[pmwiki-users] ZAP future plans

The Editor editor at fast.st
Thu Mar 8 13:15:37 CST 2007


On 3/8/07, Ben Stallings <ben at interdependentweb.com> wrote:
> Dan wrote,
> > Here are some of the plans for the immediate future of ZAP.  If anyone
> > has input, would like to add items to the wishlist, or has specific
> > suggestions, feel free to provide input now.
>
> Documentation!  Before you add any more features, I would love it if
> you'd finish documenting what you've already got.  The current
> Zapsite.org assumes too much prior knowledge of how ZAP works.  I've
> been trying for months to get a simple lending library working with ZAP,
> but I always get stuck and give up.

Yes, that is a need, but I'm not sure I really have the time to
gratuitously write all the documentation everyone would like.  I'm
developing ZAP for my personal use.  What I put up on zapsite is just
a goodwill offering to the community.  And unfortunately, though
several have told me they would write up tutorials, it hasn't amounted
to much yet.

As for your lending library, I'd be happy to try and answer any
specific questions.  Where exactly did you get stuck?

> I'd like to see a conceptual overview: what ZAP does exactly; how it
> goes about combining the incoming form data with the session data and
> form elements in a page, because that is not obvious and not intuitive
> even to veteran programmers, to the point that after months of using ZAP
> I still don't understand how it works and what it is going to do in
> various circumstances.

Have you checked out zapsite since I put up the tutorials?  Currently
I have about 10 of them written. Would like to add more.  But perhaps
it would help if someone gave me a list of specific topics they would
like tutorials on. Not specific applications--that's what the snippets
and docs are for.  And not specific technical questions--that's what
the forum or doc comments are for.  But as you mentioned, what kind of
conceptual information is not clear about ZAP?  I'd be willing to
write a couple more tutorials if there was a specific need.  Just
don't want to put up verbiage.  Need help seeing precisely what is
lacking...

> I also crave more specifics, like documentation of the (:zap:) tag
> itself.  Currently if you look at any of the snippets, you see the
> (:zap:) tag in use, but if you look for it in the Documentation you
> can't find it.  That's not OK.  Every tag and every parameter needs to
> be explained somewhere, and an index would be very helpful.

This is explained on the second tutorial in the series:

http://www.fast.st/zap/pmwiki.php?n=Help.MoreAboutForms

As it is not a command, but an alternative input form (to the standard
input forms) I don't have it listed with the other commands.  Maybe I
should add a link to it somewhere in the docs however.  Good point.

As for other commands, I have not double checked but I think almost
all the commands in the main modules are documented.  There might be
one or two I've skipped over, but they would have to be newer ones.
Let me know if there are other commands you have questions about, and
or that are missing.

> So since you asked, that's my wish list!  It's a great recipe, and I
> look forward to someday being able to use it!  --Ben

Appreciate the input--and your efforts to learn ZAP.  I am eager to
get a few new features out pronto because I need them for my own site
which is still on hold.  I have to give that top priority--as I have
some deadlines.  Documentation stuff only gets any time left over.
But again anyone else on the list that wants to help, I have a list of
tutorials I'd like to see written eventually...

Cheers,
Dan



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