[documentation] [support] How should a new user comment on the docs?

[Amazon]

Issue status update for 
http://drupal.org/node/46715
Post a follow up: 
http://drupal.org/project/comments/add/46715

 Project:      Documentation
 Version:      <none>
 Component:    Misc
 Category:     support requests
 Priority:     minor
 Assigned to:  Anonymous
 Reported by:  Gary Feldman
 Updated by:   Amazon
 Status:       active

Gary, thanks for a being a first class new user.  You comments are
useful and actionable.  Keep those comments and first impressions
comming so that we can act on them.  I'll work with you directly to get
the changes you recommend in.


You can email me directly at kieran at civicspacelabs dot org




Amazon



Previous comments:
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fri, 27 Jan 2006 15:49:28 +0000 : Gary Feldman

I've just started working with Drupal.  First, let me thank Steven Peck
(I think I have that right) for the the reorganization described at
http://drupal.org/node/44233.  I didn't see the docs before them, but
I'm finding the overall structure clear, and usefully task-oriented. 
It's a far sight from WordPress's maze of twisty little passages, all
alike, which caused me to give up there and hunt until I found Drupal.


Being a good citizen, I read the page "Commenting on the handbook
pages" (at http://drupal.org/node/14345) before commenting, but that
left me more confused.  The problem is that it says a lot about what
should not go into comments, but doesn't really say what should go into
comments; it just hints a bit.


>From my perspective, I can only be a new user of the documentation
once, and only for a few weeks.  After that, I (and any other new
reader) start to internalize the quirks and forget the stumbling
blocks.  So it's best to get my reactions down as soon as possible. 
But I'm not really sure where such comments belong.  At this stage, I
can make observations about what doesn't work for me, what seems weird,
and suggestions about what I might like to see, but I can't do the
actual writing until I get more experience with Drupal.  The sort of
quick impressions I have are along the lines of:
   - the redundant install instructions pages seem silly (the
unformatted followed by the formatted)
   - the "Drupal 4.x" links at the top of some pages confused me for a
while.  On the Installing multi-site page at
http://drupal.org/node/43816, I thought they would be links to the
multi-site instructions specific to those versions, but they're not. 
This is mostly a formatting problem.
   - such and such page used some jargon that I had to figure out by
hunting elsewhere
   - such and such paragraph isn't well structured, or some sentence is
confusing
   - such and such page should be split into two, or such and such
pages should be combined or linked


I've already created one issue, which was a minor, non-controversial
typo.  However, many of these are opinions, so it doesn't feel write to
create issues for them.  And I don't want to annoy or offend
contributors with too many editorial comments (grammar, sentence
structure, etc.); I can be very old school about writing.  I just don't
know whether these sorts of comments belong in the forums, in the
issues, on the doc mailing list, or elsewhere.


Many thanks,


Gary