Re: [boost] [Ann] Boost and Google Summer of Code 2007 - html & RST to Quickbook

From: Paul A Bristow (pbristow_at_[hidden])
Date: 2007-03-03 07:10:39

>-----Original Message-----
>From: boost-bounces_at_[hidden] 
>[mailto:boost-bounces_at_[hidden]] On Behalf Of John Maddock
>Sent: 02 March 2007 13:51
>To: Boost mailing list; boost-users; boost-announce
>Subject: [boost] [Ann] Boost and Google Summer of Code 2007
>
>Dear Boosters,
>
>It is a pleasure to announce that Boost will be applying as a 
>mentoring 
>organization for the upcoming Google Summer of Code 2007. 
>There is a lot of 
>preparation work to be done and little time to do it.
>
>A page has been set up at the Boost Wiki:
>
>http://www.crystalclearsoftware.com/cgi-bin/boost_wiki/wiki.pl?
>Google_Summer_Of_Code_2007

HTML and RST to QuickBook converter has been proposed.

I strongly support this. It may appear an obscure utility but it would help to overcome some of the serious documentation problems
we have - the invaluable and essential Boost.Test for a very important example.

In an attempt to help improve the documentation, I spent some time installing Dreamweaver (thereby clogging up my already bloated
registry so it takes even longer to boot up and close down :-(( ).  It is a fine tool for producing fancy 'designer' documents, but
has a substantial learning curve, and it far too complicated for the job in hand.  It also only works on Windows.  Similarly Mozilla
while portable doesn't handle the output from Dreamweaver well.

So it proved impossible to work JOINTLY with Gennadiy on the document.

On the other hand QuickBook (very similar to DocBook as used on Wikipedia) only
needs an IQ into double figures and Notepad, and does the job in hand.

Most important, for joint development, I found it very easy to use files in the Boost-sandbox with CVS and correct spelling mistakes
in John Maddock's Math Toolkit ;-))

This would allow users to add their bits to a sandbox version and the author could accept or reject for the next release.

The final Quickbook source is then in a standardized format that can output in html and pdf etc.  It is already possible to use
'Find' on a pdf document - something that is a reasonable substitute for an index - and that would have avoided much of the
difficulty using Boost Test documentation (and other html docus) - knowing something is there but not being able to find it.

Finally I'd like to add a requirement for an indexing tool for Quickbook, perhaps using Google Indexing service.

(John and I also found producing simple graphs of math functions messy - and would like a version that output nice small (Scalable
Vector Graphics) SVGs.

A Boost C++ tool to produce these from vectors, say, might be a small suitable project?).

Paul

---
Paul A Bristow
Prizet Farmhouse, Kendal, Cumbria UK LA8 8AB
[phone] & SMS, Mobile [phone] & SMS
pbristow_at_[hidden]