Knowledge base organization

What features/apps/bugfixes needed in a future Puppy
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rarsa
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Knowledge base organization

#1 Post by rarsa »

Actually I think that it would help if we agree on a way to reorganize the Wiki. Specially as the knowledge base grows.

Having multiple topics in one page was OK when the knowledge base was small now we may need individual pages. That way when there is a question we can just add the link to the answer.

Also, information is scattered, sometime in Barry's notes, sometimes in the oficial FAQ, sometimes in the wiki and many more in the Forums.

For example, the HowTo's
- There is a Wiki HowTo page with many topics.
- There is the How to use Puppy page more HowTo's
- There is the HOWTO (Solutions) in the Forum.
- Plus there are many responses in the forum that would qualify as HOWTO's
- Plus many howtos in the official Puppy pages.

The same happens with the development pages and other topics.

What if we agree on one central location. Then if we get a new question that can be responded as a HOWTO, instead of replying it on-line in the thread, we write the response in the appropriate HOWTO and just put the link in the thread.

Or maybe the other way around. The primary being the forum and the wiki pointing back to the forum.

Of course there is still the need for the official pages maintained by Barry but as time progresses the pages are becoming outdated and my guess is that In Australia they still have 24 hours a day, not enough time for Barry to work on puppy and update the pages.

We should also 'version' the pages, in a way where we can add the new puppy version if the information still applies or to write another section if something is done differently in the new puppy.

So in a nutshell, Different people organizes thoughts differently, some prefer a big index, some prefer a tree structure, some prefer alphabetic, some others grouped by topic. If we put each topic in its own page, we can create different indexing structures to guide people to find the right answer. If we 'version' pages, it will be easier for them to know when a solution applies to their puppy and for us, to update them as appropriate.

Rich
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Location: Middlesbrough - UK

#2 Post by Rich »

The truth is out there..................if you can find it 8)

I think the wiki is the best place for solutions like this, Housekeeping might not be too pleased though !! :lol:

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Flash
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Re: Knowledge base organization

#3 Post by Flash »

rarsa wrote:Actually I think that it would help if we agree on a way to reorganize the Wiki. Specially as the knowledge base grows.

<snip>

Also, information is scattered, sometime in Barry's notes, sometimes in the oficial FAQ, sometimes in the wiki and many more in the Forums.

<snip>

What if we agree on one central location.
I'm with you a hundred percent. As you say, the website is fragmented and disorganized, and getting worse because it is growing without any guiding structure.
<snip>
So in a nutshell, Different people organize thoughts differently, some prefer a big index, some prefer a tree structure, some prefer alphabetic, some others grouped by topic. If we put each topic in its own page, we can create different indexing structures to guide people to find the right answer. If we 'version' pages, it will be easier for them to know when a solution applies to their puppy and for us, to update them as appropriate.
However you choose to organize it, the information must first exist and be accessible. Then it must be sorted and sifted to separate the usable signal from the noise. This cannot be done by a machine. Someone who knows a lot about the subject must read through all of it to see if it contains anything useful, then organize it and edit it for clarity. I've been trying to keep the forum organized, to make it easier to search. You may have noticed the "(Solved)" that I add to the subject line of a thread when it appears the original question was answered. Sometimes I'm premature and the thread continues on long after that though. :oops: I don't know enough about the subjects to make a How-To out of the forum threads that come to a good end. All I could think to do with them is make an index of what appear to me to be the most instructive threads and make it a sticky post. I could use some constructive criticism. :shock:

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Lobster
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Re: Knowledge base organization

#4 Post by Lobster »

You know people look to me as being the wiki master. I do spend a lot of time on the wiki, it was my way of learning about Puppy. Yep, the wiki is getting quite large.

Some pages such as the ones Ian is working on - for working and non-working hardware - are becoming increasingly useful. G2 tried out categories and perhaps better use of those might be made if someone feels they would like to give it a go?

In a similar way developing an order in the forum is just a question of having a go. We are all trying to develop new and better skills. I do not do much pruning or ordering on the forums I am moderator for because it is not my thing. I am aware that an overall documentation strategy would be a good thing but for now repetition and familiarisation might also be of benefit

What are others willing to do to improve things?
Puppy Raspup 8.2Final 8)
Puppy Links Page http://www.smokey01.com/bruceb/puppy.html :D

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Ian
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#5 Post by Ian »

I have been trying to implement something like this ever since the Simple Forum days as I feel that a centralized database of resolved issues would help newcomers find solutions easier and quicker.

This would cut down on the repeated querys that have to be answered over and over again.

One thing I have noticed is that when newcomers find a solution they are quite quick to share it with the next newcomer asking the same question which is a good thing as it takes the pressure off people who are trying to deal with new problems that crop up.

As more and more people are trying to get Puppy running on a wider variety of media and machines so the challenge becomes greater and resources wasted on repeat replies could better be channeled into trying to solve these new problems.

There is also the area of trying to get existing programs running as flawlessly as possible while also doing the same with new programs. This is mainly Barry's area but he still needs help to test things and people involved in this area need the time to evaluate changes and additions.

Lobster, Flash & I are doing what we can to provide information in an orderly fashion but as both have noted we are going through a learning stage and have not yet had time to decide on the direction we feel all this should take.

As they have also both pointed out, this is all public and free, contribution of information from the public, consumption of information by the public, provision of Forums, a Wiki and a chat room is all free for the public, the attempts at editing and organizing all this information is also done for free, not just by three of us but by tne public also.

We just happened to be the ones who were available at the time to try and help with the organization of some of these areas and this is our way of contibuting to something we believe in, the same as the rest of you people who contribute to Puppy in any way that you can.

The more people who get involved in the documentation side the more ideas will flow and we can decide on a plan of action but we must remember that the final decision still resides with the people ultimatly in charge of the media, Barry & John.

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