Update

Announcement of UdonLMS

2026-10-12, YS/RK

We hereby proudly present the culmination of our efforts in finding our brand. We are

UdonLMS - A decent learning management system

and this is our website =)

Release of ILIAS-Slim

2026-08-07, YS/RK

We proudly announce the release of ILIAS Slim, a stripped down version of ILIAS 11. This also marks the first completed milestone for our project Essential ILIAS '27.

Find a detailed release note in our repository, along with the code.

Workshop in Bern

2025-06-11, RK

For our second workshop, a smaller group of six contributors met in Bern. Our goal was to identify and write down shared values, but also to spot potential causes of friction. We looked at things from three different perspectives, one for each group we expect to be involved with the project in the future:

• Operators of LMS-based services, who need a reliable platform to build their business on or to serve their organisations.
• Service providers offering services around learning management systems, e.g. hosting, configuration, support, training or software development.
• And last but not least, the people who actually work together every day to make it all happen.

Our results showed that the more emotional and spontaneous ideas from the first workshop do indeed hold up under closer, more rational scrutiny.

To end the workshop on a lighter note, we tried to imagine the ideal first hire for a future organisation that would carry our ideas forward. We chose Groot, the tree-like creature from the Marvel universe: He's calm, steady and resilient. We hope he'll be available once we're ready to start hiring.

First status report for Essential ILIAS '27

2026-04-21, YS

The executive team of Essential ILIAS '27 (Yvonne and Richard) wanted to share a quick update on recent and upcoming activities as well as the current state of our project.

TL;DR: We've already achieved a lot, but we're behind our ambitious timeline. We're currently wrapping up the QA phase of our own version of ILIAS ("Slim") and have started planning the follow-up version, "Slim Plus".

What happened so far:

• On 6 March, 2026, we created a fork of the ILIAS code, which has been developed independently of ILIAS since. We have removed various components and subcomponents. Most of the development was done by Nils, Stephan and Thibeau.
• The resulting codebase is currently going through a quality assurance phase. We use an adapted set of test cases inherited from ILIAS community. Many of these are carried out by external testers so our own testers Hansjörg and Florian can focus on the more complex cases.
• The executive team meets weekly, joined by other persons depending on interests and topics. We've also held less frequent meetings with the developers involved.
• We've presented and discussed the project idea with interested parties on various occasions. Members of the University of Bern and representatives of the ILIAS society have explored possible ways to keep on cooperating in the future.

Where do we stand?

• So far, we removed 20% of the code, which has allowed us to drop 25% of the test cases.
• The people involved find the work enjoyable and motivating. We've managed to keep processes and formalities at a minimum, so everyone stays close to the results of their work and can get a feel for the impact they make.
• We have agreed on a shared understanding of code quality. Most notably, every change is reviewed by at least one other developer before it is merged into our code base.

What's next?

• The QA phase should be completed soon. We'll verify additional test cases and remove those that target components we've removed. We may also accept some defects, if we consider them minor enough. We'll also pull code from ILIAS e.V. where it makes sense, to to stay close to the original codebase. The final version will come with a release note describing everything we've changed so far.
• We're looking for organisations interested in test-driving our results and sharing their experiences. We're happy to offer hands-on support as far as our resources allow. If you're interested, please get in contact with Yvonne or Richard.
• We're planning another workshop in Bern. Feel free to contact Yvonne or Richard if you'd like to participate. We can't promise everyone an invitation, but we'd love to see some fresh faces as well as familiar ones.
• We'll soon start planing the follow-up version, Slim Plus. The goal is to stay compatible with ILIAS 11 while adding some exciting new features. If you'd like to contribute, get in touch!

We're happy to hear from anyone who reaches out, no strings attached. You've got questions? Want more insight into the project? Interested in getting involved? Just get in touch with us. We're taking the codebase into a promising and exciting new direction, and maybe you'd like to come along for the ride.

Workshop in Cologne

2026-03-18, RK

Today, a larger group of thirteen people met at CaT's offices in Cologne to talk about the future direction of our project. We spent part of the day going through the project plan and building a shared understanding of our goals and the steps needed to reach them. As part of a creative workshop, we then collected ideas for the branding of a possible future fork.

Some interesting ideas emerged around the shared conviction that the project should provide a stable, coherent foundation for our LMS needs. Why not compare it to a fungus that lives largely unseen in the garden, yet nourishes all the plants and keeps the soil healthy? Or to a japanese garden that fascinates and calms through its clean, minimalist design? We're confident that these ideas will be fertile ground for future discussions.

A big thank you to everyone who took part!

Launch of Essential-ILIAS '27

2026-01-21, YS/RK

Today, together with Stephan Kergomard, we (ILUB of University of Bern and CaT Concepts and Training GmbH) adopted the plan for our joint research project Essential ILIAS '27.

The goal is to explore alternative futures for the ILIAS codebase, beyond its current processes and structures.

Our general approach is to break this big question down into three parts, each answering part of it:

• What happens if we build a stripped-down version of ILIAS?
• Can we build on this foundation and add new features?
• What organisational structures do we need to carry the codebase forward?

We aim to have answers to all three questions by early 2027 and to be in a position to decide whether to further pursue this effort.

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