A very successful Midwest Moodle Moot took place at Goshen College earlier this week. Floyd Saner did a lot of work to make things go so well (not his first Moot!). The star this year was Martin Dougiamas, founder and lead developer of Moodle.
In the opening session Dougiamas shared some features of Moodle 2.0, currently in beta, which he hopes will be ready for the January semester. It will include portfolio and external blog support, conditional activities (finish this before going on to that), and a customizable user page. Sticky blocks will be accessible from throughout a site, not just from the home page. One tab will handle navigation; another tab will manage all the settings. The new version will look like a blog.
He assured us that any module that works on version 1.9 should also work on 2.0. “If not,” he tweeted, “it’s a bug. Test it for us!”
The Moot was a great blend of expertise, ambiance, and fun. Workshops covered a range of interests, from all levels of education to application in the corporate world. Round Table discussions on Tuesday allowed people to share ideas. The Twitter stream was lively with backchat, as well (#mootusin10).
Martin's closing session in the chapel.
The Moot also offered an opportunity for networking and relaxation. Saner introduced visitors to the local Amish community by arranging a dinner at the home of an Amish couple Tuesday evening. As we rode through fields of corn and beans and neatly tended farms, we were surprised to see an occasional solar cell on an Amish farm. The cells are there to power a generator for a computer, necessary because so much of the carpentry and woodworking — for which the Amish are highly regarded — now requires digital communications. (The computer is not allowed in the house.)
After dinner at an Amish home, Martin tried to roll out Moodle 2.0, but the code was buggy.
In the closing session Dougiamas fielded questions. He said he was glad to spend some time with end users, though he had to protest he wasn’t “Father Christmas” and couldn’t make everything happen that we wanted.
Maybe in Moodle 3.0.
The Goshen College campus was beautiful.
