Javascript Jam Session

[Aaron J. Seigo]

hi everyone ...

i have some exciting news to share with you!

below is a first draft of the text i'm working on for the announcement of a 
javascript plasmoid competition. supporting artwork is underway and some 
details (some prize specifics, judges, etc) are still being filled in.  
feedback is welcome and wanted.

obligatory statement of the obvious: i'm happy to do the planning for this "in 
public" here on the promo and plasma lists with all of you so that it can be 
as great as possible, please don't blog/tweet/dent/etc about this quite yet

==========

Plasma Javascript Jam Session


KDE is pleased to announce the Plasma Javascript Jam Session. This (friendly) 
competition will reward the creators of the most original, interesting and 
beautiful Plasma widgets written in Javascript with some great prizes and 
community recognition.

Anyone, except members of the judging panel, may participate in this open 
challenge that starts immediately after the release of the KDE Software 
Compilation v4.4.0. The rules are simple:

* Only Plasmoids written using the Simplified Javascript Plasmoid API 
(documented here: 
http://techbase.kde.org/Development/Tutorials/Plasma/JavaScript/API ) will 
qualify.

* All submissions must be released under a Free software license in compliance 
with the KDE Licensing Policy: 
http://techbase.kde.org/Policies/Licensing_Policy

* All submissions must be the original work of the contestants. Third party 
Javascript libraries, DataEngines, etc. may be used, but the actual Plasmoid 
itself must be the work of the contestant.

* Each contestant may submit one, and only one, Plasmoid for judging. 
Contestants may work in teams (an artist and a programmer is a common pairing 
in Plasmoid development, for instance) but only one prize per submission will 
be offered regardless of team size and constants may not be a member of more 
than one submitting team.

* Final submissions must be in the form of an installable .plasmoid file 
submitted to <submission address / website> by March 31st 2010.


Plasmoids will be judged based on the following criteria  <need graphic for 
this: pie chart showing category break out>:

* Usefulness / Entertainment Quality (40%): accounting for a full 40% of the 
final score, this metric reflects how indispensable, fun and "recommend it to 
my friends"-worthy the Plasmoid is.

* Originality (20%): the more unique the Plasmoid, the better it will do in 
this category.

* Beauty (20%): for Plasmoids that inspire desire, these points go higher!

* Technical (20%): code poetry and Plasmoids that expose the full power of 
Plasma will rack up technical proficiency points.


The prizes up for grabs are truly exciting:

* Grand Prize: a brand new Nokia N900  (pre-loaded with your winning 
Plasmoid?) and an invitation to Akademy or Camp KDE

* 1st Runner Up Prize: <KDE swag?> and an invitation to Akademy or Camp KDE

* 3 Honorable Mention Prizes: <KDE swag?>


In addition to these over-all prizes, three bragging-rights titles are up for 
grabs: 

* Beauty Queen: this crown is reserved for the most stunning Plasmoid in form 
and function

* Technical Giant: the Plasmoid that embodies the peak of technical excellence 
will walk away with this badge of honor

* Creative Genius: the Plasmoid with the most interesting and original concept 
will claim this title

Additionally, everyone who submits a working Javascript Plasmoid that meets 
the contest requirements will receive a personalized certificate of 
participation by email. All submissions will be published for download on kde-
look.org after the results are announced on April 9th.

Contestants won't be left entirely on their own, however. Training sessions 
will be held on Friday the 12th, Saturday the 13th and Sunday the 14th of 
February at 16:00 UTC on irc.freenode.net in #plasma (<a different channel?>). 
Each session, led by Plasma developers, will cover the Simplified Javascript 
Plasmoid API in detail along with Plasmoid development tips and tricks.

In addition, contestants are welcome to ask questions and solicit development 
advice on #plasma on irc.freenode.net and plasma-devel at kde.org, the official 
Plasma development mailing list, during the competition. We won't write your 
Plasmoid for you, but each contestant will have access to the same level of 
Q&A support that all Plasmoid developers normally have.

The judging panel will be comprised of:

* Aaron Seigo, Persona Plasma
* Marco Martin, Plasma Zen Master
* Nuno Pinheiro, Graphics Design Machine
* (tbc) Richard Moore, Javascript Bindings Artiste
* <one more person, tbd>
* (tbc) KDE Community: a poll hosted on forums.kde.org will allow everyone in 
the KDE community to have a say!

Each judge will rate the entries individually in each of the four categories. 
The score from each of the six judges will then be added up to create the 
final results.

The contest timeline is as follows <need graphic for this>:

* Contest officially begins February 9th, 2010
* Online training sessions 12th-14th February at 18:00 UTC in #plasma
* Final submissions accepted starting March 24th
* Contest closes March 31st
* Winners announced April 9th

Finally: a huge Thank-You to Nokia for donating the N900, KDE e.V. whose 
support makes this event possible and Sean Wilson for the banner artwork.

-- 
Aaron J. Seigo
humru othro a kohnu se
GPG Fingerprint: 8B8B 2209 0C6F 7C47 B1EA  EE75 D6B7 2EB1 A7F1 DB43

KDE core developer sponsored by Qt Development Frameworks