Re: [Fsfe-uk] BBC digital curriculum service in England

[Lee Braiden]

OOPs.  I wrote this a while back, but sent it directly to Kevin (sorry 
Kevin!), instead of to the list.  Kevin has replied directly to me, but I'll 
leave it to him to reply on list if he feels the need :)

On Sunday 10 Oct 2004 15:30, Kevin Donnelly wrote:
> There are three aspects:
> 1) will the material run on non-Windows platforms like Linux?
> 2) will the material use a free authoring/delivery system (eg something
> other than Flash)?
> 3) will the material be made available under a free licence?

It sounds (to me) as if one of their main concerns is accessibility to
disabled users.  I'm not sure how much support Flash currently has for that.
I know Macromedia was working on it, but traditionally, Flash has been pretty
terrible at accessibility.  It probably compares pretty poorly with options
like XHTML/SVG + Javascript.  Though I'm a bit behind the times on those too,
actually :/

> Flash is now considered the
> default method of presenting learning resources, but it does at least have
> a Linux player

Actually, no.  It has a player on Linux/x86, but that is NOT the same as a
Linux player, and certainly not the same as an open player available or
guaranteed to be for all platforms.

Besides, I think shockwave would be more likely than Flash -- shockwave is
used for many training solutions, including LearnDirect -- and that has even
worse support for other platforms than Flash does, IIRC.

There are a few Open/Free Software possibilities, though:
XHTML/SVG+Javascript, as I mentioned; the presentation apps in OpenOffice,
and perhaps other suites; Blender has a game mode that might be useful for 3D
scripted applications, python + some cross-platform GUI library might be
reasonable.  If they were really set on Flash for some incomprehensible
reason, there is an open 'Flash4Linux' project, which actually clones the
Flash application, rather than just the player.  Probably doesn't work well,
though :)

I'm thinking the obvious choice for most apps would be something based on web
standards.  The apps they talk of, though, with microphone support or support
for other input devices, would work well in python (since it has lots of
support libraries), or Java.

Even Java has issues, of course, if they're not careful to keep open
 standards in mind throughout the development process.  Perhaps the best idea
 would be to get some commitment to developing on open standards on
 principle.  Then, when particular issues arise, they will hopefully be
 resolved in a reasonable manner.

--
Lee Braiden