[FM Discuss] Proposed update to Introduction to the Command Line

[Mick Chesterman]

Hi Andy ,

This is Mick Chesterman here aka @mickfuzz writing from my day job. I’ve just finished a batch of marking so I think I can justify sometime to work on FM issues at work for a while.

Testing out the new workflow and documenting it has been on the to do list for too long so I’m happy to try this out and see if we can get the system working for you.

I’m working on this right now here if anyone fancies helping!
http://write.flossmanuals.net/floss-manuals-workflow/_edit/

Also, let’s test out the pdf / ebook generation of the
Let’s go here
http://write.flossmanuals.net/command-line/_edit/#
and click on Publish Tab

It generates this epub
http://objavi.booktype.pro:80/data/books/commandline-en-2017.04.19-15.13.01.epub<http://objavi.booktype.pro/data/books/commandline-en-2017.04.19-15.13.01.epub>

normal pdf fails but the beta render creates the following and an ability to tweak the settings.
http://objavi.booktype.pro:80/data/books/commandline-en-2017.04.19-14.59.32.pdf<http://objavi.booktype.pro/data/books/commandline-en-2017.04.19-14.59.32.pdf>


Thanks
Mick



Mick Chesterman
Educational Innovation and Enterprise Tutor &
EdLab Project Developer
Department of Childhood, Youth and Education Studies.
Manchester Metropolitan University
Web: http://edlab.org.uk<http://edlab.org.uk/> / Twitter: @EdLabMMU
Phone: 0161 2472060

Please note: My working days are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday

From: Discuss [mailto:discuss-bounces at lists.flossmanuals.net] On Behalf Of Andy Oram
Sent: 19 April 2017 13:03
To: discuss at lists.flossmanuals.net
Subject: [FM Discuss] Proposed update to Introduction to the Command Line

FLOSS Manuals ran a sprint together with the Free Software Foundation more than 10 years ago to create this book. It proved to be popular, and it deserves an update. A new source of readership may come from recent support for GNU-style tools added by Microsoft to Windows (https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/commandline/learn-about-bash-on-windows-subsystem-for-linux/).

I coordinate the writing when this book was created, and am trying to gather contributors for the update. I'm in touch with the FSF to recruit contributors among their base. I hope FLOSS Manuals supporters can look for contributors as well.

The process for putting out a new official version is unclear. Someone is responsible for approving updates and moving them from the Write section of the seat to the released version of the book. How would members of this list suggest doing that?

I have been collecting ideas for the update. My current list follows and all suggestions are welcome.

Andy

---

Motivate the reader by describing common tasks and applying command-line tools to solving these tasks.

Remove material to make room for any new material we add. The current lenght is good--not too intimidating--and we should not give in to bloat.

Try to find a unifying project, such as collaborative document or web page editing. This project could involve Git and Markdown. Perhaps HTML is too complex for this book. JSON is also complex, but understandable with syntax highlighting (coloring) in tools such as vim and Emacs.

What do non-profits need? They can benefit especially from free software and often have goals aligned with the ideals of free software.

Expand our vision. The book already goes beyond the command line to introduce comprehensive tools such as vi, as well as some scripting languages. In addition, consider text formats such as Markdown. Consider git for collaboration.

Make a new web site as a project.

Microsoft's recent support for bash and other common Unix tools should provide a new readership.

grep is a good tool to introduce early--not in its full-fledged regular-expression syntax, but just as a way to search for something on your system. Difficulty: many people hardly touch plain-text files until they learn the command-line. Plain-text files are important for system configuration, which is one motivation for learning the command line and text-based tools.

Some applications: vi/vim is useful for crafting a long email message before sending it. Markdown is useful for editing wikis.

Adding a directory to the PATH is a common need when you install new software.

There are two major levels to using a tool. One is a primitive understanding that allows for small changes. The other requires developing a mental model, which is a big job and takes time.

--
Andy Oram  |  Editor
O'Reilly Media, Inc.  |  617-499-7479<tel:617-499-7479> |  oreilly.com<http://oreilly.com/>
"Before acting on this email or opening any attachments you should read the Manchester Metropolitan University email disclaimer available on its website http://www.mmu.ac.uk/emaildisclaimer "
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