Re: [mv] use of demos as starting point

[Birgitt Funk <birgitt@my-books.com>]

******    message to minivend-users from Birgitt Funk <birgitt@my-books.com>     ******


On Fri, 26 May 2000, Chris Rapier wrote:

> ******    message to minivend-users from Chris Rapier <rapier@psc.edu>     ******
> 
[snip]

> 
> HOWEVER! That being said, the problem with the demos is that they don't
> actually teach you the underlying rational behind what they are doing.
> Its more than possible to develop a site without actually knowing *why*
> you are using a specific tag in a specific place. Without the knowledge
> of why you are doing something you'll never really understand what you
> are doing. Without understanding you'll never be able to really develop
> the full potential.

you speak my heart...

[snipped the TCP performance and network engineering analogy which
I liked a lot]

> 
> What I'm getting at is that examples are an important part of
> documentation but only a part. You need to have fully and well developed
> documentation so that people can really understand what and why they are
> doing something. I know how difficult and boring documentation can be so
> I'd like to propose something...
> 
> We have a lot of people on this mailing list who know quite about
> minivend and the fundamental concepts behind it. However, no one person
> has the time or inclination to do the whole thing. But what if we split
> the task up? What if we had people volunteer to document smaller
> (perhaps much smaller) portions of minivend? For example, someone could
> take "Installing Minivend", another could take "Minivend and PGP",
> someone else could take "Minivend and Cybercash", or even "Minivend and
> Database Design", and so forth. Its goal won't be to replace the
> existing documentation but to expand on it with insights, examples, and
> the "whys" behind it.
> 
> If there is interest I'll do my part to help organize it and write it.
> Anyone else?

People have been there at the point you are now. It didn't happen.
Someone told me once if you fail in something, the first thing you
do is analyzing why and then act upon the results of you analysis.

Why did the documentation project failed last year ?

The answer I give myself is simple. There are not enough people out
there who have enough technical insight in the Minivend source code
to translate what is happening in the program a.) into MV tag
syntax and then b.) into English for beginners.

I figured as a complete outsider that I need _at least_ one and half
years of fulltime study to be able to understand MV and use it for
business purposes.

	(not to build and _use_ one catalog on an ISP's server, who 
	provides MV support, that is different - you can run a catalog 
	and build one without understanding what you are doing - that was
	very well put in your post, BTW).

I have had a hard time to make one and half years free time to do this.
I could imagine other outsiders have the same problem. But outsiders
are coming in and try to use Minivend...and are going to ask _many_
questions.

The sad part about the whole thing is, that naturally the outsiders are
the ones who want a good documentation the most, and even if they like
to help and work on it (like I do) they are not up to the level
where they really can work _with_ others on a group project which
demands already a high level of technical background knowledge the
beginner needs still to acquire.

I don't know how many people have the capability to _do_ the work, to
make it _happen_ , now, in the near future, as we speak.

Count me out as someone who can help now, count me in as someone who
is interested seeing your wishes come through.

Birgitt

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