Media Portals achilles heel; Support. (1 Viewer)

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cheetah05

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I find using the wiki annoying too, I don't know quite what it is, but it just seems so complicated to me.

Maybe it's the fact that its integrated into the Media Portal website theme which is quite "busy".

I think a nice and simple unofficial (or official) mp website where users can post their solutions to their problems they had in mp (but not ask for advice), would be nice, because it would be simple and only have solutions and not problems.

The problem with this, is that it would defeat the whole point of the MP WIKI, which is not something we want to do.

----

OT: It would be nice to have a user section where users are able to post their setup and how well MP worked on it, what they could and couldn't get working.
 

jburnette

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I think part of the problem comes with the territory of HTPC software. There are so many different solutions and ways to do things and MediaPortal genrally can do them all if you know how to make it happen. There might only be one or two other people currently using MediaPortal with the same tuner you have, in the same country you live in, using the same television provider with the same equipment. There's so many possible problems you can run into (with any HTPC software). Not to mention problems with codecs and codec packs. It's hard sometimes to find help because perhaps one other person had the same problem you had but it was two years ago and may be on page 10 of your search results.

I think that one of the goals with the new MP2 is to document everything as it's built. That includes not only the source code but usage instructions as well. We should all probably try to edit the wiki as we learn more about MP2 so that we all benefit in the end from it and make finding help for ourselves a lot easier.

That's my two cents.
 

gwillia1

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Interesting thread. Having decent documentation is hard enough in a commercial software operation, never mind in an Open Source project.

Does anyone know of an Open Source project that has a good solution to the problem of documentation? Perhaps we could learn from them.

G.
 

lowcrust

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Interesting thread. Having decent documentation is hard enough in a commercial software operation, never mind in an Open Source project.

Does anyone know of an Open Source project that has a good solution to the problem of documentation? Perhaps we could learn from them.

G.

To be honest I don't know of any project that has poorer documentation. Nor a more cluttered forum. As I used phpBB as an example earlier we could start with them. Take a look here; http://www.phpbb.com/support/ There's a wealth of information to get there. If you look at other media center projects like MythTV or GB-PVR they have a much better documentation and help resources. That's a pity because I think MP has the potential to be the best alternative out there, including commercial alternatives.

One of the main problems with MP is that it's a small clique of users who solve problems with their own solutions that have little to no documentation and is hard to grasp for people outside of said clique. This is probably because users (who have the know-how) are mostly interested in solving a problem they have, then is kind enough to share it here, but doesn't have the time or energy to write step-by-step install instructions or any other comprehensive documentation. This is fully understandable on a personal level but unfortunate on a project level. I guess from a developers stand point this is also very frustrating as there is a lot of code to relate to. I hope the promised remedy of this in MP2 will be kept.

As I said I have the recourses to help with the documentation. I know english well enough to explain logical step-by-step instructions, I have good hardware know-how and generally good computer skills as well as time at work (i.e. paid time) that could be spent on this. But what does that all mean when I can't even teach myself to solve problems in MP? Most of my inquiries have remained unanswered (either in the forums or by the blank wiki-pages) or simply answered with "can't be done in MP" or "that is a bug, ask the developers". Pity.

Thanks for all the input on this, keep it coming.
 

infinite.loop

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    One of the main problems with MP is that it's a small clique of users who solve problems with their own solutions that have little to no documentation and is hard to grasp for people outside of said clique. This is probably because users (who have the know-how) are mostly interested in solving a problem they have, then is kind enough to share it here, but doesn't have the time or energy to write step-by-step install instructions or any other comprehensive documentation. This is fully understandable on a personal level but unfortunate on a project level. I guess from a developers stand point this is also very frustrating as there is a lot of code to relate to. I hope the promised remedy of this in MP2 will be kept.

    As I said I have the recourses to help with the documentation. I know english well enough to explain logical step-by-step instructions, I have good hardware know-how and generally good computer skills as well as time at work (i.e. paid time) that could be spent on this. But what does that all mean when I can't even teach myself to solve problems in MP? Most of my inquiries have remained unanswered (either in the forums or by the blank wiki-pages) or simply answered with "can't be done in MP" or "that is a bug, ask the developers". Pity.

    Thanks for all the input on this, keep it coming.
    i realy can not remember how ofter i called for help regarding the ::manual:: in the wiki.

    we also tried to create a Documentaions Team, but that..... well..... didnt worked out as expected because they seem to got busy with real life or so.....

    to be honest with you all.
    we realy but as much free-time into this project as possible. the major part of what you see in the current wiki has been written by a few individuals (like me).
    the fact that i always read ppl nagging and moaning about the wiki/documentaion is very frustarting, because this is all we get.
    helping hands are not only rare, they nearly do not exsist when it comes to write some manuals in the wiki.


    MediaPortal is about the community. In the forums everyone is trying to help.
    it would be great to see that spirit transfered to the wiki too.

    the basic layout for an ordinary manual is allready ::there::, it just has to be filled. :)

    imo. its time to stop moaning and start writing ;)


    regarding MP2.
    everyday i force..... i mean remeber the developers to write the manuals about what they do. :D
     

    lowcrust

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    the basic layout for an ordinary manual is allready ::there::, it just has to be filled. :)

    imo. its time to stop moaning and start writing ;)

    Yeah, but like I said;
    As I said I have the recourses to help with the documentation. I know english well enough to explain logical step-by-step instructions, I have good hardware know-how and generally good computer skills as well as time at work (i.e. paid time) that could be spent on this. But what does that all mean when I can't even teach myself to solve problems in MP? Most of my inquiries have remained unanswered (either in the forums or by the blank wiki-pages) or simply answered with "can't be done in MP" or "that is a bug, ask the developers". Pity.

    I'm sure there are others like me. On top of this I think the way MP1 is structured makes it difficult to support. To get something working the way I expect it I have to install a third part hack that is Dependant on another third party hack. It makes it very very difficult for someone who wasn't around from the beginning to sort out. And that's the times there actually is a solution to the problem (or "request"). I would say that's MP1's main, or maybe only, flaw but unfortunately it's a major obstacle for me. And until that's resolved I'm unable to use the program or help the community (be it support or monetary help).

    Best regards,
    /lc
     

    infinite.loop

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    To get something working the way I expect it I have to install a third part hack that is Dependant on another third party hack. It makes it very very difficult for someone who wasn't around from the beginning to sort out.
    if you need some sort of 3rd party "tool/hack" to get something working, then this sounds like a problem outside the main application and therefore is not part of its documentation.
    the documentation/manual is only meant to describe how the main application works.
    not how to configure your PC fit your needs.

    or do you have an example of what you are refering there? :)

    for this kind of "special solutions" we have the userguides and the Country specific Settings and Informations section in the wiki.
    which "someone" just has to populate with his solution.
     

    The_Stig

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    And still the same, no-one is really willing to edit the wiki... :-(
     

    jburnette

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    Is there a specific list of articles in need of attention? I realize that the whole thing needs updating, but I think more users would be willing to help if we had a couple of starting points and weren't just randomly editing sections.
     
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