[Xastir] YAFRODU

[Curt, WE7U]

On Tue, 22 Feb 2005, Dan Brown wrote:

> On Tue, 22 Feb 2005, Tom Russo wrote:
> >
> > I would think it better to add a separate download for them, as is done for
> > the "xastir-sounds" files.  Some folks will not want the APRSdos maps at all
> > --- in fact, I would find them an unwelcome waste of space.  They shouldn't
> > be part of the source download itself.
> >
> > On the other hand, making it easy for a new user to go to one place to
> > grab source, sounds, and some primitive maps would be a Very Good Thing.
>
> Would a "first time configure" script be a useful thing?  And yes, before
> Curt gives me a "tag you're it," I'm kinda volunteering, though, I know I'm
> a couple "features" behind in contributions vs proposals here.
>
> What I imagine would be something that could collect basic information
> about the users station and write out a starter config file.  By basic
> information, I mean callsign, location and basic config options - perhaps
> even as far as setting up an interface or two.
>
> In a script like this you could find out if they have an internet
> connection, and then, for example, find out what state they live in and go
> grab the right GNIS files.  You could do a yes/no on whether the user wants
> to download the FCC/RAC database, or even if they want that added to their
> crontab.  You could find out if they wanted to (try to) download the basic
> APRSmaps, etc etc.
>
> Do people think this would that be useful, or is it just redundant work?
> Do users need the experience of walking through the various setups -
> downloading added libraries, deciding which kinds of maps they need and
> doing setup - in short actually doing some learning?  I know most of the
> ability to gather preferences and write out configs is "built in" to the
> program - would having Xastir go into a "collect preferences" mode the
> first time things are started up be valuable?
>
> I think this would be useful - either as a stand alone script or as a
> "first time" mode in the program.  I think there are some added "features"
> or configs which I believe could be automated, perhaps by calling existing
> scripts like scripts/get-gnis or scripts/fcc-get from Xastir itself.

If you've ever played with UI-View, you'll notice this
first-time-user mode that walks you through the relevant configs
when you first run it.  Sometimes I find that annoying because I'm
trying to get things going quickly, but sometimes I like it, as it
makes it easy to get started.

I would think that a first-time user mode in the program itself
would be of the most utility.  I'd set it up to ask if you're like a
guided setup so that you can cancel out of it if you know what
you're doing.

I must admit I'm torn though between making the user learn something
about all of this, and making the program easier to use from the
get-go.

My vote currently would be to have a built-in mode that starts
automatically the first time Xastir is run, with the option to opt
out, probably with an option to opt-out permanently, or just for
this run.  That way people could get back to it again by restarting
Xastir, or we could add a menu option for Guided Setup.

--
Curt, WE7U.   APRS Client Comparisons: http://www.eskimo.com/~archer
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"Windows:  Microsoft's tax on computer illiterates." -- WE7U
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