In regards to "Introducing Fedora" as suggested....

[Karsten Wade]

On Sun, 2006-10-08 at 16:39 -0400, Markus McLaughlin wrote:
> There are many ways to introduce Fedora Core so I am asking for  
> suggestions on how best to do so, I want to do it so it's not too dry  
> or too "Microsoft"-like, somewhere in-between is what I had in mind  
> with a funny Dilbert-style image on the front.   

Agreed that we want to strike a tone that is neither too formal nor too
informal.  Writing that is too casual causes distrust in the reader.
Too formal doesn't sound human ... although it does translate easier!

For you, I'd recommend trying for slightly more formality, and see how
that sounds.  Try to avoid the second-person pronoun, especially where
it forces you to add extra words:

"You can right-click on the desktop background to get a context
menu ..."
"Right-click on the desktop background to get a context menu ..."

The second is more directive, which is reassuring.  It shows what is
happening right in front of the user, rather than what "will happen" or
what "can happen".

The Introduction, being not about how-to fare but more what-is, do some
exploring and see what sounds right, and we can iterate from there.

> What is the best FC- 
> supported Screen Capture Tool so I can provide the Opening Desktop  
> Screen of FC6?  Based upon what I write
> for the Introduction, what would be an appropriate Conclusion?

Perhaps we should base an answer to that on what you actually do write?

> I would like to strongly suggest that fedoraforum.org be the  
> unofficial Fedora Handbook site where all the Fedora web sites submit  
> "How-tos" and Solutions into one single forum known as "The Fedora  
> Handbook."  The purpose of this is for those who aren't busy on the  
> Documentation Project gather what has already been written and have  
> it combined on the fedoraforum "Handbook" Site and once that is  
> successful, someone or some team will have a completed PDF ready 3  
> months before the next FC release.  It is just a suggestion, nothing  
> more....

I think you can follow the same theory, just do it on the
fedoraproject.org Wiki instead, such as in the Docs/Drafts/Handbook
namespace.  The GUI editor in the upcoming update for the Wiki is going
to make it as easy to edit as the fedoraforum.org editor.

The advantage here is that we have tools and processes for converting
from the Wiki into DocBook XML.  We need that XML to get translated and
output multiple formats such as HTML, PDF, RTF, TXT, Braille, etc. :)

Another advantage is that many of us watch the changes in the Wiki.
Editors can help get on top of style changes and suggestions early.  A
forum is not conducive to editing and change tracking the way a Wiki is.

cheers - Karsten
-- 
Karsten Wade, RHCE, 108 Editor    ^     Fedora Documentation Project 
 Sr. Developer Relations Mgr.     |  fedoraproject.org/wiki/DocsProject
   quaid.108.redhat.com           |          gpg key: AD0E0C41
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