David King

This project aims to bridge the gap between technological advancements in Knowledge Management (KM), E-Learning (EL), and emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality (VR), and Augmented Reality (AR), and the lack of skilled users able to create 3D content and establish best online practices for VR/AR content teaching and sharing. Our solution is a student-centric e-content development platform based on the Pre-Freshman Accelerated Curriculum in Engineering (PACE) program's Virtual Interactive Learning, Training, and Performance platform (VILTA). The PACE program, with a strong track record of promoting student advancement and retention (with a 55% four-year graduation rate and a 24% advanced STEM degree completion rate). PACE was established in 1987 as a face to face on campus program. The vision of the PACE program is to motivate and inspire students to obtain an advanced STEM degree. This program has evolved into a semi-immersive and entirely remote learning experience, PACE VILTA. This evolution motivates the application of open-source software to transform PACE VILTA into a comprehensive student-centric e-content development platform. By integrating AI with KM and EL on this platform, we aim to automate knowledge extraction, categorization, and distribution. The platform will be designed to personalize EL content, adapt to individual learners' pace, and enable precise assessments. VR and AR technologies will be introduced via gaming tools into an open-source Learning Management System (LMS) creating immersive, interactive, and contextual EL environments. An open-source metaverse, a unique feature of this platform, will facilitate e-content usage and sharing. The LMS's built-in controls will track students' progress through the e-content development cycle, ensuring alignment with the implemented e-content framework. This platform will serve as a testing ground for various e-content frameworks, simplify e-content creation with VR and AR tools, and promote collaborative constructivism learning. By enabling the integration of diverse investigative techniques, the platform targets the improvement of active learning models, encourages innovative e-content frameworks, and provides a medium for validating learning principles, theories, and concepts. The proposed research will focus on these dynamic integrations, anticipating comprehensive insights into the innovative amalgamation of AI, VR, and AR with KM and EL, powered by open-source software. The findings will extend the body of knowledge, suggest future research directions, and provide valuable guidelines for organizations and educational institutions seeking to improve their KM and EL initiatives through open-source innovation. The primary objective of this research is to foster advancements in Knowledge Management (KM) and E-Learning (EL) systems worldwide. It aims to make these systems not only economically feasible but also versatile and easily accessible to a broad spectrum of users. The anticipated influence of this study is extensive, encompassing a wide range of learners, from students at Morgan State University to those in K-12 education, adult learners, and participants in industry training programs. Furthermore, it aspires to have a transformative impact on governmental agencies across the globe, further broadening the reach and applicability of its findings

Other people: Carl White

Straightforward audio file tagging

EasyTAG is a GTK+-based audio file tagger, which was first released in 2000. It has recently seen a rejuvenation of development, and new contributors would be welcome.

EasyTAG was maintained by Jérôme Couderc from 2000-2008, but he had less and less time to spend on the project, which languished somewhat on SourceForge until it was moved to gnome.org in late 2012. After a rush of new development, this talk will cover the current state and future direction of the project, as well as useful lessons that can be learned from taking over an unmaintained project.

UOA is an accounts and authentication framework for Ubuntu and other Linux distributions, based on the core accounts-sso project which was first developed for MeeGo and used in the Nokia N9: http://code.google.com/p/accounts-sso/

Above the core is the UI layer, including a settings panel applet and common authentication agent, providing the user interaction to the underlying framework: https://launchpad.net/online-accounts

I will cover a variety of topics, including:

• Introduction to some basic terminology
• High-level overview of the Online Accounts framework
• Demonstration of UOA integration in Shotwell, Unity and Empathy
• Summary of integration points for application developers, including addition of a new authentication plugin for an online service
• Current and future developments in the project

I am hoping to split the talk roughly equally between developer and user-oriented topics.

* Where to start as a novice * Mentoring programmes (Google Summer of Code and Code-In, Outreach Program for Women, GNOME Love) for those who want to commit to a longer-term involvement * Guest appearance by Ekaterina Gerasimova to talk about the Outreach Program for Women, and her experience as both an intern and mentor in the GNOME Documentation Project * GNOME-specific entry routes, both through GNOME technology and GNOME Foundation initiatives * Becoming a module maintainer, the responsibilities and benefits * Examples of the above topics , with specific references to the Vinagre, Vino and Cheese projects, which I maintain * Alternative ways to contribute to GNOME, such as translation or volunteering to help organise GNOME events

Other people: Ekaterina Gerasimova