On Fri, Oct 05, 2007 at 10:57:28PM -0400, D. Hugh Redelmeier wrote: > | From: David Farning <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > | Below is a very rough outline-brain dump- of what I think a user needs > | to know before installing a pre-built image. > > Tough problem -- what can you assume the reader knows?
At this point I am thinking about an advanced user. Someone who would read and under 'linux device drivers'. Someone who would think embedded development was cool but didn't really know how to get started. There is are may other books on embedded development that a user can refer to for further information so one of the key point will be the further reading section to point someone in the right direction. The second audience would be embedded developers who want a quick over view of OpenWrt. The value to them will come later in the development chapters. Yes, this info should go in the preface. > I guess that the first thing to state is what you do assume that they > know. > > | Installation recipies > | are *bullshit*. > > Why do you say that? I can think of reasons, but I don't know if they > are yours. > > I think that recipes are brittle: if any of the ground shifts, the > user gets loss. Without the right tools, they can only recover in spite > of a recipe. When searching the internet for information on hacking my router and nslug I found many recipies on how to do a task but not many explaining why to do the steps in the tasks. > | All of the sections needs to be fleshed out(I expect the chapter to end up > | being about 40-50 pages long) . > > That is an awfully long chapter. Maybe subsections will be sufficiently > bite-sized to make the document easy enough to absorb. This is the first shot. I expect many changes > > | I would appricate > | suggestions on key stuff that I am missing. > > I read what you wrote. I am surely not be the target audience, but it > didn't give me much of value. I am not sure what your background is but I would think that value to you would come in the missing text that will fill in the subsections. Right now I am looking for feed back on if I am missing any important topics. > I wonder whether the generality of the set of targets make it hard to > say specific things and the specific is the easiest to understand. To make things more concret, I am thinking of adding a section at the end of each chapter walking the reader though a specific device most likely a wrt54g. > | The chapter will have two goals. > | 1 The reader should have enough knowledge to an image on their device. > | 2 The reader should be able to find and refer to other embedded > | device books. > > I would think that (1) might be best separated from and preceded by > explaining (0) how a OpenWrt system fits together. I agree. Need to present the big picture before getting lost in the details. Thanks David Farning _______________________________________________ openwrt-devel mailing list openwrt-devel@lists.openwrt.org http://lists.openwrt.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/openwrt-devel
