On Mon, 2006-11-27 at 16:52 +0100, Ingrid Halama wrote:
[snip]

> Maybe you see the problem with having no information about charts at 
> all? Then a user might come to the conclusion that there are no charts 
> in OpenOffice.org and will not use it when he needs charts.

This might be true for someone who has never seen an office suite
before. However, people who have used a competitor's product will know
that if you want to create a chart, you open a spreadsheet and then
insert a chart, or a open a presentation and then insert a chart... In
fact, our own screenshot of Calc shows such a chart:
http://www.openoffice.org/product/calc.html.

The fact that you are developing a replacement universal Chart module is
great news. One of OOo's strengths vs MS-Office is that OOo was
engineered from the start as a single product - not created by bolting
packages together. So the fact that we have a new single Chart module
shared across all applications is good news for users.

The challenge I would make is that if Chart is really good, we should
package it as a Chart application. The OOo database stuff was "one of
OOo's hidden secrets" (see http://www.unixodbc.org/doc/OOoMySQL9.pdf)
until it was packaged as the Base application.

> So please, when you are the expert for marketing text then provide me 
> with that and I make it more prominent on the chart page.

It's a matter of deciding what your message is and who you are aiming it
at. Typically you will have a series of marketing messages as you
progress through the software development lifecycle. Here's how the same
theme could play to different targets at different stages of the
lifecycle:

Theme: "OpenOffice.org is developing a brilliant new Chart
application..."

Power users: "...and we'd like your input on all the things you wished
you could do with charts. Help build your dream - join in the dialogue
on this mailing list/wiki page today..." (requirements gathering)

Hackers: "...and we're using some really cool technologies that'll blow
your mind. Head over here to find out how to get
involved..." (development)

Testers: "...and we'd like you to be one of the first people to try it
out. Help make Chart even better for the millions of users who are
waiting for the final product. Join our test team here..." (testing)

Users: "...which will revolutionise the way you present graphical
information. Download OOo and start using it today, and our automatic
update notifications will tell you as soon as the new Chart is
available. What's more, the upgrade - like all OOo software - will be
completely free of charge." (approaching release date)

Does this make sense? where are you in the lifecycle just now?

John


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