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Date: Mon, 01 Nov 2004 10:45:30 +0000
From: Ross Gardler <rgardler@apache.org>
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To: dev@forrest.apache.org
Subject: Re: A question of architecture? [was] Re: [RT] How to move the skins
 into a plugin? Plans for leather-dev/corium
References: <cm0th1$16k$1@sea.gmane.org> <cm190i$f3k$1@sea.gmane.org>
 <41852762.5090300@apache.org> <200411010957.31563.sean@inwords.co.za>
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Sean Wheller wrote:
> The definition of what constitutes a plugin is blurred as are many aspects of 
> the architecture. Development of forrest has been on functionality and 
> architecture is very flat.

<snip/>

> As a Technical Author, I would suggest that the forrest documentation set 
> include the following information set (information architecture). Some of 
> this already exists:

<snip/>

I am in full agreement that Forrest needs to have better documentation, 
I'm not in quite as full agreement that the attention to architecture is 
as flat as it may seem. For developers who have been around for some 
time, "documentation" is their vague memories of past discussions 
coupled with the mail list archives. This is a barrier to entry for new, 
and returning, developers.

The problem is made worse by the fact that once one understands "the 
Forrest architecture" one no longer has any interest in writing 
documentation. Speaking personally I get paid for software not 
documents, I am not defending this position, simply acknowledging the 
problem. Fortunately, all of the developers we have are currently pretty 
good at writing (at least basic) documents when committing new code, bur 
there is always lots of room for improvement.

We welcome *any* contribution to the documents, they are as valuable to 
the project as the code itself, even more so if we want to attract new 
developers and not lose time explaining things over and over on this list.

Ross