MaineJug Working Groups

SHOWCASE PROJECT

by Dan Corwin, 8/06/01

The Showcase effort seeks to create a hosting facility able to solicit Java WAR ("Web Archive") files from internal and external coding GROUPS, and facilitate interactions and/or competitions among them. These events, as well as the preparation of the facility, will advance the stated MaineJug.org Mission.

Update after May

The original proposal focuses on a series of on-line "design competitions", beginning Summer '01. The exact timing will depend on many factors, some unrelated, but qualitatively, the ideas in the proposal remain in place.

The Showcase workplan will continue to evolve as Mainejug.org does, and as new resources become available. This version presumes a rapid release of basic Web Apps support tools, including Registry and JugNews, and good progress on EBJ/DBMS hosting facilities, to be run by the independent GROUP(s) MESDA envisions.

Update after June

The overall Projects workplan took a detour into JugNews, partly because the Managers felt more visibility was needed on each working group, and partly that JugNews let us unit test out the Log API on which it is based. In general, a Log object (as a page component) can be easily configured to capture, save persistently, then redisplay any data posted from any web form(s). That makes it very handy and general.

Other things in the plan provided Showcase with early test data on USERS and SIGS that admins can reconfigure online. The idea is to turn attributes for each related SIG into a dynamic page with a [REGISTER ME] button on it. Click it, and the current USER's id goes into an associated Log for SIG signups. This can be used in Calendar and Working Groups sections of Mainejug.org, Projects descriptions, and similar sections of other sites for MEMBERS of other User Groups and/or the ShowCase.

Finally, we enticed Jeff Hoffman into starting up a project on INTERESTS, sets of which can be matched to help each USER find other USERs, SIGs, or RESOURCEs that match his own pre-declared interest profile or any submitted one.

Update after July

Positive discussions began on practical funding and hardware plans, both for the long term haul and for beta testing. These (and summer vacations) helped correct overoptimistic ideas in the May workplan on ShowCase's initial release schedule.

We resolved that initial competitions ("WAR-fare") are best limited to commercial GROUPs, not students. This will help improve the site's initial online training materials, which may come partly from early commerical Showcase MEMBERS who are in that business and wish to expand into J2EE subject areas.

Technically, July progress was mostly on USER Registry test data and specs, respectively from the Web Apps and EJB/DM groups. The second of these must await EJB hosts (on which background progress seemed to be made).

Thanks to Jason, we can now seemingly accept compliant WAR files easily, so the problems we face are now less technical than organizational. Fortunately, we began to attract interest from finanacial advisors and product managers whom we expect can help ShowCase to move forward, perhaps as the focus of a new working group.