[Sugar-devel] Minor update to Make Your Own Sugar Activities!

[Tony Anderson]

Hi, James

If you go to activities.sugarlabs.org, you can register via the register 
link at the top right. This is not registration for Sugarlabs but for ASLO.

As I understand the github repository, access with the ability to commit 
changes is closely held. The enables proposed changes to be vetted 
before a commit.
However, the web page has a sign in link which gives limited access 
(create pull requests and comment on them, for example). That same 
two-step process is used for ASLO. The developer submits the change 
which puts it into a sandbox pending review.

Actually Sugar has files, directories and a command shell (Terminal 
activity). It is relatively easy to switch activities via the Frame. I 
say this from several years of experience developing on the XO (easier 
than using usb flash keys to move code to the XO to test). The fact that 
Browse does not support flex and the unique XO screen makes testing on 
an XO essential if that is the target.

The process of making changes via github to the Sugar core is certainly 
reasonable. However, nothing in this procedure interferes with a 
developer modifying and testing a change on an installed Sugar 
independently of the internet. Access to the internet being needed only 
to submit the change.

The issue is not to use Sugar for everything, it is to use the available 
computer for everything (XO). In general, the XO is the first computer 
our users have used and, aside from an Android device, the only computer 
available. While used desktops and laptops are available, the $100+ 
funds are not available.

The 'current setup' you mention depends on ready access to the internet, 
something not available for at least 2/3 of our users. It is a strength 
of Sugar that the source code is immediately available to the user 
without need of a repository (except access to activities not installed 
- a need supplied by a schoolserver). This allows learners to get into 
programming in a meaningful way using only what is installed on the XO.

Tony

On 03/14/2017 11:25 PM, James Simmons wrote:
> All,
>
> I only meant to make the manual actually tell where we currently put 
> our code repositories, without rewriting the whole chapter. (I had 
> hoped that a Google Code-In mentee might do that, but it didn't 
> happen). The one piece of information that is still lacking is how to 
> have your account added to the sugarlabs organization. That happened 
> so long ago that I forgot how it happened. If someone could remind me 
> I'll add that information to the note.
>
> I haven't done any Sugar development in years but I do program 
> computers for a living and I use Git in my day job.
>
> Sugar has some good Activities to teach programming, but I don't think 
> it is a great Activity development platform. For that you really need 
> files and directories and a command shell, the ability to run Sugar as 
> more than one user at a time, etc.
>
> I understand the desire to use Sugar for everything, but I think it 
> would always get in the way. You wouldn't expect to be able to develop 
> an iphone app on an iphone, or at least I wouldn't.
>
> If I wanted to teach Activity development to children I'd get some 
> reconditioned desktop computers and install Fedora and Sugar on them. 
> I have used nothing but reconditioned computers myself for years. It 
> is amazing to me what you can get reconditioned on Amazon and 
> elsewhere for around a hundred bucks. This is basically my price range 
> for a "new" computer, and for that I can get a Lenovo or other quality 
> brand with more than adequate disk space and memory. These computers 
> are built for use in offices and have many years of life left in them. 
> In Fedora you can run Sugar as a desktop environment as well as in a 
> window. You can hook them up to a TV or a projector (something I 
> remember many people wanted to do with the XO).
>
> I don't see ASLO being separate from Git as a problem. I think of it 
> like the production environment at work. If it's good enough to use it 
> goes on ASLO. If not, it stays in Git, but I might push my code to the 
> central repository so others could fool around with it.
>
> Part of teach a child programming should be teaching him good work 
> habits, and I think our current setup promotes that.
>
> James Simmons
>
> On Tue, Mar 14, 2017 at 9:28 AM, Laura Vargas <laura at somosazucar.org 
> <mailto:laura at somosazucar.org>> wrote:
>
>
>
>     2017-03-14 7:13 GMT-05:00 Walter Bender <walter.bender at gmail.com
>     <mailto:walter.bender at gmail.com>>:
>
>
>
>         On Tue, Mar 14, 2017 at 12:45 AM, Tony Anderson
>         <tony_anderson at usa.net <mailto:tony_anderson at usa.net>> wrote:
>
>
>
>             On 03/14/2017 12:03 PM, Alex Perez wrote:
>>
>>             I would think ASLO could simply be made to inspect the
>>             contents of an activity, upon upload, (since it’s just a
>>             zip file), and look for the necessary string within
>>             activity.info <http://activity.info>, such that it could
>>             be displayed under a “details” section of an Activity,
>>             within ASLO. 
>
>             What I propose is that the ASLO page have a link to the
>             github repository. See the attached screenshot which shows
>             a link to home page. I would see this link being added here.
>
>
>         +1. But that can be done if (1) we include the repo path in
>         the info file and (2) do the work on ALSO to display it (I
>         think alsroot was looking into this).
>
>
>     +1 to add the repository link field on ASLO.
>
>     This is an example where we all agree that something needs to be
>     done.
>
>     Now, how do you propose we get it done?
>
>         You proposal has no bearing on where the repo is hosted, as it
>         should not.
>
>
>             Tony
>
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>
>
>
>         -- 
>         Walter Bender
>         Sugar Labs
>         http://www.sugarlabs.org
>
>
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>
>
>
>     -- 
>     Laura V.
>     *I&D SomosAZUCAR.Org*
>
>     “No paradox, no progress.”
>     ~ Niels Bohr
>
>     Happy Learning!
>
>
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