Wiki

[aklisiewicz]

I would like to say few words of encouragment to whoever is working on WIKI. This project is really great idea, and I would like to point out this link at the moment (as I'm studying it).
http://www.b4x.com/android/wiki/index.php/Designer#Properties_List

Whoever did that, should be used as an example how to write readable easy to understand documentation. As we all know, many programmers do not know how to write the HELP, but this guy definitely know how to do it, and I would like to thank everybody else who is working on WIKI. Once this project get more juice in it I would be more than happy to reccomend B4A to all my fellow programmers. The buttom line is that this idea seems to be so much better the manuals available so far. BIG THANK YOU !
:sign0098:

 

[Merlot2309]

Hello,

It's looking absoluty great, well written and very clear.
Compliments!!

Would it be an idea to sign with your (B4A) name, so that the ones who wrote the WiKi docu gets the fame and credits?

Helen.

 

[nfordbscndrd]

Thanks. JMB has done a lot of work on the Wiki. Most of what I have done is cutting-and-pasting, so the credit really belongs to the original authors on here, starting with Erel's documentation (which explains my hesitancy in replying to this post).

The existing Help system (pre-Wiki) may seem confusing because all the information is not presented together. After I paste Erel's docs in, then I search for other posts related to the topic and add that in, as well as linking related topics together. I think that just having it all together adds to the clarity quite a bit. I'm certainly no B4A expert, so anyone could do what I'm doing and should feel free to jump in to add info or to correct any errors.

The menus on the left side of the Wiki pages lead to help on how to work on Wikis in general and the B4A Wiki in particular.

 

[aklisiewicz]

Few things I would reccomend (while working with WIKI)

review the documentation as it is copied to the WIKI. This way the errors could be fixed, and eventually more info could be supplied. In my opinion all the Methods, procedures, functions commands need examples. Another words when I see something like:

Cursor.IsInitialized(...)

it would be really helpful to attach line od code with an example.

Some of the keywords do have references but not all. you might think some of them do not need it, but I'm sure many users will find it helpful. for those who use this product for longer time or used similar languages in the past it might be obvious, but not for every body. This should be done for all (or almost all). Please keep in mind there are and will be users coming from languages and environments very much not like Basic or VB. Some people also come from procedural languages (not Object Oriented).

this For...Next Statement (Visual Basic) could be an example how this should be organized. Of course it won't be as huge as MS help system, but at least making it this way will add some order and will make it neat and clean.

author email at the bottom is highly desirable as well, so in case of error or question he/she could be contacted.

I woudl also definitely add HOW TO section (which I suggested in my other post on the forum). This section could present most comon techniques and procedures.

I would also expect some explanation or outline how the data travels between the user screen and the database, for example:

- I create a screen (activity)
- I create a view (tex field)
- user enters data
.... I'm missing this part............................
- data is stored in database by executing SQL command

eventually oposite scenario could be described as well.
I do not mean the code, here, but rather a concept.


the above scenario could be also put this way:

Addin a Record:
UserInput -> .......fill the blanks(that's where I'm little bit lost).... -> SQL: INSERT statement

SQL: GET statement -> ............... -> Screen:Label (showing the data from the record)

then the same procedures for group of columns/fields/labels etc.....


In my desktop development there are special screen variavles to hold the screen data, cache variables, database columns, queues etc. I'm very much confused here as how this is handled in B4A, and this is due to the lack of proper description of the whole proces (as a concept).


Several times I tried to use Help System to find description of specific methods by using search strings like: SQL.Initialize but unfortunately I was not able to find anything this way. Obviously when I typed "SQL Initialize" I was able to find the information. It would be much easier to be able just to Copy/Paste into HELP instead of removing the 'dot'. Another words SEARCH feature in Helpviewer is not working good. The advantage of using it is the ability to search through FORUM (which I really like).


Art

 

[nfordbscndrd]

Wow! Okay, as I said before, the nature of a wiki is that anyone and everyone can add or correct content. Your comment that "author email at the bottom is highly desirable as well, so in case of error or question he/she could be contacted" runs contrary to both of these facts.

You can't think of a wiki as being by a single "author". It may start off with content by one person, but over time, many people will (or at least should) be adding to it, making corrections, etc.

Secondly, "in case of error", the person spotting the error should just correct it. If you have a question about a page, click on its "discussion" tab and post your question. Again, see the wiki Help page for this information.

When you say "it would really be helpful..." and "I would also definitely add..." and "I would also expect...", etc., FEEL FREE TO DO SO.

I am not anyone special -- not the "author" of the wiki nor an employee of B4A. I'm just a user trying to pay back some of the benefit I've gotten from B4A. Again, anyone can do it.

 

[kickaha]

Wow! Okay, as I said before, the nature of a wiki is that anyone and everyone can add or correct content. Your comment that "author email at the bottom is highly desirable as well, so in case of error or question he/she could be contacted" runs contrary to both of these facts.

You can't think of a wiki as being by a single "author". It may start off with content by one person, but over time, many people will (or at least should) be adding to it, making corrections, etc.

Secondly, "in case of error", the person spotting the error should just correct it. If you have a question about a page, click on its "discussion" tab and post your question. Again, see the wiki Help page for this information.

When you say "it would really be helpful..." and "I would also definitely add..." and "I would also expect...", etc., FEEL FREE TO DO SO.

I am not anyone special -- not the "author" of the wiki nor an employee of B4A. I'm just a user trying to pay back some of the benefit I've gotten from B4A. Again, anyone can do it.

Well said :sign0188:

 

[aklisiewicz]

Thank you for your opinion.
Yes in some sense you are right. if I would only know more about B4A I would be happy to contribute to WIKI as well. I just started my experience with B4A less than 2 weeks ago, so there is pretty much nothing I can write about. If I see a typo, or spelling error sure I can go ahead and correct it. I haven't ever used anything like WIKI so do not even know how to edit any documents, and my priority here is not to learn WIKI but B4A.
I'm really thankfull for people who help and contribute, and just because I do not have an expertise to do this at the moment it doesn't mean I cannot suggest anything to make it better. If you disagree with my suggestions you can simply ignore them. The question is: if ignoring it will make product worse or better (?)

Please realize that I am not even in any development process, but rather finding out weather B4A is or is not for me. The answer is obvious, the sooner I can make something productive the sooner I say YES.

Art

 

[nfordbscndrd]

Thank you for your opinion.

It's not an opinion if it's fact! I was just saying how wikis work.

Yes in some sense you are right. if I would only know more about B4A I would be happy to contribute to WIKI as well. I just started my experience with B4A less than 2 weeks ago, so there is pretty much nothing I can write about. If I see a typo, or spelling error sure I can go ahead and correct it.

I understand the feeling. I'm no expert on B4A myself (5 months experience). In fact, there's a ton of features I've never used, so in those areas, I'm no better off than you are. When I run into stuff I don't understand when posting to the wiki, I stop and ask for help, like in the post linked here. But that's what makes working on the wiki a great learning experience.

For what it's worth, everyone struggles with B4A at first because of the documentation, but in the end, it is still the easiest way to develop Android apps, especially with the new debugging feature. So welcome to B4A -- it only hurts for a little while!

 

[JMB]

Hey there

To add my tuppence worth, I've found working on the Wiki very satisfying. I'm trying to do the documentation on the installation and the peripheral stuff, but it's meant I've had to sit down and really work out what does what, and how things work. Even just putting together code intended as tutorials means that I learn something new all the time, and I'm forced to really think about things which as a relative beginner is a good discipline.

The Forum is excellent for getting answers, but I would encourage others to pick a topic and really get into it, then put your stuff up both in the Beginners' section of the Forum, and also in the Wiki. If it's wrong, someone will put it right.

The only disadvantage is that I'm spending so much time testing stuff that I'm not really working on the App I want to work on, but c'est la vie!

This is the ONLY forum I have ever really contributed to, and that's mainly because the product is so good, and the support from Erel and other experts is so consistent and of such a high standard.

JMB