It has now become clear that the Sakai out of the box (OOTB) help files are suffering from a lack of attention. This everlasting issue has been lingering for the longest while, with bursts of interest occurring here and there, as the following links demonstrate (this list is incomplete, please add yours):
- Sakai Community Documentation (Denver, 2010): http://confluence.sakaiproject.org/display/CONF2010/Sakai+Community+Documentation
- Strategies to Support Your Users: Custom Documentation and Help Files (Boston, 2009): http://confluence.sakaiproject.org/display/CONF10/Thursday-Strategies+to+Support+Your+Users
- BOF about community documentation (Boston, 2009): http://confluence.sakaiproject.org/display/CONF10/Thursday-Documentation-Discussing+a+Better+Sharing+Strategy+%28BOF%29
- Toward a Sakai Documentation Project (2008): http://confluence.sakaiproject.org/display/DOC/Toward+a+Sakai+Documentation+Project
- The End-User Support pages: http://confluence.sakaiproject.org/display/ESUP/End-User+Support+Group
- The Project: Help pages: http://confluence.sakaiproject.org/display/HELP/Home
It is now time to gather members of the Sakai community and Foundation to tackle this problem once and for all. Bad documentation leads to unnecessary local efforts that do not find their way back to the OOTB help files. Now that so many schools are looking at LMS alternatives, and that the Sakai community wants to promote the use of Sakai, this is a blocker to adoption for many.
Recent threads on the "Sakai User" list has generated interest in this process. It's now time to walk the talk.
Who's Interested?
Name |
Institution |
Expected contribution |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Mathieu Plourde |
mathieu@udel.edu |
University of Delaware |
Ideas, workflows, leadership (Needs Assessment/Ideas, Standards, Editorial Board, Writing, Project Management) |
Alan Regan |
alan dot regan at pepperdine dot edu |
Pepperdine University |
Ideas, workflows, content (Needs Assessment/Ideas, Standards, Editorial Board, Writing) |
Lorie Stolarchuk |
lorie@uwindsor.ca |
University of Windsor |
Pain points of current situation, integration joys/woes of Brock's MediaWiki, ideas (time permitting |
Robin Hill |
hill@uwyo.edu |
University of Wyoming |
Content, editing... whatever I checked on Alan Regan's form (Standards, Editorial Board, Writing) |
|
|
|
|
Some areas of contribution to consider: Project Management, Needs Assessment/Ideas, Accessibility, Standards, Editorial Board, Writing, Programming/Development, Workflows, Localization (Internationalization/Translation), Screenshots/Videos.
Key Questions
Before we start defining our process, please share your thoughts the following questions:
1. How do we define "end-user documentation" - purpose, audience, and content?
2. What do users need to accomplish their tasks in Sakai?
3. How do users find information when they hit the wall?
4. What works in the way our documentation is organized?
5. How should the help documentation be organized?
6. What is the current process used to revise and improve the OOTB documentation?
- Sakai Knowledge Base, managed by Indiana: https://www.indiana.edu/~sakaikb/
7. What are the difference between help files and other documentation?
8. How can we encourage the Sakai community to contribute their improvement back to the OOTB help files?
9. How should we vet the quality of the OOTB help files?
10. How should we address the branding and localization issues (different names, logos, style sheets, languages)?
NOTE: Improvements to the design of the learning environment (many of which are planned in S3) will also go a long way in improving the ease and usability of the service. Providing mouse-hover tool tips and other prompts will offer "just-in-time" support on the page. Of course, this will not eliminate the need for helpful built-in documentation and other support pages.