[Zope3-dev] Z3 documentation

[Garrett Smith]

List,=20

I've got some time over the next few months to contribute to the Z3
effort. Having looked over the technology, there's not much I can
contribute to in the way of coding -- too new to Python and Z3.

However, I might be able to help in the area of documentation. I've
managed development efforts involving some commercial ISVs and have a
pretty good idea what's involved in delivering high quality docs,
particularly for frameworks and tools.

Having read through the mailing list archives, I've made a few
observations:

 - Z3 appears to be congealing (typical for alpha stage) and that's
usually a great time to get docs going.

 - The list is starting to see frequent requests for better docs from
the new and curious. The temptation is strong to respond with "write 'em
yourself, y' whiner" -- but it helps if they have a process/project to
plug into.

 - There was talk of Z3 docs back here:
http://mail.zope.org/pipermail/zope3-dev/2002-November/003357.html - but
I haven't seen much activity on it

My company has decided to use Z3 as the platform for some business
applications we're developing, so we have a strong interest in seeing Z3
succeed. My involvement, to whatever extent is needed, will make that
more of a vested interest.

Before I draft a proposal, some questions:

1. Is now a good time for a more focused effort on "docs" for Z3? I
realize the answer depends on a definition of what "docs" means --
leaving this intentionally flexible. Thoughts?

2. Is there a project handling this already that I've overlooked?

3. Is this the right protocol for volunteering? Do I need to fill in an
application somewhere -- talk to any recruiters? ;-)

Btw, I recognize that there's a lot of documentation for Z3 (have read
it), most of which is quite good. It's rare to see such a disciplined
approach for any project, much less an OSS project. But by "docs", I
don't mean project artifacts or API documentation. I'm talking about
end-user docs -- i.e. developer guides, references, (more) tutorials,
etc. that can be easily accessed.

Garrett Smith
Mojave Corporation