I know that MOOCs were generally unsuccessful. However, I felt that M2O2C2 in Coursera was a great (at least my favorite) course and it's a pity it was removed. Does anyone have any info - will it ever be back under any format?
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2$\begingroup$ Obviously Steven's answer has all you need, but there is still a multivariate course using similar software, e.g. ximera.osu.edu/mooculus/calculus3 which has the various interactive stuff, just presumably Jim's take on the material and not Steven's. $\endgroup$– kcrismanCommented Jul 22, 2022 at 18:23
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1$\begingroup$ @kcrisman these texts currently in use by OSU have been very collaboratively written. You can check the commit history to see how many authors there are. I will particularly highlight the contribution of Bart Snapp. $\endgroup$– Steven GubkinCommented Jul 25, 2022 at 22:19
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$\begingroup$ @StevenGubkin Thanks for clarifying that! (Which I think I also knew in theory but am glad for the reminder, since I've met some of those collaborators, and you are also one.) $\endgroup$– kcrismanCommented Jul 26, 2022 at 20:45
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I was the primary author of the M2O2C2 content. So glad that you enjoyed the course!
My friend Jim Fowler wrote the backend code (called Ximera). All of the files for M2O2C2 were in an earlier, not backwards compatible, version of Ximera. So even getting the content to function on the web would require considerable work. I also think Jim is the only person who actually knows how to get the thing to work...
The tex files are all available on github:
https://github.com/kisonecat/m2o2c2
Please feel free to download all the files and mess with them until they compile as a pdf. I did enjoy writing up my unique perspective on multivariable Calculus for this course, but I have not had time or motivation to salvage it.
answered Jul 22, 2022 at 14:06
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1$\begingroup$ Could you clarify why "it was removed"? Is it because the software that it uses is no longer supported? $\endgroup$– JRNCommented Jul 22, 2022 at 15:47
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4$\begingroup$ @JRN Ya. Jim wrote (from scratch) a system called "ximera" which takes latex code and alternately parses it into an interactive webpage OR into a pdf. Things like \answer{x^2} would create a fill in the blank box where the student could type a function. Similar mechanisms for multiple choice, etc. The version of ximera which m2o2c2 was written in is no longer operational. Theoretically one could pull the old version from github and get it functioning, but the mechanics of setting up the servers was idiosyncratic and not well documented. So I think it might just be lost. $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 22, 2022 at 16:53
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4$\begingroup$ @kcrisman AFAIK Ximera has reached a somewhat stable state, and is being actively used by a few content authors at various Universities. My own interests have shifted more towards creating human connections: I am less certain that text (even interactive text) can have that big of an impact for non-experts. $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 22, 2022 at 18:36
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4$\begingroup$ This is one thing that I really love about the Stack Exchange Network! You ask a question, and it it might just happen that the original author (or "original online course instructor", or whatever) shows up and answers. (There are also some nice instances of this on, e.g., MathOverflow.) $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 23, 2022 at 8:06
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2$\begingroup$ @primemover this isn't commercial software though: it is free, open source software. You are free to try and sort through the GitHub page and use old commits to get it working again! $\endgroup$ Commented Jul 24, 2022 at 11:44