[documentation] Some thoughts

[MGParisi]

First!
We are not in competition with other open source applications.  There is no
argument here.  Individually we gain nothing from users using Drupal if they
do not give back, and as a team we loose nothing if users move to another
CMS system.  
Showing excessive pride in a project gains no support for that project.
When it comes to computing; there is no "One Size fits All" solution.
The following is not to be debated but to present examples.
There are 3 major DB's - MySQL, MSSql and Oracle (sorry postgress users)
There are 3 major OS's - Mac's, Windows, Linux (sorry openBSD)
There are 3 major languages - PHP, C, and .NET (sorry everyone else)
And there are 3 major CMS systems - Wordpress, Joomla, Drupal (ok there is a
few more...)
Each of the above has their following, strengths, and weaknesses.  If I tell
you that one OS is better then another (and you disagree) you will not ever
use that OS.  The more I argue about how good MY solution is, the more you
will dislike *ME*!
Second
As for the topic of Drupal Community Support, I (and others) have noted for
some time that there is a somewhat poisonous attitude among certain
elements.  At times, such as now, I will walk away from community work
because of this attitude.  Certain *Key* Members have noted this attitude,
and some of the "big names" in Drupal have publically acknowledged this, or
have even accepted their role in this.  I will not name names, or point to
links, for that is not important (and would be counter productive).  I
simply mean to point out that there seems to be an unknown, unacknowledged
consensus on this topic.
However I must also be the problem, for I have not been able to bridge gaps
others have.  It takes time, patience and work.  Some people have "people
skills" and others do not.  The best Computer programmers are not renowned
for their "people skills"!  We are "weird", "eccentric", "geeky" or "nerds"
This does not make us "Bad" people; we simply are unable or unwilling to
deal with people.  We engage in activities that involve a close nit group of
friends, and are generally social only to a few.  That is who we are and
others may choose to ignore us, accept us, or leave us.
I believe that accepting us, as I try to accept you, is the best action.
However that is your choice.  (BTW, I just got engaged to a wonderful
"People" person who loves me for me and all of my "eccentric", "geeky" and
"nerdy" behavior!  WOOT)
Solution?
I could come on here and complain and moan.  Yelling out how bad things are,
then leave, or I can help fix things.  It's your choice.  I would LIKE to
fix things, however I KNOW that I do not have the clout or the backing too.
I fear the attempting to engage in a healthy discussion is impossible and/or
unlikely.  Someone will probably read this, disregard my solution, and then
draw some indefinite resentment towards me.  However I will take this risk.
I have been studying online social groups and environments.  I have found
one key attribute that encourages participation, friendship, and overall
good health.  Very few online social groups and environments develop this
behavior on their own.  It must come from the *key players and members* of
the group.  
The attribute I have found in poor social networks is a sense of ownership
and pride in the project and/or website.  In strong social networks a
building of a community occurs through developing a "Home".  Each *key*
member must treat Drupal.org, the newsgroups, groups, IRC channels as their
"Home".  They must welcome new members, and treat everyone as your guest.
This does not take much time, however it does take a shift in attitude.
When someone comes into your home you welcome them and ask them if they want
anything to eat.  If they seem disrespectful, you simply ask them to be
polite.  You do NOT yell at your guests and tell them to go wash the dishes!
As the relationship grows, you may want to ask them if they will help with
washing the dishes.  
I have pride in my Home Theater.  It is mine, it is unique, and I love it.
I show my friends it, let them experience it, and feel good about it.  The
Home Theater does not define who I am, it is something I worked on, built,
and love!  Some of my friends have suggested some things when I built my
system, and have continued to suggest other solutions.  I find my friends
have different Home Theater's, with different goals, budgets, etc.  I do not
hate my friends because they did not use my advice when building their
system.  I do not hate my friends because they think I should put my speaker
somewhere else.  We talk about it, encourage each other, and have fun!
However some Drupal developers, users, and themer's love Drupal, but will
get extremely hostile if you have any ideas, suggestions, or questions.
They do not acknowledge the other persons feelings, ideas, and knowledge as
valid.  Essentially they act like a child kicking you out of the house for
not liking how you built your Lego castle!  Trust me, its more fun to build
a castle WITH others then by yourself!   Also, if you do not like my Lego
castle, I will unleash its dragon and burn your Lego village down!
I have taken these theories and have started multiple online communities,
all encouraging the sense of home and community.  I have actively asked my
users to make choices on what path we should take.  I say "We" instead of
"I".  I work WITH my users, ask for their opinion, and then either take what
I can or present a good reason as to why I can not do what they ask!
Eventually the community grows and then spreads on its own.  My active
actions to encourage a sense of kindness, compassion and caring, grows and I
no longer need to actively promote the environment.  In all cases I have
found that these small actions make a huge difference and the community
becomes amazing!  (In my MULTIPLE social networks I have thousands of
visitors, a few hundred members... yet to date we have had one argument!)
I hope this helps, this is my experience, my solutions, and my passion.  I
will be back in Documenting Drupal in a few months.  Right now I am working
on home improvement, moving, and planning a marriage.  
Good Luck,
Michael Parisi
-----Original Message-----
From: documentation-bounces at drupal.org
[mailto:documentation-bounces at drupal.org] On Behalf Of Alan Palazzolo
Sent: Friday, August 07, 2009 7:16 PM
To: A list for documentation writers
Subject: Re: [documentation] Some thoughts

Steve,

I should just ignore your comments, because it your attitude and people
that share it that have the wrong attitude and really hold back this
wonderful Drupal community.  But here I am.

There is no issue of "thick skin".  This is a useless and arbitrary term.

What it comes down to is the issue of barrier to entry.  And it is
really high with lots of open source project and Drupal.  Shari is
sharing that experience (that is shared by thousands, maybe millions),
to help herself and our community to lessen that barrier.  You are a
part of that barrier.

No one is expecting for people to stop everything they are doing because
someone asked a question.  It's about creating a place and community
that that information is easy and understandable for everyone.

My assumption, Steve, your background probably involves using a computer
for a very long time, and Shari probably not.  Whether that assumption
is true for you two or not, it is a common situation.  There are many
people that want to contribute to Drupal and don't have the background,
the time, or even the passion that lots of other people share.  That
doesn't mean they should be turned away.  Just the opposite.

Steve, please foster contribution, and spend your precious time writing
about how people can help, instead of telling them how they need to live
their life, or how to have "thick skin".


-- 
Alan Palazzolo
Drupal Developer
http://zzolo.org



On 8/7/09 5:50 PM, Steve Dondley wrote:
> I'm not going to get into a point by point rebuttal over my advice.
> You can choose to ignore it and this will be my last post on this. But
> you stated:
> 
> "I've walked away from Drupal for 2 main reasons.
> 1. Documentation is way over my head.
> 2. Outside of the forum, it feels unfriendly."
> 
> All I'm saying is that if you really want to stick to it this time
> around and have success contributing, then develop a thicker skin.
> Don't take things personally if your aren't treated like a rock star
> because you want to help the community. That is all.
> 
> 
> On Fri, Aug 7, 2009 at 6:39 PM, Shari<webweaver64 at yahoo.com> wrote:
>> Yikes! umm Steve, I didn't ask for help with Drupal, or free help of any
>> kind other then how I could HELP with the documentation.
>>
>> Steve Dondley wrote the following, On 8/7/2009 5:04 PM:
>>
>> And let me play devil's advocate here.
>>
>> You may find some people who are willing to hold your hand for some
>> length of time for free, but they will be few and far between. You
>> should have no expectations of that and count your blessings when you
>> do.
>>
>>
>> I don't. I was responding to the call for people to help Drupal.
>>
>> To really succeed, you need to be self-motivated and develop a love
>> for the pleasure you feel when you stop banging your head walls for
>> several hours. The 25 min. you spent waiting for an answer form others
>> could have been hunting around on drupal.org finding an answer and
>> googling what the command line was.
>>
>>
>> And this is why people say what they say about Drupal.
>> Isn't the documentation for the self-motivated? I didn't sit and wait,
I'm a
>> multitasker from way back. I wasn't looking for command line, I was
looking
>> where to post suggestions for the documentation as requested in the
issue. I
>> didn't know where to put that information.
>>
>> So what I'm saying is, you need to get over the "unfriendly" feeling
>> you have when someone doesn't immediately respond to your question.
>> You are owed nothing.
>>
>>
>> your right. I'm not owed anything, however I don't have to get over
>> anything. I was responding to Drupal.org request for contributing back.
>> >From what I've read, and heard, and seen, there is a movement to change
the
>> publics view of Drupal. If you actually read my email I asked what I
could
>> do, and made an observation. If the intent of the community isn't to
become
>> more inclusive and user friendly, then hey sorry I offered to help. I'll
>> just continue on learning it for myself.
>>
>> My advice is to just put your head down, work hard, bang your head on
>> the wall, take pleasure when you figure something out, find something
>> else to do if you get stuck, contribute when you get a chance, and
>> count your blessing when you find someone who takes the time to give
>> you advice. But the bottom line is, free advice and a helping hand
>> will take you maybe 20% of the way there. The rest has to come from
>> within.
>>
>> Again, I wasn't asking for free advice or a helping hand for Drupal, but
for
>> a way for ME to help in the documentation of Drupal.
>>
>> Steve, I'm very happy with the responses I've received. Yours however
really
>> wasn't appropriate, nor even applied to what I was asking. I hope you day
>> turns out better then this email indicates. Maybe you should quit bagging
>> your head against the wall and take a break. I think I may have hit a
nerve
>> and that wasn't my intention.
>>
>> Shari
>>
>> --
>> Pending work: http://drupal.org/project/issues/documentation/
>> List archives: http://lists.drupal.org/pipermail/documentation/
>>
> 
> 
> 
--
Pending work: http://drupal.org/project/issues/documentation/
List archives: http://lists.drupal.org/pipermail/documentation/