ubuntu-manual team mailing list archive

[Chris Woollard <cwoollard@xxxxxxxxx>]

That would probably be useful.

I am up for it.

Chris




On 1 November 2010 00:09, Ryan Macnish <nisshh.ubuntu@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> Oh yeah guys, i forgot to mention what happened at the UDS-N session for
> the developer manual (i was remote participating), one of us there suggested
> that we have a face-to-face canonical funded sprint sometime this cycle.
> What do you guys think about that?
>
> Ryan Macnish
>
>
> On Mon, Nov 1, 2010 at 7:34 AM, Chris Woollard <cwoollard@xxxxxxxxx>wrote:
>
>> All I know is that I have tried really hard to get people to help out.
>> Sure, I have had my own life to deal with as well (Which has also be busy),
>> so I have not always been around. But I have tried to get people to help
>> edit / proof read. I have even posted new builds of the pdf after changes
>> have been made. I have to say that it really feels like I have been doing
>> most of the work myself :( This is quite de-motivating.
>>
>> It would really be great if things could be turned around. With the Lucid
>> release it really felt like we were all working as a team. With Maverick,
>> that has just not happened. Dare I say it, but the manual project kind of
>> feels orphaned.
>>
>> I hope things can change.
>>
>> All the best
>>
>> Chris
>>
>> On 31 October 2010 23:16, Ilya Haykinson <haykinson@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>
>>> So in conclusion, i don't think we should release less often, we should
>>>> just work to improve our workflow and the workflow of new contributors
>>>> whether they be authors, editors or translators. Also i do remember that
>>>> Ilya was around a lot during the lucid cycle sort of being an editor in
>>>> chief, but since then we haven't had anyone doing that.
>>>>
>>>>
>>> I've been keeping up with the mailing list traffic, but have been very
>>> busy at work for the last 5 months or so -- so much so that I couldn't
>>> really contribute to the Maverick release. I completely agree that the main
>>> thing that is required is some small group of people who serve as the
>>> editors and drive the process along -- making decisions on where to cut and
>>> where to focus, etc. Obviously I couldn't spare the time for the Maverick
>>> cycle, and am not yet sure how the Natty cycle will look for me (the first
>>> couple of months are going to be tough for sure).
>>>
>>> However, I think it's critical to release every 6 months, even if the
>>> quality isn't great. Only through frequent releases combined with small
>>> improvements can the end product end up great -- if you take 2 years to do a
>>> release, I think the team will fall apart.
>>>
>>> My recommendations are (some are the same as what others have
>>> recommended):
>>>
>>>  - manage translations separately, and do not release the manual to
>>> translators until after the manual is ready to go. this will yield a
>>> smoother translator experience as the content won't be changing from under
>>> them, and will simplify the manual itself.
>>>  - delay the manual publishing date for 3-5 weeks after each release, to
>>> allow content and screenshots to catch up
>>>  - by beta1, have a firm list of changes to be included in the manual; a
>>> week after release date, cut anything that hasn't been written or is
>>> possible to get to the highest quality.
>>>  - work to improve the process. I think this is the least important item,
>>> honestly, since core contributors will always be ok with downloading TeX and
>>> dealing with compilation etc, and while it's key for long-term project
>>> health to bring in casual contributors, I think that a) this is a
>>> stand-alone process that shouldn't be mixed into shipping the manual itself,
>>> and b) the manual comes first, well before automation or better processes.
>>>
>>> Thoughts?
>>>
>>> -ilya
>>>
>>>
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>>>
>>
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>>
>