BarCamp Nashville is an open-source gathering of technology enthusiasts who come together for one weekend to share what they know and learn what they don’t. It is an intense event with discussions, demos and interaction from attendees.

We are expecting this to be one of the largest BarCamp gatherings in the Nation! Don't Miss out!

Anyone with something to contribute or with the desire to learn is welcome and invited to join.

Register Today!

(Drupal will be well represented by many developers/designers/admins)

Forwarding this really cool opportunity to join the Democracy Now! team in New York. If you're a Linux Systems Admin with Drupal experience, this sounds like a fantastic opportunity to join a driven team of smart, passionate people working for justice. One of the responsibilities would be to develop new internal and public websites for them: sounds like Drupal would be a great fit!

Here's the info. It was taken from http://www.democracynow.org/about/jobs#sysadmin

============================================================

Immediate opening for full-time Systems Administrator

Democracy Now! is a daily, non-profit, national, independent news hour based in New York City. Our public website, which is is visited by tens of thousands of users daily, features the news hour every day in a variety of video, audio, and transcript formats, and also features a store selling copies of the program. Internally, we maintain a heterogeneous network of client and server computers to process, store, and record the show and its components and to support our general office and distribution operations. Democracy Now! is hiring a full-time Systems Administrator with extensive Linux experience to maintain, support, and extend these systems.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Implement, maintain, and monitor the computer network and internal servers, including our internet connection, firewall, and shared printer resources.
• Provide desktop technical support to staff and volunteers, primarily on an Apple OS X platform.
• Coordinate with external consultants and service providers who are responsible for some aspects of our technical operations.
• Architect and, where practical, develop web sites and applications for public and internal use.
• Research and suggest cost effective products and solutions which may improve organizational workflow.

QUALIFICATIONS

As a small organization with limited IT staff but diverse technological needs, we seek to hire someone who can work with a wide variety of technologies and quickly learn new technologies.

Experience configuring and maintaining GNU/Linux servers and an ability to create and maintain bash shell scripts are essential. The ideal candidate will also have experience with some or all of the following technologies: Free Software media processing tools including ffmpeg, mencoder, sox, dvgrab, and MP4Box; programming languages including Perl, Ruby on Rails, and Python; Apple OS X and Microsoft Windows desktop and application support, ideally including Final Cut Pro and Filemaker Pro; version-control systems such as Subversion and git; firewall maintenance with OpenBSD and pf; and web technologies including HTML, CSS, and XML.

Also essential are the abilities to manage several simultaneous projects and to research, select, and integrate new technologies. Experience in a non-profit or media environment is preferred, as is an interest in independent media and non-commercial television.

This is a full-time New York City-based position with benefits and salary based on experience. Democracy Now! is an Equal Opportunity Employer that actively recruits women, people of color, persons with disabilities, and persons with diverse gender and sexual identities.

To apply, please submit a resume and cover letter (PDF or plain text formats only) to job (at) democracynow (dot) org with “Systems Administrator” as the subject. No phone calls.

This is easy and quick, nothing fancy, no voting - just post your session idea (title) and your name/contact info and show up to present that day! We have sessions open from 10am-2pm each day (Saturday and Sunday) and each session should plan for 45 minutes each.

http://groups.drupal.org/node/12528 (edit wiki page)

If you can't see or edit the wiki page, be sure to join our group which may be required for editing the wiki page.

I've had some time and some funding, so I've roughed in my proof of concept on a D6 version of Geo. In traditional geek style, the most informative descriptions are in my commit messages: http://drupal.org/project/cvs/147736

Basically, my goal is to demystify "geospatial", while integrating it as much as possible within Drupal. It needn't be an academic exercise to get this data working properly, so I've tried to keep things simple. The goals/implementation do the following:

1) Provide an API module, which makes available some functions such as geo_db_add_field, and others. It also keeps track of the capabilities of the various installed backends, and provides some Views 2 handlers.

2) Provide CCK fields that can contain geospatial data. The use case here would be to store user-generated data such as points ( e.g. addresses ), lines ( e.g. an uploaded track ), or polygons ( e.g. a hand-drawn shape ). I have rearchitected this from the original implementation so that it now works closely with CCK itself. Basically, you let CCK create your field's table, and then we sneak in and add a geospatial column.

3) Import externally-provided shape data, and make it work in harmony with Drupal's existing data. I wrote an import utility this week so that you can download zip files from any source, and upload them to your Drupal site (!).

4) Using the imported data: You can create CCK fields that match a name/value pair from the column, for example "state id/state name", and users can add data using select lists. This key is then used to link your content to the imported geospatial data, so that your queries can use Contains, Within, etc. functionality.

While somewhat crufty and fallible, this code is all pretty much in working order. I'm working on this project in conjunction with http://drupal.org/project/votesmart , and using Geo to find district- and precinct-level data based on a user's address. I can import legislative district data from census.gov, automagically create content types for candidates using Vote Smart, assign them a district ( e.g. 61A ), and then search for representatives using Views filters.

As long as you're cool with typing "POINT(-94.14796237931 46.438258841379)" into your exposed filters, it's working pretty well ;)

I'm seeking input and developer-level feedback. It's by no means ready for end users, but I'm interested in extra pairs of eyes at this point.

Thanks, see you next week!

Allie

Webschuur article on whether using panels module is a good idea in different situations.

Made some progress last night with the Drupal Media Player that I blogged about recently. Dynamic logos!

You have to go to my blog to see the action.

This was created with an hour of tweaking the OpenLaszlo XML, and then pasting the following into this node: print theme('media_player_player', 'http://spindowners.com/files.dm/videos/20051210-w50s.flv', array('logo' => '/sites/aaronwinborn.com/files/my-logo.png');

Couldn't be simpler! I see a dev release as soon as we have an icon for the play button!

Of course, playlists and the like will take more. We've talked about including several players, including a light-weight and one with all the bells & whistles, and have the module call the proper one according to passed parameters.

NIce overview of the activity module's API from Trellon.

FeedAPI is way cool - adding the ability to aggregate in mailing lists makes it MONDO cool

Jeff Eaton of the Lullabots explains how to solve some of the classic web problems in Drupal.

www.babelup.com

BabelUp is a social network for social activism. That is, it's a fun community to hang out in with friends and discuss global issues. BabelUp hosts forums, user blogs, image galleries, real-time chatting, groups, calendars, and lots of other features you'd expect to find in a well-designed (hopefully) social network.

The goal of BabelUp is to attract young people who wouldn't ordinarily be interested in social activism. BabelUp aims to do this through its highly interactive website and encouraging community. Hopefully, users will join for the social features on the recommendation of their friends and will become more engaged in activism as they spend more time on the site.

I myself am a student activist. I started BabelUp as an "action plan" developed at a summer program at Brown University last year; BabelUp was my first web design project. I really started working on the site around late September and finished in late January; the site was live in "Beta" for a few months before I rebuilt it entirely in mid-June. I've learned a lot about Drupal and found that I really enjoy web design in addition to the obvious feel-good incentive.

BabelUp is solidly designed with a lot of custom PHP (mostly in blocks and for other visual reasons - the functionality Drupal modules provide is excellent). I think it serves as a good example of both how Drupal can be used to build social networks as well as of how Drupal can be used for social good.

I hope you like the site and I'm happy to hear any feedback or answer any questions you have. Of course some of the more complex features you usually see in a social network require you to join in order to see them (like the Facebook-style user statuses), but I hope that you'll find the site worthwhile enough to join and take a serious look. If you have a favorite cause, joining can help you raise awareness; if you just like to talk politics, environment, etc., then BabelUp is also the place for you.

www.babelup.com

A community effort to help a NGO get some ass-kicking internet presence — October 4th and 5th, 2008 — Paris, La Cantine Numérique

On the first weekend of October 2008, in only 2 days, the Drupal French Community will build a complete and live website for a selected NGO. All free. Free as in free beer, and free as in free speech.

You do not have an internet presence? You have a very lousy one? You want to to do a specific incredibly cool thing on the web?

Please register on the main Drupal n’Go web site (http://www.drupalngo.org/user/register). Then visit http://www.drupalngo.org/en/node/add/applications to fill in the project application form.

Both small and large NGOs can apply. The community will choose a single NGO project.

During the two days of the event we will build for you the most awesome, buzzwordy plateform imaginable, taking care of all aspects and all related costs of such an endeavor.

Unlike traditional web projects, having detailed specifications is not necessary. Our volunteers will help you do that.

Projects the community feels it can really contribute to — not only regarding the implementation but also regarding imagining the solutions, the design and the strategy — will probably get more attention.

And as Drupal is a free and open source software, with a strong ecosystem, the NGO will have total control on its website: no strings attached, no proprietary software to update, and a clear path of evolution.

The registration process ends on September 10th, 2008. The selected NGO will be announced on September 15th, 2008.

Fill in the form on drupalngo.org today, and grab a chance to get the best website money could not buy!

As participants we will have developers (both newbies and hard core rockstars), project managers, themers, visual designers, journalists (to cover the event and help editing), information architects, sysadmins, and of course members of the NGO that will be the main stakeholders of the project and anyone else that is willing to come and can give us a hand.

The main idea being that on the evening of the second day, the site will go live to the amazement and pleasure of all :-)

Participants will be able to learn to know each other better, learn how incredibly fast Drupal is when it comes to building websites, improve their skills and exchange on best practices while providing real value to a good cause.

If you want to participate, we invite you to register on the Drupal n’Go web site: http://www.drupalngo.org. There you will be able to fill in the domain in which you are most interested in contributing.

Thanks to the agility of Drupal and the large range of talents gathered in the same place at the same moment, yes, it will work.

Intensive coding session on a specific project has always been an essential part of the Drupal community (they are called ‘Code Sprints’) and the Open Source community as a whole. We want to extend this to the full range of the webdesign process, because Drupal alone is tooooo easy!

Even better: we have a really, really good plan.

The basic schedule of the two days will be:

• Day One: on Saturday, the first half of the day will be a “normal” DrupalCamp — though there will already be sessions preparing for the later effort. At least two sessions will demonstrate how to work with a big team in a smooth and collaborative way with an introduction to using an SCM and writing issue tickets.
  
  The afternoon will be dedicated to the preparation of the work on the website. Groups will discuss and prepare the information architecture, some of the technical choices, content, functionalities and so on. Also our team will solve any remaining infrastructure questions — even if most will be prepared beforehand.
• Day Two: On Sunday most of the “concrete work” will be done. Graphic designers will do their share. Journalists will interview and write awesome pieces. Developers will develop. Integrators will integrate… and project managers will keep us on rhythm.
  
  A lot of preparation work will be done beforehand to ensure we can start working quickly and effectively. There will be integration and testing servers ready, a dedicated code repository and issue tracker, even a live CD with a preconfigured development environment.

We won’t stop there: we also have a plan for the aftermath. A hosting company (Bearstech) will donate web hosting, there will be training sessions offered to the NGO after the event, and (yet to be determined exactly) community based support for project.

We already have some sponsors and will be calling for more.

Dear Drupal for Good Community,

Our non-profit, The Collaboration Foundation, is a finalist for a $10,000 online 'Ideablob' grant. We need votes to win. The grant would be used to build an innovative non-profit Drupal site that will look like this: http://collaborationfoundation.org/images/web/cf_home.jpg

Please vote here:
http://ideablob.com/ideas/1247-The-Collaboration-Foundation-C

About The Collaboration Foundation
The Collaboration Foundation is a grassroots non-profit arts organization that grew from The 1 Second Film project (currently runs on Drupal). The 1 Second Film has over 10,000 participants in 59 countries. Apple recently donated over $25K in computers to support the project. Our goal is to build an innovative platform for global collaborative art and social-change on a scale only possible when people work together. Our Board of Directors includes Albert Maysles, Juli Taymor, Stephen Nemeth, and Ben Goldhirsh. For more info, please visit www.collaborationfoundation.org

What We Will do With the $10K
If we win the $10K grant, funds will be used to build a non-profit dynamic Drupal site that will provide a global community of participants with free tools to connect, create, and collaborate. Preview the design for our new site here: http://collaborationfoundation.org/images/web/cf_home.jpg

Possible Benefits for Drupal Community
• Creation of a high visibility Drupal for Good project
• Ongoing development of our site could offer tangible training exercises for students in Drupal Dojo. We've talked to some high end Drupal companies about donating project managers to oversee Drupal apprentices in the collaborative development of the Collaboration Foundation's Drupal site.
• Could document the build w/ video and provide learning materials for Drupal Community
• All technology developed for the project will be open and returned to Drupal community.
• We're open to other ideas from Drupal community about meaningful ways our project can give back to the community.

If you would like to support this, please take 30 seconds to vote here:

Voting lasts til July 31.

And please share with friends. If you have any questions, suggestions, etc. about the project, or if interested in being a part of it, please contact me.

Much thanks,

Nirvan Mullick
Founder, The Collaboration Foundation
Director, The 1 Second Film

www.collaborationfoundation.org
www.the1secondfilm.com
www.twitter.com/the1secondfilm

The Media Code Sprint is underway! Here's a cross-post from my blog detailing the goals of this sprint, which runs through Saturday. We need your help!

Andrew Morton (drewish), Darrel O'Pry (dopry, remotely), and I are heading up a Media Code Sprint in Portland this week! Come help, in person or remotely, if you're interested in multimedia and Drupal! It has now officially started, and as I've volunteered to help keep folks updated, here goes...

First the reasons.

Dries conducted a survey prior to his State of Drupal presentation at Boston Drupalcon 2008, and number one on the top ten (or 11) list of what would make THE KILLER DRUPAL 7 Release was "Better media handling".

Let me repeat that. Better media handling.

People have done really amazing stuff in contrib, but it is difficult (if not impossible in many cases) for developers to coordinate the use of files, as there is no good means for file handling in the core of Drupal. Thus, we have several dozen (or more) media modules doing some small part, or even duplicating functionality, sometimes out of necessity.

We need (better) media and file handling in Drupal core. In particular, there has been a patch for a hook_file in the queue for over a year, which has been in the Patch Spotlight (for the second time, no less) since May! (And has been RTBC several times during that process...) Come on folks.

One of the powers of Drupal is its system of hooks. We have hooks to modify nodes, to notify changes to user objects, to alter nearly any data (such as forms and menus). Noticeably absent is a consistent handling for files or any sort of notification. We need hook_file.

So goal Number One: get media handling in core. The means? Add hook_file and make files into a 1st class Drupal object. We'll be creating a test suite for functionality in the hook_file patch to validate it and "grease the wheels" to get it committed.

The other goals of this sprint pale in comparison to the first in utility, but are still highly desirable and worthwhile.

As an extension to the first goal, there is a lot of inconsistency with how Drupal currently handles files. For instance, in some areas a function may return an object, and in others a string. Additionally, some functions are misnamed, or try to do too much to be useful as a file API.

Some specific examples: for what it does, file_check_directory may be better suited as something like file_check_writable, or maybe even split into that and file_check_make_writable. Also, for instance, file_scan_directory needs to return file objects, rather than the current associative array (keyed on the provided key) of objects with "path", "basename", and "name" members corresponding to the matching files. (The function does what it needs to, but the returned objects have keys not corresponding to anything else used in core.)

So goal Number Two: refactor file functionality in core. The means? Go through and check for (and fix!) existing file functionality for documentation and consistency.

There are several much needed multimedia modules that have not yet been upgraded to Drupal 6 (or which are still in heavy progress). This includes (but is not limited to) Image Field, Image API, and Embedded Media Field. Additionally, some major improvements can be made, both to these, and to other essentials, such as the Image module, such as creating a migration path from Image to Image Field (once that module is stable).

So goal Number Three: spruce up existing contributed media modules. The means? Get these modules upgraded!

I want to recognize the valiant and heroic efforts made by everyone to date, as fortunately, there has already been significant progress on all these fronts. That makes our job (relatively) easy. In some respects, we just need to finish up the jobs that have already been started.

Thus, drewish declared this week the Media Code Sprint!

We need your help. If you are a developer, or want to be a developer, jump on in! If you aren't ready to develop, or consider yourself too new for that, you can still help test patches and functionality. Jump on in! And please, even if you don't know how to apply a patch, you can still help with documentation and other small (but important) tasks. Jump on in!

If you're in Portland, You Have No Excuse®. If not, you can jump into #drupal in IRC any time you're available.

The official dates for the sprint are today (Wednesday July 23, 2008) through Saturday (the 26th). We'll be online and working most of that time. I'll make sure we continue to post progress as the week develops.

Of course, as is the wonderful nature of Drupal, this is an ongoing process. Even if we achieve our stated goals, there will always be more.

Thanks,
Aaron Winborn

Short tutorial on hooking an email footer on every outgoing email on your site.

Submit resumes to resumes@advomatic.com - no calls, please!

EMPLOYER: Advomatic LLC
POSITION: Drupal Themer
REPORTS TO: Director of Development
FLSA STATUS: Exempt, Salaried
LOCATION: New York, NY preferred. Off-site work status will be considered for exceptional candidates.

SUMMARY:

Advomatic is seeking a talented Drupal themer to join our world-class development team. This position works directly with the Director of Development to assist with management, design, and technical build-out/development of our client's web sites and web tools. This position's secondary responsibilities include assisting with client support issues and helping grow Advomatic. Advomatic is an equal opportunity employer.

ABOUT ADVOMATIC:

Advomatic is a New York City based web development firm specializing in the development and hosting of progressive advocacy and non-profit community websites. We work to build better online tools to aid in the advancement of good causes, and to give organizations the resources they need to effectively communicate with each other and their constituents. We utilize open-source products whenever possible, and contribute new technology developed by us back to the open-source community. Our secondary business focus is providing managed clustered Linux hosting and broadcast email services to our clients.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

COMPENSATION:
Salary Commensurate with Experience
Medical, Dental and Vision Benefits
401k, FSA plans
A cool company shirt embroidered with your name

Submit resumes to resumes@advomatic.com - no calls, please!

EMPLOYER: Advomatic LLC
POSITION: Drupal Developer
REPORTS TO: Director of Development
FLSA STATUS: Exempt, Salaried
LOCATION: New York, NY preferred. Off-site work status will be considered for exceptional candidates.

SUMMARY:

Advomatic is seeking a talented Drupal developer to join our world-class development team. This position works directly with the Director of Development to assist with management, design, and technical build-out/development of our client's web sites and web tools. This position's secondary responsibilities include assisting with client support issues and helping grow Advomatic. Advomatic is an equal opportunity employer.

ABOUT ADVOMATIC:

Advomatic is a New York City based web development firm specializing in the development and hosting of progressive advocacy and non-profit community websites. We work to build better online tools to aid in the advancement of good causes, and to give organizations the resources they need to effectively communicate with each other and their constituents. We utilize open-source products whenever possible, and contribute new technology developed by us back to the open-source community. Our secondary business focus is providing managed clustered Linux hosting and broadcast email services to our clients.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

COMPENSATION:
Salary Commensurate with Experience
Medical, Dental and Vision Benefits
401k, FSA plans
A cool company shirt embroidered with your name

This is a very useful write-up on how the School of Everything uses taxonomy and notifications to keep their members up-to-date on what is going on on the site.

I'm building a community currency trading module and I've spent several days now wrestling with Form API in 6.x. I have no income from this but I need this form built for me, so I'm offering a bounty of $200.

My modules defines a node-type called transaction which consists of buyerID, sellerID, quantity, description of trade and other fields. Here is the user story I am trying to achieve.

I'm sure it's not so hard. To have a look at the project so far, see http://bazaar.matslats.net

I'll give you my module so far, and be available to clarify while you work. There will be no feature creep, no theming, no documentation. Most of the code is already there, this just requires a better understanding of FAPI than I can muster.

Matthew

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