[REBOL] Re: Proposal: REBOL Documentation indexing system for newbies
From: gerardcote:sympatico:ca at: 4-Feb-2004 1:09
Hi Jason, Gregg and Maxim. Thank you for your specific answers,
I will request for help and accept contributions as well when it will
be needed, later in the project. For the moment I simply want some
ML members to read and say what they think about the content of
the proposed indexing system - in view of helping any newbie to find
its way amongst the vast enough already exixting REBOL documentation.
May be some parts may seem to be useless, redundant or misleading.
For example the distinction to be done betwwen the Tools and the Library
- since some scripts seem to fit well into both. Other items may seem to miss.
Don't hesitate to add. But don't forget that until you I feed you with the
future planned TOC and content of my learning tools, many items may
leave you with the idea that not everything would be covered.
Note also that in a far future I also plan to offer advanced learning material
to support programmers that need this kind of material if time and need for
this are always present. It will also be for my own learning since this could
help to decode the inside of many advanced scripts using such concepts as
DYNAMIC DATA STRUCTURES as used in many advanced CS text books
and as supported in part by REBOL with its own list and block data structures.
This week i'll also work about the TOC and try to well plan the gradual
advance needed for the learning material I want to create in addition to all
what already exists here and elsewhere about REBOL learning.
This should will be submitted for review and comment before I begin the
real work about content.
For sure I will now continue my work using French since it will be easier
and shorter to me and I will ask Maxim and/or Jason and DidierC to help
review and translate some parts of my written work.
A last word to Jason about the the Web site and the easy-vid.r format
conversion you offered. In fact at this time
I suggest that we use some Web space on your server to start some
informal showcase
to display the incremental steps of the proposed TOC
when it is revised and updated - but at end I plan to ask Rebol.org to
display this TOC and REBOL.COM to add some pointer to it if Carl agrees to do so.
For the easy-vid.r conversion, I really don't see the urgency or even the true
usefulness of this step at this moment since this would not be easily viewable
with such long titles in the left column - some horizontal scroll bar is needed before.
May be the titles must be shortened instead. If you want to work on this you're
welcome.
But a last question about the way you suggest to use it : If some reader
downloads the TOC in easy-vid format, what will be the next step for him?
If downloading any of the other subsequent parts is your way then this is feasible
now but your content will have to be revised soon - so I personally wait until the
next revision if any before doing so.
If this can be of some help to you I can announce that I already began to hack
the easy-vid script a bit as to let it become 2 new derived apps :
1- an easy-VID generator which when coupled with some .txt file content
- much as the actual make-doc-pro - could automatically replace the actual
easy-VID fixed content and leave its easy-VID coating with its display, navigation
and execution functionalities - not as big deal but this could permit to easily create
from a single .txt entry a dual output simply by switching from a make-doc
generated HTML output to an easy-VID script format.
Actually this job must be done manually. Not a difficult one but one that could be simplified.
This new tool would change its name as the "make-easy-VID" application to
reflect its new nature when related to other make-doc family members. Some
restrictions apply but nevertheless they bear strong likeness.
2- A new version of the current easy-VID as been created with 2 new features :
a) a "Content linking" new mark-up has been added and implemented.
So when this mark-up is encountered in the actual Content a query
to start a new easy-VID copy with its own "Content " is executed and
the new easy-VID replaces the current one. ("#->" Mark-up instead of =URL
may be substituted but may mislead)
b) A second mark-up to add some additional information taken from a .txt
file has also been added trying to simulate in some way an external URL link.
This could be used for example to display in its own window the additional text
when the BOLD ITALIC UNDERLINE line is clicked - I was not able to
let the "anchored" word inside a current paragraph for display with some
different STYLE than the rest and I was not able to keep it with the rest if some
independent mouse click operation was to be used. (## mark-up)
This seems to be a limitation to the actual styles available inside View.
Some RTF like style would help here for the display part but the hyperlinking
seems to be another subtle part to implement ... if it is not done yet.
When this will be implemented (View 2.0 may be ?) there will not be a lot of
difference between the many make-doc family members as to the way the output
could be used - that is with real hyperlinks for easy-VID documents and for
make-doc-pro HTML-PDF documents.
At least this is on an old wish list I saw in the past about View and I finally know
why ... Word processing too is a potential client IIRC !!!
My 2 modifs are almost ready to be used but some adjustments are needed and
yet to be done. And I must also add them to the VID-usage enriched version of
easy-VID.
This is all for now,
Regards,
Gerard
