more, Ubiquity Slideshow for Ubuntu

[Jonathan Jesse]

On Tue, Jun 16, 2009 at 1:26 PM, Dougie Richardson <
dougierichardson at ubuntu.com> wrote:

> Hi all,
>
> I think that my position here is fairly clear,  a slideshow drawing
> attention to Ubuntu's features and where to get help is a good idea.
> To make it everything to everyone is not possible.
>
> If user's are having this much trouble with items such as the menu
> structure and the desktop then we as a community need to revisit the
> affordance of the interface, not argue over explaining the current
> system.
>
> Lastly, as is always the case, this is all entirely subjective,
> anecdotal evidence.  We simply do not have accurate information on
> who/where/when and what new users are struggling with.  Now we can run
> off and convert the slideshow into the hub of all documentation and we
> could go out and re-write the current documentation to focus on tasks
> but if that's based on conjecture it could be a total waste of time.
>
> What we need is to conduct research.  Phil and I have discussed
> solutions to this issue based on bug reports, forum posts and
> questions but haven't started to implement anything.
>
> We're making a lot of assumptions about our user base - that they're
> all proficient in Windows is the biggest, if they don't know what the
> start button is then there is no point in describing our system in
> comparison!
>
> --
> Regards,
>
> Dougie Richardson
> http://www.lynxworks.eu/
> dougierichardson at ubuntu.com
>
> --
> ubuntu-doc mailing list
> ubuntu-doc at lists.ubuntu.com
> https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-doc
>

A couple of points here as I am in agreement with Dougie:

One of the most annoying things in a fresh install of Windows XP install is
the stupid prompt for taking a tour of Windows that occurs several times
after the install and following reboots, we should not make it like this in
anyway.

The second point is this slideshow is not a help system at all and shouldn't
replace the current system.  THis should just be a tour of features and
benifits, not how do I install a certain codec for video or why does my
video card not work.  Google and the help system take care of these very
well.

We are making a HUGE assumption here about our user base.  Unfortunately I
would bet 90% don't use the help system they turn to Google instead.  The
same is going to happen with this slideshow, most will skip, most will never
use and most will turn to Google if they have any problems.
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