[wp-docs] Feedback request - WordPress Help Manual platform

[Jane Wells]

On 10/5/12 7:46 AM, Marc Beneteau wrote:
> Jane, thanks for feedback. I feel my best contribution right now is to 
> focus on this WordPress Help Manual concept.  Yes of course we'll put 
> it in Wordpress svn but we're not ready for that yet.  My immediate 
> need is for a project manager, I will be technical lead of sorts.  I 
> could ask my friend or make inquiries in Philadelphia community here, 
> but I thought posting to this group and writing to Matt would shortcut 
> the process. 
I think the main disconnect here is that you clearly want to work on a 
Windows-style display system, while most of the docs contributors and 
project leaders don't find that format all that appealing. For all the 
years we've talked about doing an online book-format user manual (to be 
joined by additional manuals for theme developers, core contributors, 
etc), the format that we have aspired to is 
http://svnbook.red-bean.com/, not windows help.

I just went back and reread the past couple of weeks of emails from/to 
you on this list, and can see that others have directed you to the areas 
where contribution is needed currently, and/or wished you luck for 
trying the project on your own since we just aren't really interested in 
taking on as an official thing. It seems like you are sticking hard and 
fast to the idea that your version of documentation is better, and 
that's the only way you want to work on it.

If you want to contribute content to wordpress.org, great, it can go 
into the codex or the nascent handbook easy as pie. If you want to start 
a new project around your theme/plugin combo for your preferred style of 
help display, that's also great, but not something this list can 
facilitate, if no one has volunteered so far. You would be better off 
seeking collaborators on the wp-hackers list, at your local wp meetup 
group, or in the #wordpress IRC channel, where there might be a coder 
interested in working on it. This is not something Automattic or the 
Foundation would hire someone to work on for you. The project leadership 
has endorsed the work being done on codex and handbooks, and that's 
where our focus is for now.
Thanks, Jane