Re: [IAEP] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Edward Mokurai Cherlin]

On Wed, March 7, 2012 7:37 am, Gonzalo Odiard wrote:
> We receive many times request about adding help in the activities,
> and if is true Sugar propose a exploratory approach,
> not all the people learn in the same way,
> and there are people who prefer a little guidance.

I yield to nobody in my preference for letting students discover as
much as possible about Sugar, or anything else, but as I noted in The
Undiscoverable on the Wiki, it is not always possible, particularly
when dealing with named functions in math and programming, and
sometimes in other areas. There are times when hints are required, and
times when outright explanation is required. You will find many
examples of both in The Undiscoverable, and in the draft Discovering
Discovery at http://booki.treehouse.su.

On the other hand, Donald Norman famously complained, in The
Psychology of Everyday Things/The Design of Everyday Things, about
doors that require a user manual, even of one word, whether Push or
Pull. One should apply his design principles, and others like them, to
every item that appears to require a help entry.

> For the development we need a simple api, and easy i18n,
> and a non obtrusive experience for the user.

None of which is easy to replicate when reinventing the training wheel. ^_^

> Inspired by the DescriptionItem, I was experimenting with a widget to add
> simple help to activities.
> This is not:
> * A manual
> * Lessons
> * Tips
> Is a short startup help for the activity.
>
> Use only text and the icons already used by the activity.
>
> A example can be seen here:
> http://dev.laptop.org/~gonzalo/images/simple_graph_help.png
>
> In the activity we only need do:
>
> helpitem = HelpButton()
> toolbar.insert(helpitem, -1)
> helpitem.show()
> helpitem.add_section(_('Basic usage'))
> helpitem.add_paragraph(_('First you need add data to create the
> graphic'))
> helpitem.add_paragraph(_('You can add data with this button'),
> 'row-insert')
> helpitem.add_paragraph(_('...or remove data with this button'),
> 'row-remove')
> helpitem.add_paragraph(_('To change the graphic title, just change the
> activity title'))
> 

We should get the result of your work, when it stabilizes, added to
Making Your Own Sugar Activities.

> This proposal is late for sugar 0.96, but may be we can try it in one or
> two activities,
> and start thinking about this topic.
> I really like the help in the Implode activity, but have the following
> problems:
> * I don't know if apply to other type of activities.
> * Is modal
> * need a lot of code to implement it.
>
> Comments?

Thank you.

> Gonzalo

-- 
Edward Mokurai (默雷/धर्ममेघशब्दगर्ज/دھرممیگھشبدگر ج) Cherlin
Silent Thunder is my name, and Children are my nation.
The Cosmos is my dwelling place, the Truth my destination.
http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Replacing_Textbooks
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Re: [IAEP] Tam Tam Mini Progress and User Manual Update

[Caryl Bigenho]

Hi...
While James has done a very nice job with his "Make Your Own Sugar Activities," 
I think we could still use something even easier for absolute beginners, 
perhaps building on the Conozco Activities as a base.  Maybe we could enlist 
the assistance of someone like Christofer to help get it started?  Several 
others have built Conozco Activities and we could encourage even more among the 
youth in our many deployments. Then another book or manual or chapter... 
"Beyond Conozco" or something like that.
My little "Fun With Tam Tam Mini" book is designed to be more than a simple 
"how to" manual.  It is full of a lot of basic musical knowledge and 
suggestions for all kinds of new things for the user to try or teachers to use 
to build lessons.  The basics look like they will need to run about 10-12 
pages, including a lot of screenshots, graphics, and examples. This is without 
the musical notation for the examples. They would only take 1-2 more pages as 
there is only one scale and one song in this part. If it has to be shorter for 
the users manual update, I could leave out the instructions for the Drum 
Machine, but I would rather not.
Caryl

Date: Wed, 7 Mar 2012 16:46:26 -0500
Subject: Re: [IAEP] Tam Tam Mini Progress and User Manual Update
From: callaur...@gmail.com
To: walter.ben...@gmail.com
CC: cbige...@hotmail.com; iaep@lists.sugarlabs.org; support-g...@laptop.org

In my experience, most OLPC programs have created a manuallike that.. either 
because they build one, or because they modify and existing one. 
I would love to see more documentation and materials that promove 
development in Sugar... how to modify, how to create one from scratch, how 
collaborate with the community, etc. I may be wrong.. but is theCreate you own 
Sugar Activity enough? what other things can 
complemente that one?
Claudia
On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 4:37 PM, Walter Bender  wrote:

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 2:06 PM, Caryl Bigenho  wrote:


> Hi All!

>

>

> I'm happy to say I have finally gotten back to work on my "Fun With Tam Tam

> Mini" FLOSS manual after a hiatus (a So Cal word from the "industry")

> brought on by all sorts of holiday and family distractions.  There are a

> number of other, unrelated, things folks have asked me to work on now, but I

> figure if I don't get this done first, it will never get done.  So…

>

>

> I am currently working on learning to use the free Finale Notepad software

> to generate simple samples of all the musical examples in the manual, put

> into standard musical notation. This was suggested by my middle- schooler,

> violinist, granddaughter when she reviewed the draft, way back in November.

>

>

>

> I remember how those musicians among you who tried Tam Tam in my

> mini-workshop at the SF summit found it confusing because you were used to

> reading notes.  I also found this with some second and third graders I

> worked with in Montana who have had some music lessons.  So… it will be

> there for those who need it in a special Appendix.  So far, I have done a

> one octave C Major scale... woo-hoo!

>

>

> I still will need to do some screen shots, but that should be fairly easy.

>

>

> ***(Important) As soon as I finish the manual I will take excerpts and put

> them into the new FLOSS manual update as a Tam Tam Mini chapter. I am hoping

> someone will decide on the guidelines for these Activity chapters.  There

> should be a limit on the maximum number of pages for any single Activity so

> we don't end up with any one being extremely long.  We should ask folks to

> include enough information for users to successfully begin to use the

> Activity and then refer them to more information elsewhere (wiki, FLOSS

> manual, web site, etc).



I think we can have individual manuals for each activity along with a

short 1-2 pages in a collective manual for Sugar activities as a

whole.



-walter

>

>

> I'll let you know when "Fun With Tam Tam Mini" is finished and ready for a

> final review.  I know there are several of you interested in using this in

> some of your deployments so… just a little more time and it should be ready!

>

>

> Grannie B (MA MusicEd)

>

>

> ___

> IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!)

> IAEP@lists.sugarlabs.org

> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep







--

Walter Bender

Sugar Labs

http://www.sugarlabs.org

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Re: [IAEP] Tam Tam Mini Progress and User Manual Update

[Claudia Urrea]

In my experience, most OLPC programs have created a manual
like that.. either because they build one, or because they modify
and existing one.

I would love to see more documentation and materials that promove
development in Sugar... how to modify, how to create one from scratch,
how collaborate with the community, etc. I may be wrong.. but is the
Create you own Sugar Activity enough? what other things can
complemente that one?

Claudia

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 4:37 PM, Walter Bender wrote:

> On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 2:06 PM, Caryl Bigenho 
> wrote:
> > Hi All!
> >
> >
> > I'm happy to say I have finally gotten back to work on my "Fun With Tam
> Tam
> > Mini" FLOSS manual after a hiatus (a So Cal word from the "industry")
> > brought on by all sorts of holiday and family distractions.  There are a
> > number of other, unrelated, things folks have asked me to work on now,
> but I
> > figure if I don't get this done first, it will never get done.  So…
> >
> >
> > I am currently working on learning to use the free Finale Notepad
> software
> > to generate simple samples of all the musical examples in the manual, put
> > into standard musical notation. This was suggested by my middle-
> schooler,
> > violinist, granddaughter when she reviewed the draft, way back in
> November.
> >
> >
> >
> > I remember how those musicians among you who tried Tam Tam in my
> > mini-workshop at the SF summit found it confusing because you were used
> to
> > reading notes.  I also found this with some second and third graders I
> > worked with in Montana who have had some music lessons.  So… it will be
> > there for those who need it in a special Appendix.  So far, I have done a
> > one octave C Major scale... woo-hoo!
> >
> >
> > I still will need to do some screen shots, but that should be fairly
> easy.
> >
> >
> > ***(Important) As soon as I finish the manual I will take excerpts and
> put
> > them into the new FLOSS manual update as a Tam Tam Mini chapter. I am
> hoping
> > someone will decide on the guidelines for these Activity chapters.  There
> > should be a limit on the maximum number of pages for any single Activity
> so
> > we don't end up with any one being extremely long.  We should ask folks
> to
> > include enough information for users to successfully begin to use the
> > Activity and then refer them to more information elsewhere (wiki, FLOSS
> > manual, web site, etc).
>
> I think we can have individual manuals for each activity along with a
> short 1-2 pages in a collective manual for Sugar activities as a
> whole.
>
> -walter
> >
> >
> > I'll let you know when "Fun With Tam Tam Mini" is finished and ready for
> a
> > final review.  I know there are several of you interested in using this
> in
> > some of your deployments so… just a little more time and it should be
> ready!
> >
> >
> > Grannie B (MA MusicEd)
> >
> >
> > ___
> > IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!)
> > IAEP@lists.sugarlabs.org
> > http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep
>
>
>
> --
> Walter Bender
> Sugar Labs
> http://www.sugarlabs.org
> ___
> IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!)
> IAEP@lists.sugarlabs.org
> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep
>
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Re: [IAEP] Tam Tam Mini Progress and User Manual Update

[Walter Bender]

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 2:06 PM, Caryl Bigenho  wrote:
> Hi All!
>
>
> I'm happy to say I have finally gotten back to work on my "Fun With Tam Tam
> Mini" FLOSS manual after a hiatus (a So Cal word from the "industry")
> brought on by all sorts of holiday and family distractions.  There are a
> number of other, unrelated, things folks have asked me to work on now, but I
> figure if I don't get this done first, it will never get done.  So…
>
>
> I am currently working on learning to use the free Finale Notepad software
> to generate simple samples of all the musical examples in the manual, put
> into standard musical notation. This was suggested by my middle- schooler,
> violinist, granddaughter when she reviewed the draft, way back in November.
>
>
>
> I remember how those musicians among you who tried Tam Tam in my
> mini-workshop at the SF summit found it confusing because you were used to
> reading notes.  I also found this with some second and third graders I
> worked with in Montana who have had some music lessons.  So… it will be
> there for those who need it in a special Appendix.  So far, I have done a
> one octave C Major scale... woo-hoo!
>
>
> I still will need to do some screen shots, but that should be fairly easy.
>
>
> ***(Important) As soon as I finish the manual I will take excerpts and put
> them into the new FLOSS manual update as a Tam Tam Mini chapter. I am hoping
> someone will decide on the guidelines for these Activity chapters.  There
> should be a limit on the maximum number of pages for any single Activity so
> we don't end up with any one being extremely long.  We should ask folks to
> include enough information for users to successfully begin to use the
> Activity and then refer them to more information elsewhere (wiki, FLOSS
> manual, web site, etc).

I think we can have individual manuals for each activity along with a
short 1-2 pages in a collective manual for Sugar activities as a
whole.

-walter
>
>
> I'll let you know when "Fun With Tam Tam Mini" is finished and ready for a
> final review.  I know there are several of you interested in using this in
> some of your deployments so… just a little more time and it should be ready!
>
>
> Grannie B (MA MusicEd)
>
>
> ___
> IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!)
> IAEP@lists.sugarlabs.org
> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep



-- 
Walter Bender
Sugar Labs
http://www.sugarlabs.org
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Re: [IAEP] Tam Tam Mini Progress and User Manual Update

[Claudia Urrea]

Looking forward... Claudia

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 2:06 PM, Caryl Bigenho  wrote:

>  Hi All!
>
>
> I'm happy to say I have finally gotten back to work on my *"Fun With Tam
> Tam Mini"* FLOSS manual after a hiatus (a So Cal word from the
> "industry") brought on by all sorts of holiday and family distractions.
> There are a number of other, unrelated, things folks have asked me to work
> on now, but I figure if I don't get this done first, it will never get
> done.  So…
>
>
> I am currently working on learning to use the free Finale Notepad software
> to generate simple samples of all the musical examples in the manual, put
> into standard musical notation. This was suggested by my middle- schooler,
> violinist, granddaughter when she reviewed the draft, way back in November.
>
>
>
> I remember how those musicians among you who tried Tam Tam in my
> mini-workshop at the SF summit found it confusing because you were used to
> reading notes.  I also found this with some second and third graders I
> worked with in Montana who have had some music lessons.  So… it will be
> there for those who need it in a special Appendix.  So far, I have done a
> one octave C Major scale... woo-hoo!
>
>
> I still will need to do some screen shots, but that should be fairly easy.
>
>
>
> (Important) *As soon as I finish the manual I will take excerpts and
> put them into the new FLOSS manual update as a Tam Tam Mini chapter. I am
> hoping someone will decide on the guidelines for these Activity chapters.
> There should be a limit on the maximum number of pages for any single
> Activity so we don't end up with any one being extremely long.  We should
> ask folks to include enough information for users to successfully begin to
> use the Activity and then refer them to more information elsewhere (wiki,
> FLOSS manual, web site, etc).
>
>
> I'll let you know when "*Fun With Tam Tam Mini"* is finished and ready
> for a final review.  I know there are several of you interested in using
> this in some of your deployments so… just a little more time and it should
> be ready!
>
>
> Grannie B (MA MusicEd)
>
> ___
> IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!)
> IAEP@lists.sugarlabs.org
> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep
>
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[IAEP] Tam Tam Mini Progress and User Manual Update

[Caryl Bigenho]

Hi All!


I'm happy to say I have finally gotten back to work on my "Fun With Tam Tam 
Mini" FLOSS manual after a hiatus (a So Cal word from the "industry") brought 
on by all sorts of holiday and family distractions.  There are a number of 
other, unrelated, things folks have asked me to work on now, but I figure if I 
don't get this done first, it will never get done.  So…


I am currently working on learning to use the free Finale Notepad software to 
generate simple samples of all the musical examples in the manual, put into 
standard musical notation. This was suggested by my middle- schooler, 
violinist, granddaughter when she reviewed the draft, way back in November.  


I remember how those musicians among you who tried Tam Tam in my mini-workshop 
at the SF summit found it confusing because you were used to reading notes.  I 
also found this with some second and third graders I worked with in Montana who 
have had some music lessons.  So… it will be there for those who need it in a 
special Appendix.  So far, I have done a one octave C Major scale... woo-hoo!  


I still will need to do some screen shots, but that should be fairly easy.  


***(Important) As soon as I finish the manual I will take excerpts and put them 
into the new FLOSS manual update as a Tam Tam Mini chapter. I am hoping someone 
will decide on the guidelines for these Activity chapters.  There should be a 
limit on the maximum number of pages for any single Activity so we don't end up 
with any one being extremely long.  We should ask folks to include enough 
information for users to successfully begin to use the Activity and then refer 
them to more information elsewhere (wiki, FLOSS manual, web site, etc).


I'll let you know when "Fun With Tam Tam Mini" is finished and ready for a 
final review.  I know there are several of you interested in using this in some 
of your deployments so… just a little more time and it should be ready!


Grannie B (MA MusicEd)___
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Re: [IAEP] [Sugar-devel] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Rafael Ortiz]

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 12:22 PM, Rafael Ortiz wrote:

>
>
> On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 11:05 AM, Gonzalo Odiard wrote:
>
>> > Though do lets try to keep an eye on the total number of toolbutton
>> widgets, we don't want Stop falling off the end! ;)
>>
>> Yes, I know. The example was running in the small emulated window...
>>
>> Gonzalo
>>
>> ___
>> Sugar-devel mailing list
>> sugar-de...@lists.sugarlabs.org
>> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/sugar-devel
>>
>>
> This is great +1 for me!.
>
> What do we need to make this happen ?.
>
>
>
>
Ah! one example


http://git.sugarlabs.org/simplegraph/simplegraph/commit/25e5093ca74f824268ee81523de9c54f3cc5afa1


Cheers.
>
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Re: [IAEP] [Sugar-devel] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Rafael Ortiz]

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 11:05 AM, Gonzalo Odiard  wrote:

> > Though do lets try to keep an eye on the total number of toolbutton
> widgets, we don't want Stop falling off the end! ;)
>
> Yes, I know. The example was running in the small emulated window...
>
> Gonzalo
>
> ___
> Sugar-devel mailing list
> sugar-de...@lists.sugarlabs.org
> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/sugar-devel
>
>
This is great +1 for me!.

What do we need to make this happen ?.



Cheers.
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[IAEP] EiE: Engineering & Technology Lessons for Children!

[Bastien]

Perhaps this is already common knowledge for many on this
list, but I just stumbled on this resource:

  http://www.mos.org/eie/
  EiE: Engineering & Technology Lessons for Children!

I've skimmed through the content, and the approach looks
quite interesting.

Best,

-- 
 Bastien
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Re: [IAEP] [Sugar-devel] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Gonzalo Odiard]

> Though do lets try to keep an eye on the total number of toolbutton
widgets, we don't want Stop falling off the end! ;)

Yes, I know. The example was running in the small emulated window...

Gonzalo
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Re: [IAEP] [Sugar-devel] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Gary Martin]

Hi Gonzalo,

On 7 Mar 2012, at 12:37, Gonzalo Odiard  wrote:

> We receive many times request about adding help in the activities,
> and if is true Sugar propose a exploratory approach, 
> not all the people learn in the same way, 
> and there are people who prefer a little guidance.
> 
> For the development we need a simple api, and easy i18n,
> and a non obtrusive experience for the user.
> 
> Inspired by the DescriptionItem, I was experimenting with a widget to add 
> simple help to activities.
> This is not:
> * A manual
> * Lessons
> * Tips
> Is a short startup help for the activity.
> 
> Use only text and the icons already used by the activity.
> 
> A example can be seen here: 
> http://dev.laptop.org/~gonzalo/images/simple_graph_help.png

+1 for using this help palette design element where appropriate in activities. 
It's relatively light weight for developers/translators to support and a good 
place where front line educator feedback can be directly used. Though do lets 
try to keep an eye on the total number of toolbutton widgets, we don't want 
Stop falling off the end! ;)

Regards,
--Gary

> In the activity we only need do:
> 
> helpitem = HelpButton()
> toolbar.insert(helpitem, -1)
> helpitem.show()
> helpitem.add_section(_('Basic usage'))
> helpitem.add_paragraph(_('First you need add data to create the graphic'))
> helpitem.add_paragraph(_('You can add data with this button'),
> 'row-insert')
> helpitem.add_paragraph(_('...or remove data with this button'),
> 'row-remove')
> helpitem.add_paragraph(_('To change the graphic title, just change the 
> activity title'))
> 
> 
> This proposal is late for sugar 0.96, but may be we can try it in one or two 
> activities,
> and start thinking about this topic.
> I really like the help in the Implode activity, but have the following 
> problems:
> * I don't know if apply to other type of activities.
> * Is modal
> * need a lot of code to implement it.
> 
> Comments?
> 
> Gonzalo
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Re: [IAEP] [Sugar-devel] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Thomas C Gilliard]

Build a Remix .iso for Soas

Help files as included .pdf?

Example from Floss Manuals
 http://people.sugarlabs.org/Tgillard/floss_manuals/TurtleArt_06Sep08.pdf


http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Build_Your_Own_Remix_with_Fedora

Include Documents in Books directory?:
and link from activity?
(From section Mel gave to me)

%post --nochroot
# Mel's Example starts  (thanks to Mel Chua)
# pull and include sample content
WD=$PWD
CACHE_DIR=$WD/../cache/books
CONTENT_DIR=$INSTALL_ROOT/home/liveuser/Desktop/books
mkdir -p $CACHE_DIR
mkdir -p $CONTENT_DIR
cd $CONTENT_DIR
PDF="$PDFhttp://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Sugar_Creation_Kit";
PDF="$PDFhttp://people.sugarlabs.org/Tgillard/floss_manuals/TurtleArt_06Sep08.pdf  
"
PDF="$PDF link  
"
PDF="$PDF link"
PDF="$PDF link"
PDF="$PDFlink  "
for pdf in $PDF ; do
 remote_file=$(basename $(curl -4 -s -L -w %{url_effective} -I $pdf | tail -1))
 file=$CACHE_DIR/$remote_file
 if [ ! -f $file ] ; then
   curl -s -4 -L $pdf>  $file
 fi
 cp -p $file $CONTENT_DIR
done
%end



On 03/07/2012 04:53 AM, Walter Bender wrote:

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 7:37 AM, Gonzalo Odiard  wrote:

We receive many times request about adding help in the activities,
and if is true Sugar propose a exploratory approach,
not all the people learn in the same way,
and there are people who prefer a little guidance.

For the development we need a simple api, and easy i18n,
and a non obtrusive experience for the user.

Inspired by the DescriptionItem, I was experimenting with a widget to add
simple help to activities.
This is not:
* A manual
* Lessons
* Tips
Is a short startup help for the activity.

Use only text and the icons already used by the activity.

A example can be seen here:
http://dev.laptop.org/~gonzalo/images/simple_graph_help.png

In the activity we only need do:

 helpitem = HelpButton()
 toolbar.insert(helpitem, -1)
 helpitem.show()
 helpitem.add_section(_('Basic usage'))
 helpitem.add_paragraph(_('First you need add data to create the
graphic'))
 helpitem.add_paragraph(_('You can add data with this button'),
 'row-insert')
 helpitem.add_paragraph(_('...or remove data with this button'),
 'row-remove')
 helpitem.add_paragraph(_('To change the graphic title, just change the
activity title'))


This proposal is late for sugar 0.96, but may be we can try it in one or two
activities,
and start thinking about this topic.
I really like the help in the Implode activity, but have the following
problems:
* I don't know if apply to other type of activities.
* Is modal
* need a lot of code to implement it.

Comments?

Gonzalo

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I am busy working on my 4th generation of help for TA. None of the
previous attempts have been satisfactory to date:

(1) FLOSS Manual and very extensive wiki page : no evidence that our
users are aware of these pages or have access to them;
(2) Hover help : really annoying to have pop ups all the time -- maybe
I could have adjusted the time outs, but it never seemed very good.
(3) Hover help where the messages appear on the toolbar : the help
toolbar must be selected at the time or the help messages are not
available -- not sure it is discoverable;
(4) Using mallard to generate an indexed manual. Not sure yet how I'll
integrate this into the activity, but is uses the strings from #2 and
#3 which are already in Pootle and artwork generated by the activity.

The advantage of the mallard approach is at least we'll get a help
manual that will work with yelp/browse even if the in-activity
experience is not better.

I'll let you know how it goes.

-walter

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Re: [IAEP] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Gonzalo Odiard]

Walter, Stephen,

Probably the same solution will not work for all our activities.
TurtleArt and Etoys are complete environments,
probably with the more complex and powerful UI.

May be a option, is show contextualized help in the widget,
for example in TurtleArt, show help related to the visible toolbar.

Of course the interesting part in TurtleArt is not the toolbar but the
canvas,
and will be more complex define what is the context to use.

I think one activity where the proposed help can be helpful is InfoSlicer,
because is not very obvious how start and the workflow.

Gonzalo
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Re: [IAEP] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Steve Thomas]

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 9:37 AM, Gonzalo Odiard  wrote:

> We receive many times request about adding help in the activities,
> and if is true Sugar propose a exploratory approach,
> not all the people learn in the same way,
> and there are people who prefer a little guidance.
>

Not being one to read manuals and preferring to figure things out myself, I
was shocked when kids 8-14 who in their first or second class with Etoys,
were doing things in ways I had never seen before.  Especially after I had
been using Etoys for quite a while.  When I asked how they figured it out,
they said "Oh it's in the Quick Guides"

So yes, there are many different ways of learning and +1 for Gonzalo's
suggestions.

May I suggest as a format something similar to Kathleen Harness' Quick
Guides in Etoys.  They provide a fun and interactive way for kids to learn,
that is more than simple reading, but involves doing (albiet in a simple
way, that helps ensure early success).  One of their goals, I think, is to
help make the "undiscoverable" discoverable.

Stephen
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Re: [IAEP] [Sugar-devel] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Walter Bender]

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 7:37 AM, Gonzalo Odiard  wrote:
> We receive many times request about adding help in the activities,
> and if is true Sugar propose a exploratory approach,
> not all the people learn in the same way,
> and there are people who prefer a little guidance.
>
> For the development we need a simple api, and easy i18n,
> and a non obtrusive experience for the user.
>
> Inspired by the DescriptionItem, I was experimenting with a widget to add
> simple help to activities.
> This is not:
> * A manual
> * Lessons
> * Tips
> Is a short startup help for the activity.
>
> Use only text and the icons already used by the activity.
>
> A example can be seen here:
> http://dev.laptop.org/~gonzalo/images/simple_graph_help.png
>
> In the activity we only need do:
>
>     helpitem = HelpButton()
>     toolbar.insert(helpitem, -1)
>     helpitem.show()
>     helpitem.add_section(_('Basic usage'))
>     helpitem.add_paragraph(_('First you need add data to create the
> graphic'))
>     helpitem.add_paragraph(_('You can add data with this button'),
>     'row-insert')
>     helpitem.add_paragraph(_('...or remove data with this button'),
>     'row-remove')
>     helpitem.add_paragraph(_('To change the graphic title, just change the
> activity title'))
> 
>
> This proposal is late for sugar 0.96, but may be we can try it in one or two
> activities,
> and start thinking about this topic.
> I really like the help in the Implode activity, but have the following
> problems:
> * I don't know if apply to other type of activities.
> * Is modal
> * need a lot of code to implement it.
>
> Comments?
>
> Gonzalo
>
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>

I am busy working on my 4th generation of help for TA. None of the
previous attempts have been satisfactory to date:

(1) FLOSS Manual and very extensive wiki page : no evidence that our
users are aware of these pages or have access to them;
(2) Hover help : really annoying to have pop ups all the time -- maybe
I could have adjusted the time outs, but it never seemed very good.
(3) Hover help where the messages appear on the toolbar : the help
toolbar must be selected at the time or the help messages are not
available -- not sure it is discoverable;
(4) Using mallard to generate an indexed manual. Not sure yet how I'll
integrate this into the activity, but is uses the strings from #2 and
#3 which are already in Pootle and artwork generated by the activity.

The advantage of the mallard approach is at least we'll get a help
manual that will work with yelp/browse even if the in-activity
experience is not better.

I'll let you know how it goes.

-walter

-- 
Walter Bender
Sugar Labs
http://www.sugarlabs.org
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[IAEP] RFC:Simple Help widget for activities

[Gonzalo Odiard]

We receive many times request about adding help in the activities,
and if is true Sugar propose a exploratory approach,
not all the people learn in the same way,
and there are people who prefer a little guidance.

For the development we need a simple api, and easy i18n,
and a non obtrusive experience for the user.

Inspired by the DescriptionItem, I was experimenting with a widget to add
simple help to activities.
This is not:
* A manual
* Lessons
* Tips
Is a short startup help for the activity.

Use only text and the icons already used by the activity.

A example can be seen here:
http://dev.laptop.org/~gonzalo/images/simple_graph_help.png

In the activity we only need do:

helpitem = HelpButton()
toolbar.insert(helpitem, -1)
helpitem.show()
helpitem.add_section(_('Basic usage'))
helpitem.add_paragraph(_('First you need add data to create the
graphic'))
helpitem.add_paragraph(_('You can add data with this button'),
'row-insert')
helpitem.add_paragraph(_('...or remove data with this button'),
'row-remove')
helpitem.add_paragraph(_('To change the graphic title, just change the
activity title'))


This proposal is late for sugar 0.96, but may be we can try it in one or
two activities,
and start thinking about this topic.
I really like the help in the Implode activity, but have the following
problems:
* I don't know if apply to other type of activities.
* Is modal
* need a lot of code to implement it.

Comments?

Gonzalo
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