[pmwiki-users] pmwiki documentation: Edit Templates

[Ben Wilson]

Hmm. We have varying levels of difficulty. We have various audiences.
Sounds like instead of "editors" and "admins" as audiences, we should
have: "basic editors", "advanced editors." That is, the granularity of
only three (or four) audiences is too grainy. Combining with basic,
intermediate, and advanced gives us nineish options (or only six if we
use only basic and advanced).

I could forsee PmWiki and PmWikiAdmin sections, but that that really
does is segregate out the administrative parts of the documentation.
Following this logic, there should be three (or four) groups based on
audiences (and there might need to be the "all" audience).

I think, generally, that core information should be clearly discussed
in the PmWiki* area. However, I can see the need for a recipe to
augment. The example here is Pagelist. IMO, The PmWiki:Pagelist should
showcase that feature (perhaps among the most potent), and examples in
that section should relate to what is found in the default
installation of PmWiki. All the features should be discussed there.
However, if the example is not a part of PmWiki, then perhaps those
examples should be in Cookbook:Pagelist.

Retaining Cookbook:Pagelist allows the community to share a how-to set
of examples that builds on what is in the Core. This allows the
Community to recycle the good ideas that, for whatever reason, should
not be a part of the Core. However, it may simply be that
Cookbook:Pagelist is really a Community developed
PmWiki:PageListTemplates with more explanation than might normally be
found in that same page.

So, in sum, I think as much discussion of Core features should be in
the Core. Exposition not a part of the Core should have a
corresponding page in Cookbook.

On 5/24/06, Curtis, Clayton <Clayton.Curtis at va.gov> wrote:
> I hope this discussion continues (and leads to a more accessible
> documentation set).  I really respect all the work that goes on!!!  But
> I am definitely in the camp of "it would help a lot to have things from
> the cookbook that pertain to the core in the core documentation".  I'm
> not sure whether the "too much documentation" view derives from impact
> on download / storage (which I kind of doubt) vs issues with how it's
> organized and how easy it is to comprehend it.  I definitely get the
> issues of overlap in types of content and the fuzziness of audience
> definition, but to me that's just more ammunition for NOT separating
> Cookbook content that is core-related from documentation about the core.
> (Sorry for the long post, but this one hit a nerve as a newcomer trying
> to understand an incredibly rich tool set.)  I'm certainly willing to
> serve as apprentice / slave labor if that would be any help.
>
-- 
Ben Wilson
" Mundus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur"