[Osdc-edu-authors] Moodle 2.0 release article

Mon May 3 16:54:19 UTC 2010

Joe, if you're ok with using one of the generic graphics, I can go ahead 
and push this now.

Otherwise, we can wait for a Libby graphic, and I'll push it a little 
later this week.

--g

On Mon, 3 May 2010, Joseph Thibault wrote:

> Libby/Greg
> Here's the text of the article ready to post today, 
>
>       Those who've been waiting for the release of Moodle 2.0 are
>       getting their open source just rewards this week.  The release,
>       which has been met already with several delays is a "beta
>       preview", which is to say, not yet a stable release, but it's a
>       functional template of what's in store for early adopters.  
>
>       Development has stretched over the last two years and many core
>       Moodle features will be significantly changed.  Let's take a
>       look at why this is a major milestone for the popular LMS.  
>
>       The major headlines are that this release focuses on making
>       Moodle more accessible to 3rd party developers and web services.
>        Though pre-2.0 releases have been integrated with 100s of
>       modules, plug-ins and other open source and proprietary
>       projects, this release marks a major shift in the accessibility
>       of information stored within and gathered through the LMS.  
>
>             It contains a huge number of core changes to the
>             platform, most of which are designed to give 3rd
>             party developers more flexibility, scalability and
>             safety.¹
>
>       In addition to the Repository, Portfolio and File APIs which
>       will allow 3rd party developers to tap, manage and manipulate
>       Moodle's site and user data, major aesthetic and usability
>       issues are also being addressed, 
>
>        o  TinyMCE has been selected over the HTMLarea text editor,
>           eliminating some pesky browser compatibility issues
>        o  New navigation options have been provided to unclutter
>           Moodle pages
>        o  A new theme base is being provided to increase the
>           flexibility of page layouts
>        o  Several core activities have been rewritten and updated
>           (including the collaborative, but previously buggy Workshop
>           module)
>
>       Moodle 2.0 will also introduce several enhancements, including 
>
>        o  Conditional, rule based availability of activities
>        o  Commenting on Moodle blogs
>        o  A major upgrade to the Quiz 
>        o  A major upgrade to the Wiki
>
>       Perhaps the biggest news of this release is that 2.0 will create
>       a new community sharing resource for courses materials.  The
>       Community Hub² has a two-fold mission:
>
>        1. Create a Moodle-based market place of courses and learning
>           objects available for enrollment (paid or not) world wide
>        2. Provide a means for teachers to post, review, appropriate
>           and remix Moodle course templates from the community at
>           large.
>
>       This could be a major game changer in the world of online course
>       management systems, no other platform has yet successfully
>       collected and pooled resources into one easy to access
>       repository.  Even if the hub falls short of expectations, the
>       courses made available to the community at large will mark it a
>       success.  However, in a few years Moodle users may be sitting on
>       the web's largest repository of open educational resources (all
>       ready to install in their own Moodle classroom).   
>
>       Not all of the features listed here or on Moodle.org's roadmap
>       will make the Beta Preview release, but the roadmap and vision
>       show that the community has big plans for the future of Moodle
>       LMS.  
>
>       ¹http://docs.moodle.org/en/Roadmap
>       ²http://docs.moodle.org/en/Community_hub
> 
> If there's an image that could post with it and if it could go out today I'm
> quite satisfied (unless you have other edits) 
> 
> On Mon, Apr 12, 2010 at 1:00 PM, Libby Levi <llevi at redhat.com> wrote:
>       Yup!
> can one of you send me the text of the most recent version, so I can
> see what I'm working with?
> 
> cheers!
> 
> .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. .
> .. .
> 
> Libby Levi
> 
> Red Hat
> Brand Communications + Design
> llevi at redhat.com
> 
> 
> 
> On Apr 12, 2010, at 11:29 AM, Greg DeKoenigsberg wrote:
> 
> 
> We start the week with Matt Jadud's excellent article in his series
> about engaging Allegheny students in the open source world.  (Note
> that we should actually have finished last week with it, but your
> Faithful Editor got distracted by shiny things.)  Faceblogtweet it:
> 
> http://opensource.com/education/10/3/allegheny-first-years-dive-fedora
> 
> Next up, we've got Joseph Thibault's excellent article about Moodle
> going mobile.  Joseph, I went through a round of edits; please review
> at your convenience.  Libby, any chance we could come up with an
> awesome graphic for this piece?  Some learnin' from a mobile phone
> goodness?  I'd like to push this article live on Wednesday morning.
> 
> Remy, I haven't forgotten about your piece.  Any time to chat about it
> tomorrow?
> 
> --g
> 
> --
> Educational materials should be high-quality, collaborative, and free.
> Visit http://opensource.com/education and join the conversation.
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> --
> Joseph Thibault
> Course Manager
> www.Straighterline.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>

--
Educational materials should be high-quality, collaborative, and free.
Visit http://opensource.com/education and join the conversation.