This post originated from an RSS feed registered with Perl Buzz by Andy Lester. Original Post: Google Code-In brings fresh blood to the Perl and Parrot communities Feed Title: Perlbuzz Feed URL: http://perlbuzz.com/atom.xml Feed Description: What's happening in the world of Perl programming, including Perl 5, Perl 6, the CPAN and Parrot? Latest Perl Buzz Posts Latest Perl Buzz Posts by Andy Lester Latest Posts From Perlbuzz

By Jonathan Leto

I'm excited to announce that Parrot Foundation and The Perl Foundation have been accepted as organizations in Google Code-In 2010!

Google Code-In is a contest, similar to Google Summer of Code, where Google pays students aged 13-18 to do tasks designed by open source communities, while learning about open source. Google pays for the work to be done, and we get new members to our communities, while students learn useful skills. It is a big win for everyone.

In 2010, Google Summer of Code was a great success for Perl and Parrot. We got amazing new features in Parrot, Perl 5 and Perl 6 . In 2009, we had similarly spectacular results.

For the students, the benefits are huge. They get mentored by some of the best minds in open source and get "street cred" in the community. This contest also acts as a stepping stone for Google Summer of Code, so students that excel at Code-In will most likely be sought after for future Google Summer of Code involvement. It's also fantastic experience to put on a résumé. I see many Google Summer of Code students get snapped up by respected companies, or accepted to prestigious academic institutions.

The more well-documented tasks we have before that, the more students we will have the potential to attract. I can attest that these kind of contests attract some of the smartest students in the world, so the Perl and Parrot communities have much to gain by being involved.

I expect great results for Code-In as well, but we need your help. The Google Code-In contest opens up for students on: November 22, 2010 at 12:00 AM Pacific Time / 08:00 UTC.

How Can You Get Involved?

• Add a task to our task list There is a template that you can copy and paste, as well as many examples. Any task related to Perl 5, Perl 6 or Parrot is fair game.
• Improve the description of an existing task. The more specific a task and the more documentation and links you provide, the easier it is for a student to choose and complete a task.
• Volunteer to mentor a student on a task. You apply to be a mentor here. Please join the tpf-gsoc-students mailing list and introduce yourself. Provide a brief description of why you are interested when you sign up, so we know you aren't a bot :) Please also join the #gci channel on irc.perl.org.
• Tell potential students about Google Code-In and how we are involved. Here is a link to the timeline and FAQ that you can send them, as well as flyers to post.

Jonathan Leto has been heavily involved in co-ordinating the Perl and Parrot projects in Google Summer of Code for the past three years. He's also a core contributor to the Parrot project.