discuss: To or not to Wiki, a summary [Was Re: small demo page]
Subject:
Re: To or not to Wiki, a summary [Was Re: small demo page]
From:
David Lawyer ####@####.####
Date:
9 Oct 2005 05:20:00 -0000
Message-Id: <20051009052003.GA1966@lafn.org>
On Sun, Aug 21, 2005 at 10:31:36PM +0200, Stein Gjoen wrote:
> Pradeep Padala wrote:
>
> >Wiki advantages:
> >*) Quick updates - anybody can improve as they are reading the HOWTO and
> > find mistakes. It also doesn't have to go through the slow/length
> > TLDP review process.
For revisions to HOWTOs there is no TLDP review process and thus no
delays due to this. There may be a delay if one sends comments to an
author and the author delays revising the HOWTO at LDP. How long an
author takes to make such changes should depend on their importance
and relevance.
> >*) Easier updates - It's much easier to edit a Wiki page than an .sgml
> > file. The learning curve with sgml tools is sttep. For begineers
> > there's HOWTO generator [4], but later updates have to be in SGML.
Not so if the .sgml is a LinuxDoc sgml with minimal use of tags. I
think LinuxDoc markup (with a minimal tag set) is just about as easy
as Wiki markup.
>
> The wiki markup is so simple I guess a one-to-one conversion either way
> with LinuxDoc might work with only abstract and indexing tags as the
> exceptions.
You have no idea just how many LinuxDoc tags there actually are. Most
of them are never used. For example, there are many mathematical tags.
There are even tag pairs like <titlepag> that are implicitly created
if you don't put the tag in your doc (almost no one does).
> Re-editing with the Generator would require a little extra work on
> my part to make possible. I asked some time ago if there was any
> interest in that but never got any replies.
>
> >*) Easier management - Once setup it can work on its own depending on
> > the readers interest.
>
> This part is important since we have few resources.
>
> >Wiki disadvantages
> >*) Connecting Wiki with docbook as a backend is difficult. If this is
> > not possible, we have to find a better way to convert to print
> > formats etc.
Convert to LinuxDoc (using a small subset of LinuxDoc tags). It
wouldn't be too difficult.
> >*) Vandalism problems - Do we simply throw the HOWTO on a Wiki and hope
> > that it turns into a master piece? or let the author tightly control
> > the content by allowing only comments?
But if there is no author maintaining it? Then the vandalism remains.
> >*) What happens to the flow of a long document if it is edited by a lot
> > of people? I am quite uneasy with this, as all the hardwork put in by
> > the original author for the HOWTO organization etc. goes waste.
>
David Lawyer
