whyteBoy

Sakai 2.5.3 RC 03 update

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 09:21:18 GMT

As I write my tag builder script is busy cranking out an RC 03 tag for the upcoming Sakai 2.5.3 maintenance release. The tag was cut from the 2.5.3 branch which was itself earlier generated from the 2.5.x maintenance branch. Unlike previous beta and RC tags that were created directly from the *x branch using a single SVN revision number (e.g. 2.5.x r48404 for the ill-fated 2.5.1 release), 2.5.3 represents a targeted approach that provides fixes to specific sets of tools and services. This strategy allows QA to better harness their resources and focus their testing on limited areas of the code base. 2.5.4 and succeeding maintenance releases will reflect this pattern.

Regarding the 2.5 maintenance series, 2.5.1 included over 120 fixes but was never released officially due to the discovery of a nasty portfolio bug during final testing of the release artifacts. 2.5.2 was then issued with 124 fixes, differing from 2.5.1 by including fixes to content (r49329) and db (r49329) in addition to the reversions made to metaobj (r49785) and osp (r49785). 2.5.3 currently addresses 34 issues, a more modest cut than 2.5.1/2.5.2 but the fixes included should make for a compelling release.

Before the final release of 2.5.3 all Maven pom files in the 2.5.3 branch will be updated from "M2" to "2.5.3" during the release tag and artifact generation process.

2.5.3 provides updates to the following modules:

assignment
blog
content-review
entitybroker
db
master [pom.xml tweeks]
portal
reference
rwiki
site
site-manage

The 2.5.3 maintenance branch is based on the following 2.5.x project revisions:

access -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/access/branches/sakai_2-5-x
alias -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/alias/branches/sakai_2-5-x
announcement -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/announcement/branches/sakai_2-5-x
archive -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/archive/branches/sakai_2-5-x
assignment -r50718 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/assignment/branches/sakai_2-5-x
authz -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/authz/branches/sakai_2-5-x
blog -r50669 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/blog/branches/sakai_2-5-x
calendar -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/calendar/branches/sakai_2-5-x
chat -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/chat/branches/sakai_2-5-x
citations -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/citations/branches/sakai_2-5-x
cluster -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/cluster/branches/sakai_2-5-x
component -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/component/branches/sakai_2-5-x
content -r49329 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/content/branches/sakai_2-5-x
content-review -r50100 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/content-review/branches/sakai_2-5-x
courier -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/courier/branches/sakai_2-5-x
course-management -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/course-management/branches/sakai_2-5-x
dav -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/dav/branches/sakai_2-5-x
db -r49782 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/db/branches/sakai_2-5-x
email -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/email/branches/sakai_2-5-x
entity -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/entity/branches/sakai_2-5-x
entitybroker -r48775 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/entitybroker/branches/sakai_2-5-x
event -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/event/branches/sakai_2-5-x
gradebook -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/gradebook/branches/sakai_2-5-x
help -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/help/branches/sakai_2-5-x
jcr -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/jcr/branches/sakai_2-5-x
jobscheduler -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/jobscheduler/branches/sakai_2-5-x
jsf -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/jsf/branches/sakai_2-5-x
linktool -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/linktool/branches/sakai_2-5-x
login -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/login/branches/sakai_2-5-x
mailarchive -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/mailarchive/branches/sakai_2-5-x
master -r50498 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/master/branches/sakai_2-5-x
memory -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/memory/branches/sakai_2-5-x
message -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/message/branches/sakai_2-5-x
metaobj -r49785 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/metaobj/branches/sakai_2-5-x
msgcntr -r51390 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/msgcntr/branches/sakai_2-5-x
osp -r49785 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/osp/branches/sakai_2-5-x
podcasts -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/podcasts/branches/sakai_2-5-x
portal -r49079 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/portal/branches/sakai_2-5-x
postem -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/postem/branches/sakai_2-5-x
presence -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/presence/branches/sakai_2-5-x
presentation -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/presentation/branches/sakai_2-5-x
privacy -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/privacy/branches/sakai_2-5-x
profile -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/profile/branches/sakai_2-5-x
providers -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/providers/branches/sakai_2-5-x
reference -r50884 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/reference/branches/sakai_2-5-x
reports -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/reports/branches/sakai_2-5-x
reset-pass -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/reset-pass/branches/sakai_2-5-x
rights -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/rights/branches/sakai_2-5-x
roster -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/roster/branches/sakai_2-5-x
rwiki -r50732 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/rwiki/branches/sakai_2-5-x
sakai-mock -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/sakai-mock/branches/sakai_2-5-x
sam -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/sam/branches/sakai_2-5-x
samples -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/samples/branches/sakai_2-5-x
search -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/search/branches/sakai_2-5-x
sections -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/sections/branches/sakai_2-5-x
site -r50832 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/site/branches/sakai_2-5-x
site-manage -r50778 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/site-manage/branches/sakai_2-5-x
syllabus -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/syllabus/branches/sakai_2-5-x
test-harness -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/test-harness/branches/sakai_2-5-x
textarea -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/textarea/branches/sakai_2-5-x
tool -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/tool/branches/sakai_2-5-x
user -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/user/branches/sakai_2-5-x
util -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/util/branches/sakai_2-5-x
velocity -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/velocity/branches/sakai_2-5-x
warehouse -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/warehouse/branches/sakai_2-5-x
web -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/web/branches/sakai_2-5-x
webservices -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/webservices/branches/sakai_2-5-x
mailtool -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/mailtool/branches/sakai_2-5-x
usermembership -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/usermembership/branches/sakai_2-5-x
polls -r48404 https://source.sakaiproject.org/svn/polls/branches/sakai_2-5-x

The Presentation Tool and Sakai 2.6.0

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 09:12:53 GMT

The presentation tool is a core tool that provides the capability to upload and display sets of images to users. However, I sense that this tool is little used by the Community. The University of Michigan, for example, stealthes the tool since there is little interest in it given its current capabilities.

For 2.6.0 I'd like to suggest that we remove the tool from the release. This does not necessarily mean that we need to go through the process of physically moving the files from the main SVN repo to our contrib repo, although this could be done. Rather, we could simply modify the Sakai .externals file to exclude it from /trunk and maintenance branch check outs as well as generate release artifacts without it.

Indeed, I might well be wrong about the size of the Presentation Tool's institutional user base. If so, it would be premature to exclude it from the release. But if it's not being used it presents us with an opportunity to slim down the release, ever so slightly.

Sakai 2.5.2 on the start line

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 05:46:46 GMT

Tueseday I finished generating the 2.5.2 source, binary and demo artifacts, javadocs, taglib docs and poms/jars for the Sakai Maven2 repo, cut the final 2.5.2 tag and prepped the Sakai 2.5.2 release page. Artifact testing has so far proved positive so the release should be ready for public consumption.

Sakai 2.5.2 succeeds the ill-fated 2.5.1 release that included a nasty portfolio bug discovered only after I had generated the 2.5.1 release artifacts. A disappointing find to be sure but issues of this sort are bound to happen from time to time and it helped set a precedent of quickly responding to the issue, incrementing the version number by one and cutting a new release.

Bring on 2.5.3.

SVN: updating log entries

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 07:59:21 GMT

When commiting code changes to the Sakai SVN repository I forget occasionally to include the relevant Jira "SAK" issue number in the log entry. We use the Jira Subversion plugin and neglecting to include the Jira reference in the commit log message prevents the commit info from being picked up by Jira.

Good

svn commit -m "SAK-13784 update Tomcat version to 5.5.26"

Bad

svn commit -m "update Tomcat version to 5.5.26"

So if you are bad like I am sometimes, issue the following svn command to correct the log, including the original commit's revision number and the updated log entry:

svn propset -r 47559 --revprop svn:log "SAK-13784 update Tomcat version to 5.5.26"

and you will revert to good.

Sakai contributor profiles on Ohloh

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Tue, 20 May 2008 06:26:36 GMT

There's a thread on the Sakai pedagogy list called "Content Authoring" that's morphed into a discussion regarding Sakai's relative openness as an open-source project. During the exchange there was a mention of Ohloh by Chuck Severance which drew a response from one participant in the discussion asking to see richer Ohloh profiles of Sakai core/contrib committers.

Since we started enlisting Sakai projects on Ohloh, 71 core and 87 contrib contributors have been tracked (the latter group also contribute heavily to Sakai core projects). Only a fraction of the profiles listed include any information beyond the basic developer X as represented by a portion of their email address has made Y commits since Month Z.

Creating an account permits developers to provide additional information about themselves (image, bio, geographical location, "stacks" of other open-source projects they use, etc.). Some developers may prefer general anonymity or may dislike Ohloh. That's cool but if by chance you have no objections to surfacing a bit more detail about yourself as a Sakai contributor consider creating an Ohloh account or updating your existing one. Such information adds a bit more detail about the developer contingent in our community as well as a bit more transparency to the project as a whole.

Ohloh Sakai core
http://www.ohloh.net/projects/3551

Ohloh Sakai contrib
http://www.ohloh.net/projects/4006

Ohloh new account:
http://www.ohloh.net/accounts/new

Gert Sibande College joins the Sakai Foundation

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Fri, 09 May 2008 10:22:28 GMT

Gert Sibande College (GS), located in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa has joined the Sakai Foundation as a member institution following deployment of Sakai as GS’s enterprise collaboration and learning platform. This is exciting news as Gert Sibande is both the first Sakai adoption and foundation member among Further Education and Training colleges (FET)—academic institutions that provide vocational and occupational training vital to South Africa's economic development.

Gert Sibande has campuses located in Ermelo, Evander, Mpuluzi and Standerton. GS's Sakai installation is intended to serve all four locations, although bandwidth and connectivity issues—a general South African challenge at present—prevent full access to the system. Nevertheless, the provisioning of course sites with content is now underway, faculty workshops have been held and a number of lecturers have begun to use the system.

Gert Sibande partnered with Tecqle Information Technologies to implement Sakai and benefited from advice and support from other South African Sakai institutions, particularly the University of South Africa (UNISA).

For more information on Gert Sibande and its Sakai deployment, contact Shereen Dindar, GS Senior Education Specialist, at shereendindar@yahoo.co.uk.

Vula art

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 08:20:58 GMT

The University of Cape Town's Sakai Vula gateway features a collection of graphic art produced to both promote Vula and engage students, faculty and staff in the process of online learning. There are ten images in the collection, one of which is loaded randomly whenever the gateway page is requested.

"V is for Vula" in red, black and yellow is particularly striking; David Horwitz tells me the design is inspired by an old United Democratic Front (UDF) anti-apartheid poster.

Another image I find quite creative spells out "Vula" (meaning "open" in Xhosa and Zulu) in sign language backed by a splash of magenta—if my color sense is correct.

The collection is a worthy follow on to Vula's original gateway image, the very cool "Vula unzipped" image—as some have called it—that I've used on the title page of many of my Sakai powerpoint presentations.

Visit Vula and checkout the gateway page. Refresh the page a few times and have a look at the designs.

Sakai Solo

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 12:46:44 GMT

North-West University (South Africa) and Psybergate are engaged in an interesting project to develop "offline" capabilities for Sakai. Codenamed "Solo", the application will be contributed to the Sakai Community upon its release.

The idea behind Solo is to create a "disconnected" version of Sakai that would permit students to better control their internet usage in bandwidth-challenged environments like South Africa. NWU's initial thinking involves distributing a Solo client application and set of course materials to their students on a CD/DVD. The client would permit students to sync with their Sakai course sites when new or updated course materials become available. The offline client would include facades for synchronous tools such as chat that would warn the student that using such functionality would require (re)connecting to the internet. Provisioning content with updates could be handled by web services initiated at off-peak hours.

I suggested that NWU consider using Google Gears and the Google Web Toolkit (GWT). A Gears/GWT implementation is now underway. Phase I of the project involves syncing with CHS (resources), Announcements, Melete and Q&T (copy of tests only). Data syncing for this phase is unidirectional (from Sakai to Solo) and utilizes GWT's Remote Procedure Call (RPC) to access a Solo servlet and set of Sakai Solo services to perform sync operations.

My contribution to the Solo project has so far been a modest one. Besides setting up SVN, Jira/Confluence and Contrib accounts, securing signed contributor agreements and creating a Contrib project site and Jira and Confluence project spaces for the Solo team, I also had the pleasure of working directly alongside Psybergate's Louis Botha and Etienne Swanepoel during my recent visit to Cape Town. Louis, Etienne and I discussed general design issues and I provided a primer on Sakai API, service and tool development practices. I also helped Etienne set up his build environment, creating the base API, service and tool projects, adding the requisite pom.xml files and jar dependencies and ensuring that the tool and service "chassis", so to speak, could be built and deployed to Tomcat successfully.

Louis and Kobus Le Roux of NWU plan to demonstrate Solo and discuss its place in NWU's online learning strategy at the upcoming Sakai Paris conference.

Solo is housed in our contrib repo and can be checked out anonymously:

svn co https://source.sakaiproject.org/contrib/nwu/solo/trunk/

Talking Sakai in Mafikeng, South Africa

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 08:29:45 GMT

While in South Africa Adelle Lotter of North-West University (NWU) asked me to give a talk on the Sakai Community at NWU’s Mafikeng campus. I readily agreed. Mafikeng is one of three NWU campuses (Mafikeng, Vaal Triangle and Potchestroom) with a student body composed of 6576 undergraduate and postgraduates, the majority of whom are native Setswana speakers. My talk was part of a larger event promoting Mafikeng’s adoption of eFundi, NWU’s enterprise Sakai implementation, the campus’s first online LMS offering.

I was the first speaker and while prepping the hardware before the opening remarks, the moderator glanced at my opening slide and enquired, “What is Sakai?” I quickly learned that neither she nor the audience was at all familiar with Sakai, the worldwide Sakai Community or that other South African institutions such as the University of Cape Town and the University of South Africa (UNISA) were running their own versions of Sakai in production. This set the context for what I hope was a useful overview of Sakai and the Sakai Community.

Plugging Mafikeng into the wider Sakai community emerged, to mind at least, as a major theme of the talk. There is much we in the Sakai community can learn from the Mafikeng experience, and in turn, I hope Mafikeng can leverage the technical and pedagogical expertise resident in our community to further their teaching and learning goals.

I was honored after the presentation to receive from Professor Bernard Mbenga a copy of the New History of South Africa (2007), a collaborative work of history edited by Mbenga and Hermann Giliomee that features the contributions of some twenty-eight historians of South Africa—an approach to history writing that parallels the community source approach that marks Sakai.

Sakai SVN QA tag cleanup

arwhyte@sakaifoundation.org — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 13:11:39 GMT

I wrote a bash script to reduce the tag clutter that is building up in our SVN repository due to the numerous QA tags that we have generated since Sakai 2.4.0. For a given tag, the script checks out the relevant .externals file, parses it for project module names and then iterates through the resulting list, issuing a succession of svn delete statements before exiting the loop and deleting the parent tag folder in /sakai/tags.

I should note that the tags are simply removed from the HEAD revision. They are not actually deleted. The result is a set of "clean" tag directories containing fewer obsolete tags—all good for new developers having a look around the repo and perhaps for veterans as well.

I identified 35 obsolete QA tags and began deleting them last week. The only downside to the effort was that each project module deletion resulted in the generation of an email alert to the Sakai Collab SVN committer list (we use a Perl script to fire off an email alert after each SVN commit). Given that each tag deletion generated 70 notifications, this operation would result in some 2450 email alerts, more than enough email to guarantee transparency but also more than enough to irritate any committers who prefer to store their Sakai SVN commit email in their inbox rather than shunting it to a child folder via a rule.

I finished removing the 35 obsolete QA tags today. Going forward, we will probably switch off email alert generation for the committer running these scripts in order to eliminate both unwanted and unnecessary email alerts. In May I plan to delete the Sakai 2.5.0 beta and RC tags if no one objects.