On 28-Oct-05 Robert Goulding wrote:
With all the discussion recently on the need for groff documents
teaching fundamentals and techniques - and with all the terrific
stuff that is frequently posted to this list (most recently,
Ted's solution for pie-graphs), it seems to me that a wiki for
groff would be very useful. We could:
- put all the man pages and info docs up on line in HTML form for
browsing
- post guides for all the macro packages
- archive all the tricks, techniques and solutions to unusual
problems that have been posted here
and, of course, since it is a wiki, allow anyone in the community
to post interesting code or techniques that they use, for permanent
reference and reuse. I'm sure there are many people out there how
are doing remarkable things with groff - it would be great if they
could be shared more widely.
I don't know much about setting up or hosting a wiki, but would
certainly want to contribute, as I think many others on the list
might as well. I have a unwieldy directory of code-snippets I've
culled from the mailing list from the last couple of years - it
would be good at least to put them in some sort of order!
This is a good idea! I've often thought of putting such things
somewhere, for people to consult or to incorporate into more systematic
documentation about different aspects of groff.
I've only lately become properly aware of the 'wiki' idea, and
rather like it in principle. In so far as it remains the sort
of haven where like-minded people of good will can wander in,
take note of what they like, and leave their own good things
for others, it seems a straightforward and excellent solution.
I'd also sound a note of caution, however. My local Linux User
Group ( http://www.alug.org.uk ) has had a wiki going for some
months now, and it has unfortunately been vandalised on occasion,
leading to the result that you will see if you now visit the above
site and click on "Contrib Area"; and also to some acrimony on
their mailing list, since there are issues about who should be
responsible for what when it comes to maintenance, security, and
so forth. This risk is bound to be present for a "wide open wiki".