New: NeoOffice User Guide

Lorinda · Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 6:38 pm Post subject:

Peter,

Thanks so much for all the work you've put into this! When you are done, will you be making a "complete" odt file up, in addition to the pdf file? I ask because clicking on an item in the TOC of the pdf file doesn't take me to the appropriate page. I'm not sure if that's a problem with my pdf readers (usually Preview, but it doesn't seem to work in Adobe Reader, either) or if it has to do with how the file is made.

Blessings,

Lorinda

Lorinda · Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 6:50 pm Post subject:

Another question for you. How would you like us to report typos/errors/etc.? I just ran across a cute one on page 46:

aussie149 · Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 10:18 pm Post subject:

Hi Lorinda

Thanks for your input.

How it will be presented will depend on where it is housed. I'm not fussed at the mo because only a handful of folk are downloading, but my account will run over when it is finished and publicized, so we need a host. How many versions of it can be hosted, is the question

Having said that, I think the provisions of the licence require me to publish a copy with all edits, which would of course be odt.

I haven't been thinking about it at the minute, because I am being frustrated by a problem with page numbering. Every time I think I have it licked, it reappears. Basically, it is to do with Styles and how the odm is reading them. I've given myself a few days off in hopes that the solution appears to me in a dream Smile

Yes, Edits please, pass onto me via a PM here is fine. The mistakes are more likely to be in my chapters than jgd's because she's more careful than me Smile

plus I've had to turn off autocorrect etc at times because of the load on my computer with so many graphics, edits etc. My common typos are sue for use, teh for the, yoru for your.

We have settled on US spelling, because the original had a mix of US and UK spelling, so it should be color etc, but I am trying to move things to A4 in the NeoOffice odt instead of the US Letter that was in the OpenOffice.org original. We have also tried to change all the "one" and "one's" to "you" and "your", because it seems more the informal mac style of address.

Peter

LemonAid · Posted: Mon May 07, 2007 3:29 pm Post subject:

Thanks Peter, jgd,

I just looked at a copy Saturday and was ... Impressed. Shocked

I like the writing style and the use of Screens and Note: items. Helps to understand what is being said.

As to where this would be hosted? I have no ideas. Best guess is that there ... "could" be a ground-swell of downloads. Probably get /.'ed in the first few days? Rolling Eyes

Thinking about it, for now.

Philip ( Just scanning through I saw stuff that I never would have thought of! Shocked

)

aussie149 · Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 6:53 am Post subject: User Guide

Thanks for the encouragement, Philip Smile

I have made some breakthroughs in the past two days, and gone from frustration to exhilaration. I learnt a lot along the way. I have now fixed the major numbering problems I had [whew] and the Table of Contents actually works at last - including the hyperlinks. However, I am not sure how many will use this as an odt document, since it seems to really hog the CPU while it loads up or does anything of note, and crashes if you try to do two things at once. The pdf file seems a far, far better bet for mine, although you lack the hyperlinks from the table of contents there. Alternatively, you can load up individual chapters. The one that seems to bring the greatest work for the CPU is chapter 6.

Anyway, the light of day is nigh for edition 1.0 I think. I need to proof it and have another go at the index. In the meantime, I have put up the pdf from 11/05/07 on my User Guide site. One version has been zipped, but still 25Mb.

I would appreciate other sets of eyes at this stage, if you have time to look at a chapter or even a section. Let me know about typos and any other problems. PM me here. I haven't yet put up the latest odt files, but will, over the next week.

Peter
[feeling like I got out of jail Very Happy

]

aussie149 · Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 6:56 am Post subject: Mistakes

Oh, and I haven't fixed that error yet, Lorinda. It's on my list Smile

Samwise · Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 7:01 am Post subject:

Great news !

Many thanks to you and Jacqueline.

jgd · Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 7:53 am Post subject:

Oh, thanks especially to Peter. He did the very, very biggest part of the work!

Peter,
I can't download the pdf files neither with nor without .zip

Error message: Sorry, Unable to process request at this time -- error 999. Sad

Jacqueline

Samwise · Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 8:01 am Post subject:

Same problem here. According to this website, the most likely cause of this error message is a bandwidth limit - but it could be anything.

OPENSTEP · Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 8:18 am Post subject:

Thanks again for everyone for doing all this work; it is greatly appreciated! If server space winds up becoming a concern, just let me know and I can get it on some of our own servers.

ed

aussie149 · Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 7:13 pm Post subject: Errors

jgd · Posted: Sat May 12, 2007 12:31 am Post subject:

Thanks Peter, I just got it Very Happy

(less downloads for the moment, because our US friends are still asleep Wink

)

Jacqueline

Samwise · Posted: Sat May 12, 2007 3:39 am Post subject:

Got it too Smile

I'm not US-based, but I was still asleep when Jacqueline got her copy Wink

slaw · Captain Joined: Jan 20, 2005 Posts: 71

I would surely welcome a new manual pointed specifically at Neo/J.

The only book I have is Haugland & Jones' OpenOffice.org 1.0 Resource Book, 2003. It's not the greatest, being an expansion of previous material.

I wish I knew enough to be able to help. Thanks for your efforts.

Nick

P.S. Maybe you could publish it as a book, and get some reward beyond satisfaction. But please don't make us wait for that whole cycle, put it online as fast as it develops!