Fwd: Re: Installation guide

[Phil Bull]

Hi Murray,

On Wed, 2010-09-08 at 10:22 +1000, Murray Gunn wrote:
> I've put together the first draft of the guide to installing 10.10
> from CD and would appreciate feedback, particularly to my comments /
> questions in italics.
> 
> The guide is targeted at people who know how to use a PC, but have no
> technical knowledge of how it all works.  They're probably migrating
> from Windows and using Linux for the first time.  It would probably
> have a few screenshots and be in a printable format so they could have
> it beside them while they install.

Here's some feedback on the draft. I've tried to respond to the comments
in italics, where appropriate, which is why there are quite a few bullet
points. It's looking good overall, and should provide a solid base for
the rest of the guide. I think we'll probably end up separating the
stuff from "Allocate Drive Space" onwards so it can be shared between
different installation methods.

Prerequisites/Getting Started

      * The hardware specs are fine, despite being technical. Many users
        won't be aware of their specs and will probably skim over that
        information, but it's useful to have there for reference. We
        should include a link to a topic elsewhere (wiki, etc.)
        describing how to check your hardware specs, perhaps. 
      * "good Internet connection" => "fast Internet connection" 
      * "CD image" - I think that most users will be unfamiliar with the
        concept of a CD image. Probably needs an explanatory note. 
      * No need to mention the netbook edition, and the server edition
        is outside the cope of this. No need to explain the whole
        mirroring issue. I think people will figure it out. 
      * Mention of the 10.04 ISO, rather than 10.10.
      * "dialog box" is technical language. "Window" is usually a good
        replacement.
      * Support requests show that lots of people mistakenly burn the
        ISO *file* to the CD rather than burning it as an image. We need
        to make it clear that this won't work.
      * No need to list alternative ways of burning. Having one simple
        route through the instructions reduces the likelihood of
        confusion.

Try It Out / Install / Wireless

      * Explicit instructions on getting the computer to boot from CD
        are important. While many computers will do the right thing and
        boot from CD, a significant number won't. Diagnosing and fixing
        this problem is an important role of the installation guide.
      * Will need more explanation on the difference between proprietary
        and open software. Perhaps a short section along the lines of
        "Should I enable the proprietary software?", which explains (in
        bullet-point form?) the pros and cons of each course of action.
      * The user might be confused if they have a wireless network but
        it doesn't appear in the list. This could be due to missing
        drivers, for example.

Where are you? / Keyboard Layout / Who are you?

      * Reference to "Chapter 2", needs removing.

Hope these are useful. Let me know if any of my comments need more
explanation/don't make sense.

Thanks,

Phil

-- 
Phil Bull
https://launchpad.net/~philbull
Book - http://nostarch.com/ubuntu4.htm