[documentation] Contributors to docs need more public recognition

[Steve Dondley]

And again, I will stress the importance of giving public credit to
documentation writers (and all other kinds of contributors, for that
matter) on the Drupal project by referring to my post which more
explicitly states why we need to be as public as possible about it:

http://lists.drupal.org/pipermail/documentation/2008-May/006023.html

Let me add another item to the list: some people don't like the idea
of shamelessly promoting their work. But I bet you they sure do enjoy
a good pat on the back, even it's to just to see their name attached
to their work. I remember how good I felt the day I made my first
patch to drupal core. I felt it was a great accomplishment and it made
me feel real good to get acknowledged for it. It was a little high
that motivated me to do more.

If that's not a good reason to be more public with giving credit to
others, that it will help build the Drupal project, I don't know what
is.

On Mon, May 26, 2008 at 12:33 AM, Angela Byron <drupal-docs at webchick.net> wrote:
> Angela Byron wrote:
>> Steve Dondley wrote:
>>> Great point.
>>>
>>> Which sparks an idea: Why not give document pages  ownership like we
>>> do projects? Why should documentation get what amounts to 2nd class
>>> karma status? Might be a more comprehensive change but it could also
>>> be very worthwhile.
>
> As if I didn't type enough in my previous reply...  ;)
>
> I also don't buy this "2nd class karma status" bit at all. I see
> handbook contribution on exactly the same level as core patch contribution.
>
>  From index.php:
>
> ---
>
> $return = menu_execute_active_handler();
>
> ---
>
> That's the single line that makes Drupal do anything. Do you know who
> wrote that line of code? Probably not. Does it really matter? No. What
> matters is that Drupal is a kick-ass piece of software.
>
> Similarly, our goal as docs team members should be to make the handbook
> a kick-ass piece of documentation. It doesn't matter who started a page,
> or who spent the most time on it, or who fixed the most typos. Improving
> the handbook has direct benefits for /everyone/ involved in the Drupal
> ecosphere.
>
> Btw, it turns out, the person who wrote that line of code is chx
> (actually, it was originally written long before, and chx was the last
> person to refactor it, but nonetheless...). I couldn't begin to list the
> lines of code in Drupal that belong to chx, or that chx has touched. I
> don't think even chx could do that. :)
>
> But yet, somehow everyone knows that chx contributes an enormous amount
> of code to Drupal core. And somehow chx comes across as someone
> knowledgeable about Drupal. And when chx says something, people listen.
> It's because of his *actions*, not because of the *credit* given to
> those actions. The credit for core commits is actually /harder/ to
> determine than those for handbook pages; there's no nice revisions page
> showing you a list; you have to go sifting through cvs annotate and cvs
> log to figure out this kind of stuff.
>
> But by all means, add "Contributed 10-Step Form API tutorial" to your
> Drupal resumé (just as I'm sure chx has "Re-wrote the Drupal menu
> system" on his, and I have "Wrote the Form API Reference" on mine).
> There's nothing wrong with being proud of the work you've done, and
> communicating to clients and business partners that you're committed to
> improving Drupal's documentation.
>
> -Angie
> --
> Pending work: http://drupal.org/project/issues/documentation/
> List archives: http://lists.drupal.org/pipermail/documentation/
>



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