Please visit the new Etoys website!

Greetings!

Many of you have started, or will shortly be starting, a new academic year at your school or University.  We wish you a successful and fun-filled new school year!

Greetings!

Many of you have started, or will shortly be starting, a new academic year at your school or University.  We wish you a successful and fun-filled new school year!

We have just launched our new Etoys web site to coincide with the new academic year.  It is still found at "www.squeakland.org", but its design and content are all new.  It features a brand-new version of Etoys for download, which we will announce in a separate message.

We hope you'll find the new site simpler to navigate, more straightforward in sharing our message, and loaded with helpful content.  New materials include complete video from the "Squeakers" DVD and a series of "screencast" lessons, thanks to Tim Falconer of Waveplace.  You'll also find some new tutorials and a showcase of projects.  Also on the site are web versions of over 50 "QuickGuides", created by Kathleen Harness of Illinois, which provide concise tutorials for many things about Etoys.  Living versions of the QuickGuides can also be found "inboard" in the new Etoys application itself (click on the ? at the left edge of the tool-bar).

The "showcase" section on the new site has very few projects on it at this point -- please share your projects to help populate this area!

We intend the site to be a living, continuously-evolving resource, a showcase and clearinghouse for "all things about Etoys."   Please help it evolve and grow.  The site will be largely maintained and supported by volunteers, so we need your contributions as well as your suggestions.

We will also be producing a quarterly newsletter that will be posted to the site (and sent to you via email if you choose to subscribe) so please share your experiences with us!

Thanks to you all for your interest in this learning community.  We look forward to exchanging ideas, projects, and more.

regards,
Kim Rose & the Etoys team



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On Sep 12, 2008, at 10:11 PM, Bill Kerr wrote:

the introductory images give a primary school feel but there is a section indicating it is appropriate for older ages: http://www.squeakland.org/showcase/byAge/ (first visual impressions can be very important)

Do you mean the pastel illustrations?    We tried very hard to create custom illustrations that would appeal to primary school ages while not turning off teenagers.  It's a difficult balancing act, one that I think our illustrator did well with.   The illos are kid-like, but with a high enough quality to convey professionalism and depth.   Similar styles are used in corporate marketing and elsewhere ... to convey a friendlier, more human, appeal.

 

Take care,

Tim

--

Timothy Falconer

http://bigfractaltangle.com

610-393-1889 mobile

Immuexa Corporation

http://immuexa.com

610-797-3100

On Sep 15, 2008, at 9:23 PM, Bill Kerr wrote:

Teens are edgy, wannabe adults. Many of them are not looking for soft pastel.

This is often true for teenage boys in some areas (US, etc) , but not others (Caribbean, Africa, Japan, etc).   Might seem like a bigger demographic because GameMaker appeals to teenage boys :)    It's also hard to do edgy without requiring more frequent design updates to keep trendy (otherwise run the risk of looking out-of-date.)   The current site will likely stay fresh in style for 5+ years.

They address this issue by simply displaying a variety of current games / projects on their home page

There's always a tradeoff here ... you can also make the case that just as many first-time visitors are *lost* because of those busy home pages.  Imagine technically timid teachers and girls saying "not for me" on the GameMaker site.  (I certainly can.)