sigh.....I guess this was inevitable... I'm a big fan of the .boo format and the z/VM bookshelves because:
1) they are easy to read on a typical laptop computer screen. 2) books load very fast across the Net and display quickly, mainly due, I suspect to their significantly smaller size (e.g., one IBM publication is 1.0 MB in size for the .boo file and 2.18 MB in size for the PDF). 3) the book and shelf search functions are fast and easy to use. My second choice is PDF because they are closest in appearance to a printed document and graphic art, like the railroad track diagrams are reproduced better. However, they are 1.5x to 2.5x larger than equivalent .boo files which means they take longer to download and longer for Adobe Reader to start up and display them. While you can do text searchs both inside PDF documents and across directories of them, the searches are slow and awkward to set up. Of course, they are just the thing if you want to create your own hardcopy document. My least favorite form of on line documentation is the new "Information Center" format: 1) it seems geared to producing documentation in little screen sized chunks, which makes trying to gather sufficient information on how to do complex tasks (e.g., configuring DIRMAINT) tedious at best and downright maddening at worst. I suppose Information Center is aimed for the younger generation, which seems to have the attention span of a gnat 2) It's slow to load and display information, perhaps because it relies so much on javascript, and the search function is awkward. It presents the results of a search in the left hand column, for example, but it doesn't show you what manual the found text comes from. 3) And what's with the left hand column being refreshed all the time.....not only is that very annoying, it contributes to the overall slowness of the application. So, yes, I think this creates a hardship for me......and now y'all will have to excuse me because I need to go yell at the neighborhood kids to get off my lawn....and why aren't the little buggers in school today anyway...? Happy Labor Day, too. DJ On 09/03/2010 11:01 AM, Alan Altmark wrote: > In order to reduce expenses, reduce the amount of time it takes to produce > softcopy documentation, and eliminate dependencies on > soon-to-be-unsupported internal tools (nothing to do with BookManager READ > software), we are thinking about eliminating BOOK (.boo) files from z/VM > softcopy production. > > The z/VM Information Center and PDF files would still be produced. > > Does this create a hardship for anyone? If not, no need to speak up. If > yes, details please. If you prefer to respond offline, feel free. > > Regards, > Alan > > z/VM Development (T - 13 days) > IBM Endicott > -- Dave Jones V/Soft Software www.vsoft-software.com Houston, TX 281.578.7544
