"I Hear Voices In My Head"

(click text for link)"Voices" by Rev Theory

The Voices...

Quote:"It's also to be expected that as the price increases so will the support and documentation."

"...if I don't have absolutely great documentation to help me understand the inner workings of the engine"

"However, my biggest issue isn't cost, it's support, documentation, and communications."

"Just please consider good documentation to be a part of the package. The whole product isn't all just code."

"Of course, I want those things, but the one thing that I absolutely demand is much simpler. Documentation. I want real non-wiki-based documentation. "

"I will buy the next version of Torque (for whatever the price) if documentation is addressed. Nothing more."

"The quality of documentation and support would need to be quite substantial to warrant that price point."

"I don't mean this as an insult to whoever created the documentation, but it sucks! "

"The documentation is a joke..."

"I share your disappointment with the TGEA 1.8 - mostly on the front of Documentation"

"The documentation and TDN are incomplete and messy"

There are quite a few more quotes similar to the ones you see above, but they are scattered across many different forums, blogs, and websites. I know developers need documentation, and are happy to have someone working on it full time, but I did not realize how important it is in determining the cost and success of an engine. I have read a lot more posts requesting new features, better functionality, simpler usability, and so on, but the documentation voices are branded in my mind.

These words lit a fire under my ass, but not to make someone eat his words or prove something to myself. I want to deliver for the simple reasons that it's my job (which I love) and because you (the Torque developers) deserve what you are asking for.

I'll let Brett handle the major blog about Torque 3D documentation, but for now you can join me in the Torque 3D Documentation Discussion and the GG IRC Channel.

What Went Down In January

On top of rolling out Doc System 2.0, a major task I had to work on was getting the docs ready for the new site. With a lot of help from the web team, documentation now has a new home. Instead of having to post multiple links, I am very happy to just have to post one:

Documentation.

Navigation is so much easier now, and the system they have set up allows me to modify the Landing Pages and Official docs with greater ease and efficiency. Very big thanks to Derek Bronson, Jacob Fike, and Ken Holst.


First IRC Hour of 2009
Lucky for me, the week that the new site rolled out ended up being the same week for 2009's first IRC Hour. What could have been virtual lynching complete with pitchforks and torches, the GG presence was well received. I was able to help field a few questions about Torque 3D, documentation, and some other tasks. I really appreciated the civility and passion I was able to experience.

Click here to download the IRC Hour Log in Word format.


Video Tutorial Series Gaining Momentum
If you haven't been paying attention, Lara Engebretson is releasing some seriously high quality video tutorials.

Be sure to keep an eye on the GarageGames Vimeo Albums for more of her work.

Next month...

The next IRC Hour will go down Feb. 19th, at 5:00pm PST. If you wish to post topic suggestions, provide feedback on past sessions, or just view recent logs, head over to the 2009 IRC Hour Discussion Thread.

February is going to be another one of those "heads down, full steam ahead" months for me. If Torque 3D and our other engines are going to receive the documentation treatment you all expect, my temporary low key presence in the forums will be worth it in the end.

I look forward to being a part of some great discussions in the feedback threads and IRC Hour. Rock on GG community, rock on =)