Paul, 

Was that because you preferred to be spoon-fed, as opposed to the new spade fed form of teaching where you get a lot more but in one huge portion?

Pat

On 3 Jul 2012, at 07:25, Paul Walk <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Slightly surprised that it's some sort of truism of usability that one shouldn't have to read a manual.
> 
> I drive a car. And yes, like everyone else, not only did I need to read a manual to drive a car, I needed a whole series of expensive lessons....
> 
> Paul Walk
> (sent from phone)
> 
> On 2 Jul 2012, at 23:21, Ian Piper <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> 
>> On 2 Jul 2012, at 22:42, J.A.Corneli wrote:
>> 
>>> Ian:
>>> 
>>> I use Git for
>>> 
>>> - collaborating on coding projects (mostly on Github)
>>> - backing up my thesis and keeping track of my progress w/ that
>>> - collaborating on LaTeX documents w/ remote coauthors
>>> - managing and analysing 10 years of legacy changes to the website/editing community I work with
>>> 
>>> Instructions like these 
>>> http://repo.or.cz/w/ftg.git/blob_plain/2042f9d85708fab1d8c0968873d9b05211ca351c:/README
>>> may look arcane, but please keep in mind that they also Just Work.  
>> 
>> Thank you, thank you, thank you! What a brilliant demonstration of the issue. I've put the content of that page at the end of this message. You couldn't make it up. But aren't most of us past that kind of geeky verbiage now? I do not have time to learn arcane tools, or to interpret whatever that page means. Mind you, I'm both a Mac user and a usability consultant, so I have certain expectations of the systems I use.
>> 
>>> If I didn't believe Git to be the best tool for the jobs mentioned above, I would use something else.
>> 
>> Agreed. And I do. I use Dropbox, which keeps every version of every piece of content I store there. Backtracking to an earlier version is trivial, and I've *never* had to read a manual. Hmm, I'm not sure there even *is* a manual! For software development, I use Cornerstone, a UI for Subversion, which provides a simple working environment for a system with a clear architectural metaphor. It's a great solution for that application.
>> 
>>> Calling Git tiresome, awkward, and quirky is sort of like complaining that a spade gives you callouses and a sore back.  
>> 
>> I didn't. I said that about github, not git. But to address your metaphor, my complaint is more like complaining that digging your garden with a teaspoon gives you pain, when a spade or garden fork is the right tool.
>> 
>>> First, let's be sure to call a spade a spade.  And then, critique it based on how it suits the job you're trying to do --
>> 
>> Mmm, I appreciate that lesson in basic usability. I've only been doing it for twenty years, so I needed that :-)
>> 
>>> and do consider how well you know how to use it.
>> 
>> Ah, that's not nice. When *will* people understand that if you have to have a manual to understand how to use a machine, it's probably he wrong machine. Did you read a manual to drive a car?
>> 
>> 
>> Ian.
>> -- 
>> Dr Ian Piper
>> Tellura Information Services - the web, document and information people
>> Registered in England and Wales: 5076715, VAT Number: 874 2060 29
>> http://www.tellura.co.uk/
>> Creator of monickr: http://monickr.com
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>> -- 
>> 
>> <ianpiper.png>
>> 
>> < alert type="geek" >
>> This is a repository for the Free Technology Guild.  We
>> intend to use it to store text, images, and code.
>> 
>> See why.txt, how.txt, and what.txt in this directory for
>> more information, or join us at 
>> 
>> http://campus.ftacademy.org/community/pg/groups/8500/free-technology-guild-working-group/
>> 
>> to discuss.  You can push to this directory anonymously,
>> using the 'mob' branch using the instructions below:
>> 
>> 
>> If you haven't done before, clone the repository      : git clone git://repo.or.cz/ftg.git
>> Change directories                                    : cd ftg
>> Set up remote tracking branch                         : git branch --track mob origin/mob
>> Checkout the mob branch                               : git checkout mob
>> cd to the ftg directory, and fetch the latest changes : git pull 
>> Add an appropriate remote URL                         : git remote set-url --push origin ssh:[log in to unmask]
>> Work on files in this directory, and add them with    : git add filename.foo
>> Commit changes                                        : git commit -m "descriptive message here"
>> Push your changes                                     : git push
>> </alert>
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>>