[Qgis-developer] Creating a list of reference plugins for learning purposes

[Victor Olaya]

Hi all

I am going to start working on additional materials for developers,
but instead of expanding the cookbook or adding more
documentation/tutorials/etc, I have an idea that i would like to share
with you all.

We have a large collection of plugins already, and most of the things
that can be done in a plugin are already implemented somehow in one or
several plugins.The plugins are a great example of how to do things,
but, just like it can be difficult for a user to find one that does
what he wants, it is even harder for a developer to find one that
implements what he is lookign for.

My idea is to take a set of 5-10 plugins that are representative of
what most people what to know, and document them in detail so they can
be used as reference plugins. Also, if these plugins are written with
different sytles, I will homogenize them so they have a common style
and can serve to set some guidelines for developers. In short, create
a set of examples to follow, and from which a developer can learn.

Finally, I would like to tag those plugins or add a list of topics in
a separate document, so you can find what you want easily. Let's say
that you do not know how to create a map tool. You can go to the list
and see which plugin in that set of reference ones implements that.
The same for all other topics that might be relevant.

Links can be also added in the cookbok, so at the end of each section
we can provide a link to the code of a real plugin that uses the
technique that the section describes.

I think this would be very useful, but I would like to know your
opinion. Recommendations of plugins to use as reference ones are also
welcome, since I haven't read the code of all of them...

Cheers, and thanks in advance.