">http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep</a> </blockquote></div> -- "It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it." -- Upton Sinclair