[REQUEST] updated documentation

Stefan Rieken StefanRieken at SoftHome.net
Sun Nov 21 01:00:40 UTC 1999


Hi,

I just answered a question on comp.lang.smalltalk about some Squeak
specific documentation. I found that I could only give him a few old
links.

Although old links don't need to be obsolete, AND although Squeak is
experimental, this made me realise that the current documentation is not
really representing the current system. A few examples:

- This "Scripting" thing. Never got quite used to it. I recently came
upon something called a "Scripting Area" and I had no idea how to use
it. I found one document on minnow's SqueakDoc, a quick introduction
that belonged to version 2.2. The tutorial on Morphic has only got a
part one, while the other parts ("PicoPaint") never seem to have
arrived.

- Let's say I want to do Flash. VRML. Import a truetype font. It is all
possible, the only thing I miss is the knowledge, or a nice example.

- Minnow's SqueakDoc documentation still announces 2.4. Although our
versioning goes fast, this looks a little outdated to the user.

An average human is a hard learning machine and needs thourough
documentation in order to get to understand things. (The "RTFM" effect.)
I think that the current Squeak documentation reveals only the tip of
the iceberg to the user, and therefore doesn't do the current Squeak
really justice. Only the code wizards can now play with the full system;
the "end users" need to dig too much information in order to get a
simple beginning with some (if not all) of the Squeak subsystems.

(more or less) Thouroughly documenting the options that make Squeak
powerful and different form other smalltalks would really help. I also
think that it is possible when I see the average development rate of
Squeak.

Greets,

Stefan

(Our "Do It Yourself" community tells us to try and make it yourself
before asking for something. I do however not have the write access to
SqueakDoc, and, more important, I would still be on the "client" side of
this documentation - I am not a code wizard myself.)





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