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Google Summer of Code Expands

Posted by Zonk on from the more-the-merrier dept.

bakotaco wrote with news from the Summer of Code site: "We're Expanding the Summer of Code... After spot reviewing the applications we've received for the Summer of Code, we were struck with their high quality. As a result, we were able to increase the funds available to support 400 students, double our original number of 200. While this doesn't allow us to take all applicants, we thought that this would be a terrific thing to do for the mentoring organizations, the students, open source software and computer science."

9 of 116 comments (clear)

  1. Wow by EmperorKagato · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Could Google be the next Bell Labs? Next thing you know that will hatch from google would be the cure for AIDS.

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    ----- You know you have ego issues when you register a domain in your name.
  2. Leadership by mfh · · Score: 5, Interesting

    "Google has been the darling of the tech world for who knows how long because sometimes they just do the right thing."

    Of all the things Google does right, this is one of them. They take the best and brightest -- and the get to know them well. So this year they are getting the value from 400 people working on cool Open Source projects that will benefit the whole world. Google gets props and free advertising for doing this, which is likely quite an endeavor. 400 computers networked... think of the Quake tournies!

    Out of this piece of philanthropy (it really is philanthropy when you are paying programmers these days -- we need as much support as we can get!) -- Google will find at least TEN projects they can buy outright WITH the developer who they have ALREADY PAID $4500 to, making the deal SOFTER, turning $4500 into an investment perhaps saving them millions.

    In my opinion, Google has really built the first known MONEY FARM known to man. All they have to do is water it and it will grow. Next summer, expect 800 people or more.

    I'm doing an Open Source blogging/small business web services system called PHk (soon to be at phk.ca). The company I'm working for is paying me salary just to work on my own system -- because they want to be able to use it when it's done. And that's another success story with Open Source when your vocation is your vacation...

    Anyone here working at Google this summer?

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    The dangers of knowledge trigger emotional distress in human beings.
  3. The student thing by Psionicist · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Who is eligible? Students. Since the point of the program is to create new developers, we're looking to find developers around the world who have considered creating free and open source software but who have not yet taken the plunge. We felt that concentrating on the student population was a good place to focus these efforts.

    How do you define a student? Someone currently enrolled in or accepted into an accredited institution including but not necessarily limited to colleges, universities, masters programs, PhD programs and undergraduate programs.
    I am 20 years old, not a student yet though because I recently finished senior high school and don't know what to study yet. Why the hell am I not eligible? It's people like me who actually have the time to participate in open source projects. It's the same thing with programming contents. I want to participate but I'm not allowed because they are also mostly "students only". So freaking annoying!
  4. More Mentoring Organizations? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Perhaps more mentoring organizations will get a look in now? I know Ruby Central was turned down previouly by Google for alledgedly missing the application date.

  5. It's the summer of code, 2005 by Ricin · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Do *you* know where your IP is going?

    Or how your being made jobless first is now perhaps being used (in shades of hip and coolness of course, see also "street teams" for the music cartel, the military recruitment, ...)
    to put young folks into the geeks' version of an idol's competion where of course everyone loses even the winners., except... the organizers.

    Perhaps I'm just too cynical, and no one wants to hear it anyway (which is a good indication that I might be on to something), but the whole google, gmail, recruiting, kool-aid I dunno it's starting to smell like a rat the more I think and read about it.

    1. Re:It's the summer of code, 2005 by nametaken · · Score: 2, Interesting


      It does, it just came out a little mangled.

      You've heard of American Idol?

      He's suggesting that all the coders are being laid off, while in the meantime, Google is setting up competitions where the unemployed can compete for scraps. These scraps don't amount to gainful employment for the laborers, but Google profits by way of good press and cheap, completed code.

      I'm not entirely sure that I agree with this speculation (at least not to this degree) but its an idea. It could just be a cool idea that benefits everyone, including Google.

      That make more sense?

  6. Re:Where is squid? by Tony+Hoyle · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Maybe they can't think of anything someone could do?

    I actually considered this for one of my projects, but didn't because (a) by the time I heard about it on slashdot they'd already picked all the projects, and (b) I normally only accept code from people who've proved their ability first... letting a student have free reign is damn scary.

  7. 400 * $5000 = $2,000,000 by tehgimp · · Score: 4, Interesting

    that's quite a bit of money they're giving away...

  8. Re:Code/Love by The_Wilschon · · Score: 1, Interesting

    What? you don't love code?

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    SIGSEGV caught, terminating

    wait... not that kind of sig.