This situation on this board is fairly typical of many industries when it comes to community outreach. That is, those deeply involved in industry projects are too “booked” to commit to constant outside help over a year period but they do what they can.
At Full Sail we have an curriculum advisory board made up of all working industry people that meets twice a year for accreditation standards and that is tough to coordinate. Additionally, these working insiders really don’t usually speak the language of the average starting student ( or beginning developer ) and can have a difficult time expressing game related study topics because the student doesn’t have rudimentary vocabulary of a working insider
This is where industry and R & D academics fit in nicely and why many colleges are set up this way.
In short, we act as translators between the two worlds while also teaching the language to the students along the way.
First, based on feedback from the advisers, we develop curriculum that reflects what the industry is using and developing.
Second, we present that curriculum using techniques, examples, tutorials, presentations, and special events that are based on the process of learning and (typically) outside of game development.(of course some games teach and use the same techniques)
I am all for having direct industry participants on the Java Games Community Board of Directors should one become available. But remember their expertise is making games not necessarily maintaining a community forum about game technologies. I don’t feel that NOT having one as a director is a “Bad Thing”. They are here and they talk to us when they can.
On a side note, when the Java Game Expert groups was in full swing, it was made from about 90% industry people, with remaining 10% Sun people and myself. And attendance at meetings reflected about the same percentages. Actually not really that bad, but most of the time only half of the COMMITTED participants were available due to their project demands.
