Forum .LRN Q&A: documentation for dotLRN?

Posted by Mohan Pakkurti on 07/12/02 03:35 PM

hi!

I wonder what that plans are about documentation.
Is there any documentation available now other than the
Installation instructions. Can someone share some
information about this? Is there going to be developers
docs, package feature descriptions, etc etc...

I understand totally that everyone is busy with the deadlines...
It would be nice to have atleast some hints and ideas about what
to expect :)

Thanks

2: Response to documentation for dotLRN? (response to 1)

Posted by Ben Adida on 07/12/02 03:37 PM

Mohan: our next step after PG functionality is up and running is
documentation. We have started on some of this. You should
expect developer instructions *first*, because we want to
encourage developers to start using dotLRN ASAP. And with
more developers comes more manpower to build user
documentation :)

3: Response to documentation for dotLRN? (response to 1)

Posted by Samir Joshi on 09/10/02 09:36 AM

I am planning an introductory workshop for some interested teachers on using dotLRN at M.S. University , as I have posted earlier....This will be largely a volunteer effort.

Is there a publicaly available 'Getting Started" user documentation (audience : students/teachers) for dotLRN ?

Also, is there place for educators to learn/share best-practices on using dotLRN ?

As for developer docs, I noticed OF site had some introductory docs earlier (no longer now).

Thanks !

4: Response to documentation for dotLRN? (response to 1)

Posted by Michael Feldstein on 09/10/02 12:23 PM

Hi Samir,

I believe that http://dotlrn.mit.edu is intended to be the place for teachers to share best practices, although it isn't set up for this quite yet. I'm not sure what the plans are for "getting started" documentation, although we surely need some. What's your time frame? When do you expect to go live with dotLRN? We'll see what we can do to get the pieces together for you.

In the meantime, you raise some good questions here. What kind of documentation and support would people like to see from the user's perspective?

5: Response to documentation for dotLRN? (response to 1)

Posted by Samir Joshi on 09/12/02 03:09 PM

Thanks Michael.

We are aiming for bottom up adoption, with groups having enough interest starting early in organic fashion (without organizational sponsorship) and spreading success story so that the snowball starts rolling on its own...

All help and support answering this question will be invaluable: how to get a teacher to ask 'Where can I find Getting Started manual?'.

I am not sure if there are specific answers and recipes. I would think though there might be general directions regardless of cultural, regional and other differences since learning is such a fundamental activity.

6: Response to documentation for dotLRN? (response to 1)

Posted by Deirdre Kane on 09/12/02 03:34 PM

It's not only a matter of getting them to ask "where can i find the manual" because many do that from instinct. It's also a matter of putting the manual where it is easy for them to find it. With .LRN, this means placing help within a click or two and that means the group Control Panel page. Sloan has made a few improvements towards this end: a User and Admin FAQ placed on the Control Panel pages, and a better (but not perfect Help page), but the Manual is not yet a direct link from the Control Panel and I think this is something we need to accomplish, along with some other stuff to make it easier for new users to get oriented. Access to the manual plus clear ontext descriptions of features (naming things well, providing simple onscreen instructions, etc.) is important and there is always room for improvement. Basically, mygoal as a site wide admin is to get the interface to a point where no one has to call or email me for help (a lofty and selfish, but a goal nonetheless).