Android Tutorial Core Documentation [UNOFFICIAL]

As a Development Team Leader, I like my code to be "just so". I also like my documentation to be "just so".
I am humble enough to know that I don't know everything, but I do know what I like. I am definitely a stickler for certain things to be done a certain way.

So when I found this great site and application (yes, I am talking about b4A), I was really excited and wanted to read the documentation so I knew where and how to work with it.

NOTE: What I say in the following paragraphs about fellow forum members efforts is not meant to be overly-critical. I understand that we are all doing this for love, and I am just trying to be honest. Please don't take anything to heart - it is meant to be constructive.

I found the beginners guide useful, and the Getting started guide ok, but when I found the seperate Core guide, I didn't think it was good enough.
Ok sure, the information is there (mostly), but was it consistent?
If asked, I would have to say no.

So, I can do one of three things:
1. Put up with it
2. Complain about it
3. Fix it

I decided that #3 was better for me and the B4A community.

So, accordingly, I am writing documentation that can be used by everyone, not just me.
I believe the following benefits will be realised with this documentation:
1. Consistency. Each keyword will get equal billing and will be documented the same as the next. This means...
2. Examples. Each keyword get's it's own example.
3. Colour coding. I will follow the B4A colour coding standard.
4. Grammar. As a native English speaker, I do not have to overly process the information I have available to me, and try and think differently before I put pen to paper.

There will be downsides to this approach.
1. Timeliness. I have no affiliation with Erel and Anywhere Software, and I am not a Beta tester, so I don't get early access to changes. This means there will be a lag between product releases and documentation updates.
2. Descriptions will differ. I won't always agree with the description offered in the official information, and so what you see in the IDE's intellisense popup window, may not 100% correspond to my version. The overall message will be the same, but the words may be different.

Here is the format I have come up with...

Abs

Description
Returns the absolute value of a double-precision floating-point number.

Syntax
Abs(Value As Double) As Double

Parameters
Value
Type: Double

Return Value
Double

Remarks
The absolute value of a Double is its numeric value without its sign. For example, the absolute value of both -123.45 and 123.45 is 123.45.

Example
Dim Value As Double
Dim Result As Double

Value = -123.45

Result = Abs(Value)

' Result will equal 123.45

See Also

On top of this, I would like to confer further with Erel to understand what version of B4A received particular Keywords, (or changes, which should be VERY limited or non-existant), and this can also be shown. This will allow those of us that are not using the most recent version to know what is (and is not) available to them.

Attached is a DRAFT/ALPHA version of my document. I will update this thread as I require to get the final version released. Right now it is in Word's Docx format, but that will change to a PDF when I get closer to Release 1.0 (which will actually be release 2.50, following the B4A version numbering).

Enjoy!

Update:
v0.2 added as a pdf
The file is also hosted elsewhere because of the Forum upload size-limits.
Link: http://sdrv.ms/ViZNVE

 

[Vader]

Thanks very much for the feedback. I had not considered an online version. I suppose this could be on a subscription basis (monthly), so that could work.

Then I could ensure the information is kept up-to-date, and everyone would have access to it.

I am keen to see other people's views on this.