[GRASS-dev] Call for documentation help

[Daniel Calvelo]

I would add, wrt examples, "try to build working examples using the demo
data available" (spearfish, IMO; we should think about the new demo for 7.0).
We should probably use a system not unlike R's demo() command or python's
doctests, where the code examples within the docs may be extracted and
executed. This might also be merged into the regression testing system.

Daniel.

On 11/4/07, Michael Barton <c.michael.barton at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> The GRASS team needs your help. As you all are well aware, GRASS is
> enormously sophisticated spatial analysis sophisticated. This also makes
> it equally complicated and sometimes baffling for users, with over 300
> individual modules. GRASS has a top notch integrated and contextual help
> system. BUT we need help in making the most of the help system.
>
> As with all open source software, the development team is a group of
> dedicated volunteers who work hard (in addition to their regular jobs)
> to create the first rate software that you all use. They are also very
> responsible in trying to document the program modules they code and
> maintain.
>
> This is where your help is needed. In spite of best intentions and
> efforts, development team members with coding skills need to put most of
> their always limited time into writing and maintaining the code that
> makes GRASS such a powerful and versatile software package. Many of you
> in the GRASS community are expert users even if you do not have
> expertise in programming. It is also clear from the traffic on this list
> that you are regularly willing to share your expertise with others by
> answering questions.
>
> Would some of you be willing to join the development team to help manage
> and improve the GRASS documentation and help system? You don't need to
> be proficient at programming, and because this is a team effort, you
> don't even need to know all parts of GRASS. What is needed is sufficient
> knowledge of some GRASS modules to help improve and maintain their
> documentation pages, a little bit of html (the help pages are in very
> basic html), and a desire to work cooperatively to improve GRASS. Here
> is a partial list of roles that are needed.
>
> Individual module management:
> -Add or improve examples. Examples of how to use a module to get
> different results is very helpful
> -Add or improve example graphic in modules. Screen shots are often worth
> many words
> -Improve and enrich descriptions in English. In many cases,
> documentation was written by valiant souls for whom English is a 2nd (or
> 3rd or 4th) language. Native speakers are needed to enrich these
> descriptions.
> -Add or improve non-English versions of the documentation. GRASS is
> trying hard to be international and is used around the world. Much of
> the operational language of the modules have been translated to other
> languages (though a lot more help is needed in this too). Help and doc
> pages in other languages would make GRASS much more usable globally.
>
> Overall:
> -Documentation management. Someone or ones to mangage a team of
> documentation helpers, ID holes and weak spots in the documentation,
> coordinate with the coding team, and think about documentation standards.
>
> If you are interested and willing to contribute a small part of your
> time to help others use GRASS, please respond to the GRASS Developer
> list <grass-dev at grass.itc.it> and copy the GRASS project team leader,
> Markus Neteler <neteler [at] fbk.eu>
>
> Michael
>
> --
>
> Professor of Anthropology
> Director of Graduate Studies
> School of Human Evolution & Social Change
> Center for Social Dynamics & Complexity
> Arizona State University
>
> Phone: 480-965-6262
> Fax: 480-965-7671
> WWW: http://www.public.asu.edu/~cmbarton
>
> _______________________________________________
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>



-- 
-- Daniel Calvelo Aros
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