A strong and vibrant IT community based in the North East Of England

The latest from SuperMondays

Happy Birthday Super Mondays

Happy BirthdayIt is true. Super Mondays is 6 years old this month having run over 60 events and had fascinating talks from almost 200 speakers.

To mark this we are going to have a celebration on the 22nd (our actual birthday) at Bar Loco, 22 Leazes Park Rd, NE1 4PG.

It does not matter if you have been to one event or most of them, you are most welcome so do come along. We will have a free buffet, a decent priced and well stocked bar, and perhaps a little entertainment.

Also if you are interested in sponsoring the event by putting some money behind the bar then please do get in touch.

Eventbrite - Happy Birthday Super Mondays

Sonic Pi and Minecraft – slides

Sorry, no videos this time, but you can get Paul’s minecraft slides (containing various useful links) as a PDF file, or learn more about Sonic Pi from these links:

SuperMondays – Sonic Pi and Minecraft

Eventbrite - SuperMondays - Sonic Pi and Minecraft

This month’s [Tuesday special because of the bank holiday] event is about fun ways to introduce people to programming.

We’re delighted to announce that Dr Sam Aaron will be here to talk about his recent work on Sonic Pi. Sam did his PhD in Newcastle a few years back, during which he founded the local Ruby group. Exploring the importance of creativity in programming is a key element in Sam’s work. A big part of this is “live coding”, as we’ll see in a musical performance.

Sonic Pi is a project supported by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, aiming to encourage programming via music on the Raspberry Pi. People can build up interesting compositions by mixing together blocks of code and effects. The project has also produced a programme of work so it’s ready for classroom use. It’s a great addition to the options for new programmers (and the less new!).

Then there’s Minecraft. Mention that word to most school-age children and you instantly get their attention. (Try it, now.) Minecraft is a game, but it’s much more than that. It’s a great way to get people of all ages thinking about design and mechanisms. In multi-player mode, it encourages communication and collaboration. And it also enables programmers to shape the game itself.

The free Raspberry Pi version allows remote control via a simple text API, allowing you to write programs in various languages (even in Scratch) to extend the gameplay. The desktop versions allow various 3rd party add-ons or “mods” which provide significant new functionality, including embedding of mini-languages for further extensions. So, plenty of ways for beginners to get their toes wet. Another Dr (Paul Callaghan) will give an overview of the options, give a demo or two, and talk about what it means for learning – and for getting his kids to do something useful over the holidays.

Eventbrite - SuperMondays - Sonic Pi and Minecraft

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