[boost] Re: library overview page (was Re: Boost to the rescue)

From: David Abrahams (dave_at_[hidden])
Date: 2005-04-28 07:42:57

"Jeff Garland" <jeff_at_[hidden]> writes:

> On Wed, 27 Apr 2005 17:09:56 -0400, David Abrahams wrote
>  
>> Someone at ACCU suggested that we have a "libraries overview page"
>> that contains a short introduction and a mini-tutorial example for
>> each of the libraries.  I think it's a great idea and would vastly
>> increase accessibility of the libraries.
>
> Good idea, but what does it mean in practical fact?  It would be a
> hugely long page to have a tutorial of all the libraries.

Make that a micro-tutorial then.  It's supposed to be just enough to
get an idea.

> Just putting the library list no longer fits on a single page.  We
> already have libraries by category.

Yep.  It would be long.

> Several years ago I had the idea that a graphical view of the library
> categories might be a nice way to navigate among the libraries.  My little
> prototype is still on the wiki (each category is a hyperlink to the category
> on the libs by category page).
>
> http://www.crystalclearsoftware.com/cgi-bin/boost_wiki/wiki.pl?BoostUserFAQ

Doesn't work for me.  IMO the graphics add nothing.  Why not just a
table if you like grids?

> Now I can imagine we could do other things like bring up lists of
> the libraries in a category, etc. Is it better than a simple text
> list?  I personally like it better, but it certainly never caught
> on.
>
> Another idea is to make get the library documentation links
> immediately available from the front page.  Make the front page 3
> columns and have all the libraries or at least the categories listed
> on the left column...

That sounds like a good idea, but of course it addresses a different
need.

> Yet another idea would be to have a single page library teaser,
> including code example, linked available from the library list.  So
> a few sentences of intro text and some code examples as a really
> fast intro that people could scan to get the gist of the library in
> action.

That is in the same ballpark as what I suggested.  However, having to
click through to the material will make it harder for a user to get an
overall picture of what's in Boost.

-- 
Dave Abrahams
Boost Consulting
www.boost-consulting.com