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Bug 336974 - FAQ GPL unexplained acronyms
FAQ GPL unexplained acronyms
Status: RESOLVED FIXED
Product: ekiga
Classification: Applications
Component: Documentation
unspecified
Other All
: Low enhancement
: ---
Assigned To: Ekiga maintainers
Ekiga maintainers
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
 
Reported: 2006-04-02 22:03 UTC by Alan Horkan
Modified: 2009-03-26 14:47 UTC
See Also:
GNOME target: ---
GNOME version: ---



Description Alan Horkan 2006-04-02 22:03:48 UTC
Thanks again for the software, been meaning to take a closer look at Gnome Meeting (Ekiga) for a long time now.  

The FAQ fails to explain acronyms, standard practice being to use the full form and then follow it with the acronym in brackets if you want.  The audience the FAQ is intended for may not know what the terms mean.  This is not about dumbing things down but rather about making them as clear as possible because English is the language people use when documenation is not availalbe in their own native language.  

Suggested title: 
"Ekiga Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)"

http://www.ekiga.org/faq/index.html#AEN15

"GNU/GPL".  I'm fairly sure there is no slash in this context, the very next item doesn't use the same punctuation.  It might be better to write "GNU General Public License (GPL)" maybe even provide a link to a more detailed explaination at http://gnu.org/philosophy/

There are many other complicated unexplained acronyms which you might want to try and explain in the FAQ or avoid entirely if simpler terms are available.  (SIP, VoIP, SNOM, IPBX, NAT, CVS, ... I sort of know what many of these mean and in context that is enough but I hope you can empathise and understand how hard and slow it is to read when you must keep stopping to decipher acronyms.)  

Maybe you might also change the first answer to read  
"Ekiga a software phone and video conferencing application" (or similar) and save the technology for the second sentence.  

Hope you can take this as constructive criticism, I doubt I'll have time to provide patches (so many projects so little time).  

Thanks again for the software.
Comment 1 Snark 2006-04-03 09:59:24 UTC
Yes.
Comment 2 Fabian Rodriguez 2006-05-06 17:50:54 UTC
I agree, +1 for this. Specially when Ubuntu Dapper is coming and many more people will be exposed to this.
Comment 3 Jan Schampera 2008-09-13 08:26:41 UTC
*push*

The FAQ document should be reviewed in paralled to the 2.9.x --> 3.0.1 process.

Yannick, any ideas?
Comment 4 Eugen Dedu 2009-01-28 16:33:26 UTC
I think I have added information about the acronyms.  Please make remarks or close the bug if you think it's ok.  Note that the FAQ is now at http://wiki.ekiga.org/index.php/FAQ .
Comment 5 Eugen Dedu 2009-03-26 14:47:40 UTC
Seems to be fixed, closing bug.