Hi Olivier,
Thanks again for the responses.
If this has been a problem for a while, I am puzzled about why it has
not been fixed. Are you aware of a reason why the download page cannot
be re-worded now?
To be clear, what are you saying is the best source of information for
people who are new to this and want to learn about the overall
LibreOffice project? Are you saying that the wiki is not useful because
so much work needs to be done on it?
As long as I am asking questions, here is one more: What is the Pootle
server?
Cheers,
Cathy
On 7/27/2017 3:29 PM, Olivier Hallot wrote:
Hello Cathy
Em 27/07/2017 15:16, Cathy Crumbley escreveu:
Hi Olivier,
(snip)
Finally, I downloaded the file and realized what I have been missing.
Perhaps I am a dunderhead but if I missed the Help files, perhaps others
have. I would strongly recommend that the download page be clearer about
what the file contains. Can this feedback be passed on to the
appropriate people or should I submit it somewhere?
No dunderhead at all and thanks again for raising the issue. This is an
old issue and people keep bypassing the download of the Help. I know the
Help is not downloaded because it pulls a string in the forums and
mailing lists on very basic subjects, typical of those who do not access
a Help, for whatever reason.
On another note, I have been wondering how to find information about the
project as a whole. Then I looked at the blog post you linked to and
found pages with some of the information I have been looking for. I
would like to suggest that new members like me be referred to that site
as an introduction to the LibreOffice project.
We keep a wiki for that purpose. But it requires permanent reordering
and addition/deletion/update of hundreds of pages, permanently.
We also have our main website (www.libreoffice.org) with information on
the project.
By the way, I noticed an archived tender (July 2016) to redesign the
download page. Does anyone know if that means that it has already been
redesigned and that it will not be changed for a while?
The download page has been reworked recently.
Kind regards
Thanks again.
Cathy
On 7/26/2017 7:00 PM, Olivier Hallot wrote:
Hi Cathy
Em 25/07/2017 22:08, Cathy Crumbley escreveu:
What is the relationship between Help and the Guides? It sounds like
they are on two separate tracks. Are they duplicating information
independently?
I'm glad you raised this question.
Yes they are separated tracks and contents duplication is a fact, at
least partially. Help pages are instance of web on-line pages, and
guides are instances of printed books. Different form factors for
different usage.
The Help is part of the software and is invoked when you press F1 or
click on the Help button in a dialog.
Because it is part of the application, the following applies
* It is a flat and factual description of the feature, eventually with
examples and use cases. Its objective is to help users to get the job done.
* The Help pages are translated into all released languages (currently
68 languages).
* It must contain the most accurate information on the features of the
software.
* Is must be indexed for easy referencing and search.
However, not everything is actually true...
* Translation of the Help depends on volunteers, which have limited time
available for the task. This however does not prevent us from releasing
new versions, but with unfinished translations in some cases.
* A significant part of the Help is also a user guide, which overlaps
with the current Guides we have. However, editing Help pages and
inserting it into the Help system is way more complex than
writing/updating a text document in Writer, as we do for the guides. I'd
like to discuss the contents of the Help User Guide and see if the Help
system needs to get leaner.
* The help system is poorly illustrated, almost everything is textual
with very few images and no videos.
* Because of the way the software is developed, LibreOffice developers
don't write software specification paperwork, and new features mushrooms
in the code, with no documentation or help page associated (with rare
and much appreciated exceptions). Many new developments as well as
changes in the user interface are not documented yet in the Help, which
means the Help is lagging with respect to the software. We are however
collecting these gaps in a list and looking for volunteers to write about.
What prevents us to evolve with the Help, and find something more easy
for volunteers to contribute?
* we must absolutely preserve its current contents and translations
process, people don't like useless rework.
* We don't have a replacing technology that can in a finger snap, make
all the legacy content available to a more user-friendly editing
process. My last blog post addresses the issue.
https://goo.gl/j3DVAG
There will be a workshop in Rome, at our LibreOffice Conference where we
will discuss these issues and more. I hope to meet all authors involved.
http://conference.libreoffice.org/
Kind regards
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