FAQ
Feel free to contact us with any questions that are not answered in this FAQ.
- What is a disability?
- What is accessibility?
- What is SS12?
- When is SS12?
- Who is behind this event?
- Are there prizes?
- Who is judging?
- How are teams chosen?
- Will there be food?
- What do I need to know about accessible software?
- Do I have to attend the entire weekend?
- What happens to the software we create?
- Is developing software for the disabled important?
- Can we continue work on our projects after the competition?
- How do I sign up?
"A disability is a condition or function judged to be significantly impaired relative to the usual standard of an individual or their group. The term is often used to refer to individual functioning, including physical impairment, sensory impairment, cognitive impairment, intellectual impairment mental illness, and various types of chronic disease." (Wikipedia)
"Disability Resides in the Society not in the Person" (United Nations)
"Accessibility is a general term used to describe the degree to which a system is usable by as many people as possible." (Wikipedia)
SS12 is a team software development challenge focused on creating software for the disabled community. Teams of both undergraduate and graduate students will work together to create software that will make a difference in peoples' lives and in society. Fun events will interspersed within the hardcore coding.
A judging panel will monitor the progress of the teams over the weekend and evaluate the final products at the end of the coding session on Sunday evening. The judging panel will consist of academic faculty and industry professionals.
The SS12 event concludes with a technology showcase, in which companies in the field of assistive technology demonstrate their products alongside the accomplishments of the student teams over the weekend.
SS12 is as much an event to benefit disabled persons as it is to benefit the participants -- it's not just the awesome prizes, it's a learning experience, not to mention a unique opportunity to network with industry professionals.
SS12 will be held on a weekend: February 27th and 28th. Each day is 12 hours in length, which includes talks, coding sessions, meals, with snack breaks, tech fairs, and entertainment in between.
This event is being spearheaded by Project:Possibility, joined by UCLA ACM (Assocation for Computing Machinery).
Fo' shizzle. The winner of the competition walks away with 1000$ cash. Also we have a wide range of prizes for the participants. Commemorative SS12 T-shirts will be awarded to all participants at the completion of the event.
A mix of renowned faculty members and industry professionals (to be announced) will be present to help judge.
Because of the nature of the contest, we will be carefully selecting the teams, to ensure each team is well balanced with regard to experience, skills and strengths. At registration, one can specify teammate preferences which will be taken into consideration when the teams are chosen.
Of course! How can anyone code while hungry? Four meals are included for the 60 undergraduate and graduate participants, along with snacks, energy drinks, and other beverages to keep everyone at their best!
What do I need to know about accessible software?
No prior knowledge is required, though any knowledge of accessible computing will be very advantageous. Industry developers and accessibility experts will be present to help you and your team with make your creations accessible and usable.
Do I have to attend the entire weekend?
Participants are required to attend the entire event. All aspects of the event are centered around full participation, such as the time to complete the projects, food, along with goodies, prizes, and entertainment over the course of the weekend.
What happens to the software we create?
Any code submitted during the course of the weekend will be considered open source under the GPL license and showcased on the Project:Possibility website. Your team's work will have a direct impact in the disabled and open source community.
Is developing software for the disabled important?
There are nearly 50 million people in the United States alone who fall under the category of "disabled", and it's estimated that over 500 million people in the world have a disability. Your work will potentially impact millions of people who can use the technology to empower them in their daily lives.
Can we continue work on our projects after the competition?
Of course! In fact, we hope to see that people will use this competition as a starting point to developing accessible software as well as join the open source community.
Follow the "Register" link on the top navigation bar!
