Bill, Here's a short dialogue between myself, Ben Schwartz, Martin Dengler, and Bobby Powers on my interpretation of "narrative" as it might apply to a user interface designed for "engaging children in the world of learning": http://wiki.laptop.org/go/User:Mstone/Commentaries/Sugar_2
=== Highlights * By "narrative", I mean "a rational sequence (or graph) of events". * It's rather hard to use XOs to prepare direct lessons. By "direct lesson", I mean a guided learning experience, usable in variable network conditions, which minimizes the amount of decision-making and navigation that the end-user needs to perform in order to experience 'the whole thing' regardless of what software implements each individual experience contained in the lesson. === Toy Problem Concretely, suppose I invent a new Python trick like the ones at http://wiki.laptop.org/go/User:Mstone/Tricks How might a prepare a slick explanation for an inexperienced user? * I might write up a web page for my trick, then write a Pippy bundle showing off the trick in a toy program, then give a pointer to a git repo containing an instance of the trick in 'production'. Question: How do I write web pages on an XO? Question: Do I have to be able to read in order to find and run the Pippy bundle? * I might write up a larger Pippy example for my trick in the literate style. I might also create a puzzle revolving around integrating the trick into some sample code. I might include links to 'advanced reading' or more examples in comments in the source code. Question: Pippy doesn't know anything about hyperlinks. Will my readers? Question: I must either comment out my puzzle so that the example can run or I must provide it in a separate bundle. How many users would figure out how to try both the example and the puzzle? * While not obviously applicable to this specific example, two other common solutions to this sort of problem include the "scripted transitions between freeform experiences" idea common to wizards and role-playing games and the 'build a custom but user-editable program' idea underlying most EToys lessons. === Larger Concerns Since Sugar is strongly concerned with UI unification, it's worth spending more time thinking about how well each of the solutions to your favorite toy problem integrates with encompassing narratives of reflection, criticism, and human collaboration. (None of the solutions I've proposed above satisfy me in any of these regards.) In any case, I hope this followup helps explain the motivation and 'line-of-thought' behind my initial email. Please discuss. Regards, Michael _______________________________________________ Sugar mailing list Sugar@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/sugar