ubuntu-manual team mailing list archive

[Benjamin Humphrey <humphreybc@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hey guys,

I haven't forgotten about your comments Wendy and I'm going to do something
about it very soon!

On Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 7:25 PM, Jamin Day
<jaminday+ubuntu@xxxxxxxxx<jaminday%2Bubuntu@xxxxxxxxx>
> wrote:

> Hi Wendy,
>
> No problem at all - better to not overcommit yourself than take on too much
> then wish you hadn't!
>
> It's probably more important at this stage that you help out with writing
> the content if you are happy to stick with that. We are behind on content at
> the moment and need as much help in that area as we can get. Then, if you
> have time and the inclination later, you can always help out with
> proofreading some pages like you did the other day.
>
> I won't assign you as editor to any chapters for now, so feel free to just
> concentrate on writing. If you're not comfortable with bzr/launchpad to edit
> the source files, and don't feel that you have the time to get up to speed,
> you can always send anything you have written or proofread to myself (or one
> of the other admins), and we can put your work into the source files for
> you.
>
> All the best,
>
> Jamin
>
>
> On Sun, Jan 31, 2010 at 12:48 PM, Wendy Sheridan <
> wendy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>> Hi Jamin,
>>
>> I don't know that I can commit to being responsible for an entire chapter
>> right now, (I've got a full-time job and a family and some other community
>> work that I do). Ilya has given me some piece of chapter 2 to get my feet
>> wet and get up to speed. Once I get to that point, I'll be more comfortable
>> taking an editorial role for an entire chapter. If you need someone to
>> "simply" proofread, similar to what I've already done (and not get into the
>> source files), I can give a lot more pages a once over. To be honest, it
>> will probably take me most of the next 2 weeks to get up to speed on all
>> your tools, as I'm unfamiliar with all of them.
>>
>> If I can be put to better use doing proofreading/editing for the current
>> release, I'm happy to do so. Otherwise, I'll do the sections that Ilya
>> assigned to me this week, which was this:
>>
>> "I think something that is smallish enough that you could help would be a
>> portion of the "Around your desktop" chapter.
>>
>> Currently we'll need a section there that's kind of as follows:
>>
>>    - Customizing your desktop
>>       - Appearance
>>       - Windows
>>       - Screensaver
>>    - Accessibility
>>       - Assistive technologies"
>>
>> I will be loading the 10.04 alpha on a VM probably tomorrow (if not
>> tonight), and I'll use the Manual for instructions (and let y'all know how
>> that turns out).
>>
>> I don't want to say "no" to you right off the bat, but I also don't want
>> to commit to something that I can't deliver. I'll know better in a few days
>> or so. (This is my first Open source project - I'm going for a toe in the
>> water first, instead of jumping in the deep end).
>>
>> Best,
>> Wendy
>>
>>
>> On Sat, Jan 30, 2010 at 6:48 PM, Jamin Day <jaminday+ubuntu@xxxxxxxxx<jaminday%2Bubuntu@xxxxxxxxx>
>> > wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Wendy,
>>>
>>> Thanks for your comments and feedback. I have just had a quick look at
>>> the pdf and think many of the changes you suggested are excellent, so I will
>>> go through and make some necessary alterations. There has been one major
>>> edit of the prologue so far but it is still a work in progress so we rely on
>>> people like yourself to provide us with helpful feedback such as this. I
>>> noticed your first comment about being verbose - on reading back through I
>>> do agree and will try and slim it down a little without losing any important
>>> content. Early sections like the prologue and first couple of chapters are
>>> likely to be where people start, so we need to get it right so we don't lose
>>> them!
>>>
>>> Regarding your comments on "Is Ubuntu Right For You" - I think your
>>> insight here is great. However I will leave it up to Benjamin, the content
>>> writer for this chapter, to go back and make any changes to that bit based
>>> on your feedback.
>>>
>>> Ideally we need to get you up and running with bzr if you are not yet
>>> already. That will allow you to make minor changes to the source files as
>>> you go (e.g. fixing spelling/punctuation mistakes). Any bigger changes
>>> should be suggested to the allocated writer/editor for that chapter just
>>> like you have done now, and then collaborated on from there. We don't have a
>>> set protocol for doing this yet though, which is something we need. I'll
>>> have a think and also chat to Benjamin and anyone interested on the best way
>>> to do that so it's consistent across chapters. If you need a hand with bzr
>>> check out our wiki page under "Technical Help" or just ask one of us.
>>>
>>> Lastly, how would you feel about being the assigned editor for a chapter
>>> or two? You obviously have a lot of experience in this area and have given
>>> some great feedback already. We currently need an editor allocated to
>>> chapters 6 and 10. Basically being allocated to a chapter means you are
>>> responsible for liaising with the allocated writer for that chapter to
>>> ensure it gets completed and reviewed/edited thoroughly. You can still
>>> provide editing feedback on any of the other chapters such as you have done
>>> today - it's more so we have a point person for each chapter responsible for
>>> editing.
>>>
>>> Regards,
>>>
>>> JaminDay
>>>
>>> PS - You are correct, we are aiming for US English. However I'm from
>>> Australia and Benjamin from New Zealand, so it's highly likely there are
>>> words in the prologue we forgot to Americanize as we went!
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sun, Jan 31, 2010 at 9:54 AM, Wendy Sheridan <
>>> wendy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi,
>>>> I attached a truncated PDF (of mostly just the prolog - the Acrobat
>>>> delete pages function is acting strange with this file - something to do
>>>> with the Roman numerals and my counting skills apparently) with comments and
>>>> editorial suggestions for the prolog. I also fixed a lot of punctuation
>>>> errors (proper use of apostrophes go a long way towards meeting the
>>>> "professional" goal).
>>>>
>>>> My edits were mostly to change some word choices to American English
>>>> (which is what I know) - if those are not where you want to go, that's fine.
>>>> I also deleted things that looked like slang and tried to tighten up the
>>>> language a bit.
>>>>
>>>> The section "Is Ubuntu Right For You?" I think has some serious tone
>>>> issues - all it tells me is that it's not going to run any of the software
>>>> that I am used to and know and it seems to be actively dissuading me from
>>>> wanting to use it (trying to put my "target market" hat on for a moment). I
>>>> would strongly suggest shortening the negative bullet paragraphs, and don't
>>>> snark at people who (like me!) *like* Adobe software (and have invested
>>>> quite a bit of money in it in order to, for example, WORK to feed their
>>>> family). For EVERY negative, IMMEDIATELY follow it with a solution/positive.
>>>>
>>>> Something like:
>>>>
>>>> * You probably aren't going to be able to call on your local computer
>>>> store for help if you experience a problem. Luckily, because Ubuntu is
>>>> community-based, open source software, the Ubuntu community is available
>>>> on-line 24/7 and you will be able to find help and support from them (etc or
>>>> something like this)
>>>>
>>>> * Ubuntu doesn't run most (or all?) Windows-based commercial software.
>>>> However, the open-source community has created software that performs all
>>>> the common tasks and functions that you typically use (and list them, with
>>>> links to more info or downloads or whatever).
>>>>
>>>> * Ubuntu is also not a supported OS for many popular, commercially
>>>> produced games (yet). However,  blah blah blah.
>>>>
>>>> And then you should list some more benefits for using Ubuntu.
>>>>
>>>> I have to get to some other things today so I can't do more right now. I
>>>> hope I haven't ruffled any feathers. I also know I'm probably not following
>>>> the right processes for this yet. Please bear with me as I figure out this
>>>> whole system.
>>>>
>>>> Best,
>>>> Wendy
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Wendy
>>>> ---
>>>> wendyshandmade.etsy.com
>>>> www.wendysheridan.net
>>>> www.sheridanmultimedia.com
>>>> www.twitter.com/wendydesigns
>>>>
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>>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Wendy
>> ---
>> wendyshandmade.etsy.com
>> www.wendysheridan.net
>> www.sheridanmultimedia.com
>> www.twitter.com/wendydesigns
>>
>
>


-- 
Benjamin Humphrey

Ubuntu Manual Project Leader
Dunedin, New Zealand

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/ubuntu-manual
www.interesting.co.nz