Hello, Galaxy Community!

We’re excited to kick off the year with a series of updates for the Galaxy community. In this issue, you'll find information about the Galaxy Training Academy 2025 (GTA2025), an upcoming opportunity to enhance your data analysis skills. We also highlight the Galaxy and Bioconductor Community Conference 2025 (GBCC2025), which will bring together researchers, developers, and educators for the first-ever joint event between our two communities. Additionally, check out the latest features in Galaxy 24.2, including new workflow tools and enhanced usability. Finally, join us in congratulating the recipients of the 2025 JXTX+CSHL Biology of Genomes Scholarships, who will present their work at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory conference in May.

Read on for all the details and a list of upcoming events!

Galaxy Training Academy 2025 (GTA2025)

The Galaxy Training Academy is back in 2025, and it’s the perfect opportunity for both beginners and advanced learners to sharpen their Galaxy data analysis skills! Whether you are just getting started with Galaxy or looking to deepen your knowledge, GTA2025 offers a self-paced, online, and asynchronous learning experience for all.

Event Overview
The Galaxy Training Academy 2025 spans five days, from May 12th to May 16th, providing participants with a diverse selection of learning tracks to choose from. You will have the flexibility to study at your own pace, with various self-learning materials available throughout the week. Here's what you can expect:

Program Tracks: Galaxy Introduction, Proteomics, Assembly, Transcriptomics, Single Cell, Microbiome, Machine Learning, From Zero to Hero with Python, and FAIR Training.

• Day 1: Get started by familiarizing yourself with the Galaxy platform.
• Days 2–4: Explore specialized topics such as Proteomics, Transcriptomics, Single Cell, Microbiome, or Machine Learning.
• Day 5: Round off your learning journey with an in-depth FAIR Training session.

How it Works
The event is asynchronous, meaning you can start and progress through the materials at your own pace, whenever it suits you best. You’ll never be alone—if you have questions or need guidance, trainers from around the globe are available to support you via Slack chat. With participants across all time zones, help is always within reach.

Who Should Join?
The Galaxy Training Academy is open to everyone interested in learning bioinformatics data analysis through Galaxy. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced user, there’s something for everyone to master, from fundamental skills to more advanced techniques.

Key Dates

• Event: May 12–16, 2025
• Registration deadline: May 8th, 2025

We look forward to welcoming you to GTA2025!

Galaxy and Bioconductor Community Conference 2025 (GBCC2025)

We’re excited to welcome you to the first-ever joint conference between the Galaxy and Bioconductor communities: the Galaxy and Bioconductor Community Conference 2025 (GBCC2025)! This groundbreaking event will unite two leading platforms in computational science and open data analysis, providing an exceptional opportunity for scientists, researchers, software developers, and educators to come together and collaborate.

About GBCC2025
GBCC2025 will take place at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) in New York, a world-renowned venue for innovation and collaboration. The conference brings together a diverse range of disciplines, from genomics and biomedical research to environmental science, cheminformatics, imaging, machine learning, and high-performance computing.

Expect a rich program, including:

• Keynote Talks: Thought-provoking insights from leaders in the field.

  • Charlotte Soneson: Research Associate, Computational Biology Platform, Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research
  • Sergei Pond: Professor, Department of Biology, Temple University
  • Jason Williams: Assistant Director for External Collaborations, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories
• Invited Presentations: Deep dives into cutting-edge research and tools.
• Poster Sessions: Showcase your work and connect with peers.
• Hands-on Workshops: Learn practical skills with guided sessions.
• Birds of a Feather Sessions: Informal, topic-specific discussions to explore common interests.

CoFest 2025: A Collaborative Sprint for Everyone

Following GBCC2025, we invite you to join CoFest—a community-driven event where you’ll collaborate on exciting projects related to Galaxy and Bioconductor. It’s like a hackathon, but it’s not just for programmers; everyone is welcome to participate, regardless of background or experience!

What to Expect at CoFest
CoFest is an interactive and informal event where you’ll work side-by-side with others to enhance the Galaxy and Bioconductor ecosystems. Here’s a glimpse at what you can expect:

• Improve Tools & Workflows: Help enhance Galaxy & Bioconductor tools and functionalities.
• Enhance Documentation & Training: Make it easier for others to use and learn these platforms.
• Design & User Experience: Contribute to improving accessibility, visuals, and usability.
• Community Discussions: Engage with like-minded individuals and explore new ideas.
• No Pressure, Just Collaboration: Work at your own pace on projects that spark your interest.

We can’t wait to see you at GBCC2025 and CoFest! Register today!

Galaxy 24.2

The Galaxy 24.2 release is packed with exciting updates designed to enhance the user experience and improve functionality. From a more intuitive workflow invocation export process to powerful new tools for workflow editing, this release brings several key improvements aimed at making data analysis more seamless and efficient. Here's a quick overview of the most notable updates in this release:

Wizard-like Export View for Workflow Invocations
A new step-by-step interface simplifies the export process, allowing users to select export formats and destinations with ease. More user-friendly and streamlined.

Workflow Editor Enhancements
Improvements include a revamped Activity Bar, a new Undo/Redo UI, better layout tools, and enhanced workflow and input management for a smoother editing experience.

Masthead and Activity Bar Updates
The masthead has been streamlined, and a new “More” activity gives users access to less frequent tasks. The username is now visible in the masthead for quicker access to preferences.

Improved Collection Builder Navigation
New buttons make creating and uploading collections easier, guiding users to compatible file types and simplifying workflow creation.

Enhanced Workflow Invocation View
Updates to the invocation view improve usability, including separate tabs for workflow steps, direct display of inputs, and relocated progress bars for a cleaner layout.

Workflow Invocation Metrics
A new Metrics tab provides insights into workflow resource usage, including runtime, memory, and core allocation.

Libraries Modernization
The dataset picker is more intuitive, making it easier to import files from the user and import directories into libraries.

Live Reporting of Job Console Outputs
Real-time job logs are now available for running jobs, with a more intuitive job information view for better debugging.

ChatGXY - Job Error Wizard
AI-powered job error diagnostics help users quickly identify and resolve issues by offering actionable insights through the Dataset Error interface.

JXTX + CSHL 2025 Biology of Genomes Scholarship Recipients

The James P. Taylor Foundation for Open Science is excited to announce the winners of the 2025 JXTX+CSHL Biology of Genomes Scholarships. These scholarships support graduate students in genomics and data science, allowing them to present their research and engage with the global research community. This year, six awardees from across the globe, representing various institutions, will showcase their work at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory’s Biology of Genomes Conference, scheduled for May 6-10.

• Maria Carilli, California Institute of Technology
• Sakuntha Gunarathna, University of North Dakota
• Betselot Zerihun Ayano, Ethiopian Public Health Institute
• Elysia Chou, University of Michigan
• Amy Longtin, Vanderbilt University
• William DeGroat, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Galaxy congratulates these talented graduate and undergraduate students on their achievements and looks forward to their contributions to the field! To learn more about this year's outstanding scholarship recipients, please visit the JXTX Foundation website.

Upcoming Events

Thank you for being a part of Galaxy!

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