HelpHub Meeting Recap, Jan. 26: Development kickoff

Thanks to everyone who was present for the first HelpHub meeting of 2016. It was great to get things going again for the year. Read the meeting agenda and the Slack logs (login required to view chat logs).

We didn’t actually discuss the content planning side of things, as there were a couple of people who need to be involved there who were unable to make the meeting. We should be hitting that next week though.

Ultimately what we finalised at this meeting was the development team as well as the development workflow for the project. You will find all of this info on the HelpHub GitHub repo.

We will be using Underscores for theme base and importing the standard WordPress.orgWordPress.org The community site where WordPress code is created and shared by the users. This is where you can download the source code for WordPress core, plugins and themes as well as the central location for community conversations and organization. https://wordpress.org/ headerHeader The header of your site is typically the first thing people will experience. The masthead or header art located across the top of your page is part of the look and feel of your website. It can influence a visitor’s opinion about your content and you/ your organization’s brand. It may also look different on different screen sizes. and footer into it in order to keep things consistent. Aside from that the development flow as well as the project collaborators are listed on the GitHubGitHub GitHub is a website that offers online implementation of git repositories that can easily be shared, copied and modified by other developers. Public repositories are free to host, private repositories require a paid subscription. GitHub introduced the concept of the ‘pull request’ where code changes done in branches by contributors can be reviewed and discussed before being merged be the repository owner. https://github.com/ repo, so you can find out all of that info there.

Note that next week’s meeting may be 1 hour earlier – I just need to confirm if that will work for the key players before I schedule it, but I will post the agenda (with the meeting time) at least 24 hours before the it starts.

#chat-recap, #helphub

HelpHub Meeting Recap, Oct. 27

In this week’s HelpHub meeting we focussed on kicking off the wireframe building process. The discussion was very fruitful and you can see the SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/. logs right here.

The main thrust of the chat was to get started with the wireframes and in order to do that we threw around some examples of current knowledge base sites that we like. These will act as the base for out design inspiration, but we will still be building something completely unique. So, with that in mind, here are a few examples that we discussed – if you have any more that you think are worth taking note of then please add them in the comments:

Much like the Namecheap example, we are wanting to build something that highlights the search box on the home page with perhaps a few additional helpful links below it, but the main thrust of the home page is that is to be minimal and as search-focussed as possible.

Note that while design does definitely rely on content (especially for a site like this), we don’t want to hold up the wireframe process while we wait for the content structure to be more established, so we would rather start with building the wireframes ASAP and then revise them as we have a more solid idea of the content we will be working with.

If you have any feedback or thoughts on any of this then please post that here or in the #docs channel on Slack so we can keep the conversation open.

Also, see the project page for details on how to view/contribute to the wireframes.

I’m tagging the individuals here who are going to be working on the wireframes, but this is open for anyone to give their valuable input into: @saracope @versatility @greensteph

#chat-recap, #helphub

HelpHub Meeting Recap, Sept. 29

Yesterday’s HelpHub meeting focussed on the design, UXUX UX is an acronym for User Experience - the way the user uses the UI. Think ‘what they are doing’ and less about how they do it. and user flow with discussion about the content structure as well. You can read the Slack logs here.

The conversation largely focussed around what tools we will be using to plan the design as well as the content. We settled on the following:

  • InVision & Balsamiq for building wireframes & sharing prototypes
  • TrelloTrello Project management system using the concepts of boards and cards to organize tasks in a sane way. This is what the make.wordpress.com/marketing team uses for example: https://trello.com/b/8UGHVBu8/wp-marketing.Google Docs for planning the content structure as well as the content itself

Projects have been setup in each of these platforms and you can find all the information on the HelpHub project page in the Docs Handbook. If you would like edit access to any of the projects (they will all be publicly visible without special access) then please pingPing The act of sending a very small amount of data to an end point. Ping is used in computer science to illicit a response from a target server to test it’s connection. Ping is also a term used by Slack users to @ someone or send them a direct message (DM). Users might say something along the lines of “Ping me when the meeting starts.” me on SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/. (username: hlashbrooke) with your email address and I will add you where necessary.

The next weekly HelpHub meeting will be on Tuesday, October 6, 2015 13:00 UTC and the focus of this meeting will be content – starting with user personas and general structure. Hope to see as many of you there as possible 🙂

#chat-recap, #helphub

HelpHub Meeting Recap, Sept. 22

Thanks to everyone who pitched in at the first HelpHub meeting yesterday – it was great to see everyone so keen and to have so many volunteers putting their hands up. You can read the Slack logs for a full recap, but here are the points discussed:

  1. What is HelpHub?

As explained here, HelpHub is going to be a knowledge base (although we all strongly agreed that it is not actually going to be called a ‘knowledge base’) containing the WordPress user docs that are currently housed on the Codex and will also be linked to the community support forums. This will allow us to have one central location for all the user documentation as well as to completely migrate away from the Codex (in conjunction with DevHub of course).

Some clarification is needed as I was slightly mistaken about the future of the community support forums. For the time being we will not be moving or otherwise touching the forums. They will be linked to HelpHub, but the software running them will remain unchanged. In the future that might evolve, but that is a separate project from HelpHub.

  1. Roles & volunteers

We had a number of volunteers put their hands up to be involved, so I’ll list everyone here to keep a record of it:

Content Planners:

  • Job Thomas
  • Mike Childress
  • Jason Rhemus
  • Nicole Arnold

Designers (UIUI UI is an acronym for User Interface - the layout of the page the user interacts with. Think ‘how are they doing that’ and less about what they are doing. & UXUX UX is an acronym for User Experience - the way the user uses the UI. Think ‘what they are doing’ and less about how they do it.)

  • Diane Kinney
  • Sara Cope

Developers

  • Sara Cope
  • Justin Greer
  • Nicole Arnold
  • Jay Hoffmann
  • Rachel Whitton

Writers

  • Diane Kinney
  • Mike Childress
  • Jon Bossenger
  • Andrea Rennick
  • Normalize (can’t find full name)
  • Sara Cope
  • Nicole Arnold
  • Dinsan Francis
  • Siobhan Bamber
  • Jay Hoffmann
  • Jason Rhemus
  • Matheus Martins
  • Job Thomas
  • Dean Robinson
  • Rachel Whitton
  • Cricket Wilson-Harris
  • Michael Beil
  1. Next steps

Next up are the two initial stages of work: wireframing & content planning. I will be working with the content planners over the next week to get the tools we need all setup. I will also be setting up the best wireframing tools (it looks like InVision was generally voted as the best option) and will work with the designers to get things going there.

  1. Next meeting

We will be holding weekly HelpHub meetings (at least for now) at the same time each week – Tuesdays at 13:00 UTC. So the next meeting will be on September 29 2015 13:00 UTC and the focus of this meeting will be the UX & user flow of HelpHub. Hope to see as may of you there as possible 🙂

#chat-recap, #helphub

Docs Chat: July 31, 2014

The following is a summary of the topics discussed:

1. DevHub: @samuelsidler said more progress was made. @coffee2code is in the process of committing new stuff, including the mods to selectively enable the handbooks (with necessary tweaks and fixes), along with fixes for #437 (Make watch/unwatch a post action link rather than a widgetWidget A WordPress Widget is a small block that performs a specific function. You can add these widgets in sidebars also known as widget-ready areas on your web page. WordPress widgets were originally created to provide a simple and easy-to-use way of giving design and structure control of the WordPress theme to the user.), #439 (add handbook name to the top of handbook pages), and #436 (remove “Flag Unresolved” from handbook pages). He’s also done some initial work on example voting. @siobhan and @samuelsidler are discussing the best way to get general (non-typo) feedback, such as how the site functions, new features, etc. (7/29/2014 chat log)

2. Handbooks: The WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. Learn more. Vancouver Contributor DayContributor Day Contributor Days are standalone days, frequently held before or after WordCamps but they can also happen at any time. They are events where people get together to work on various areas of https://make.wordpress.org/ There are many teams that people can participate in, each with a different focus. https://2017.us.wordcamp.org/contributor-day/ https://make.wordpress.org/support/handbook/getting-started/getting-started-at-a-contributor-day/. had 6 people focusing on the handbooks. Most of them worked on the Theme Developer Handbook, but a couple worked on the PluginPlugin A plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party Developer Handbook. @blobaugh and @sewmyheadon send a huge thank you to the WordCamp Vancouver contributors! We also discussed the internal links in both handbooks. Currently there are a lot of links to existing Codex pages that will need to be changed to internal links in the handbooks, and the Codex pages redirected. A full review of all links will take place once the handbooks are migrated to DevHub, and necessary changes made at that time. (7/30/2014 chat log)

3. Seattle Docs Sprint: @sewmyheadon said the next WordPress Docs Sprint is Saturday, August 2, 2014 (today!) at 10am PDT in Seattle. The focus will continue to be on both developer handbooks. Contributors can also participate virtually in the #wordpress-sfd IRC channel.

For anyone unable to attend, you can read the chat logs here.

#chat-recap

Docs Chat: July 17

The following is a summary of the topics discussed:

1. DevHub:

  • Examples and voting should be coming soon. @siobhan mentioned access to view/submit examples is or will soon be extended to all editors on the make P2s.
  • @drewapicture (me) brought up the need for syntax-highlighting on hook reference examples. @siobhan pointed out that highlighting already is in place for function references though, so maybe there’s a disconnect in implementing that across the board. I’ll follow up on the meta ticket for highlighting the submissions form.

2. Handbooks:

  • Nothing much to report here. @samuelsidler mentioned it had been a slow week. Migrating the handbooks is still in the works. No word from @blobaugh or @sewmyheadon for theme/pluginPlugin A plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party developer handbooks.

3. Inline Docs

  • I had a nice self-meeting yesterday in #wordpress-sfd, the first in a while. An update post for that is forthcoming. Chat log can be found here.
  • The 4.0 audit ticket is still open, patches welcome. See #28885.
  • Still working on various long-term initiatives to improve developer docs in coreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress.. See #28298, #28459, #28558, and others on the docs-focus report

The chat logs are available here.

#chat-recap

Docs Chat: June 19, 2014

Thank you to everyone who came.

The following is a summary of the topics discussed:

1. DevHub: @samuelsidler said Post2Posts still needs to be implemented with the parser. @coffee2code has implemented source code on the individual pages, and is working on implementing the examples functionality. The handbook pluginPlugin A plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party has been updated with the required changes.

2. Handbooks: Some progress was made this week, mostly in the Plugin Developer handbook. @blobaugh and @sewmyheadon will add the anticipated new permalinks for each page to the spreadsheets for their respective handbooks. Once that is done, @samuelsidler plans to manually migrate over completed handbook pages, one section at a time, to their permanent home on developer.wordpress.orgWordPress.org The community site where WordPress code is created and shared by the users. This is where you can download the source code for WordPress core, plugins and themes as well as the central location for community conversations and organization. https://wordpress.org/. Adjustments will be made to the handbook theme and plugin, as needed, during content migrationMigration Moving the code, database and media files for a website site from one server to another. Most typically done when changing hosting companies.. Contributor information is being gathered, and will be included on the Credits page in each handbook.

3. Docs Issue Tracker: Development has stagnated on the project, and there most likely isn’t any developer time available right now. I’ll be going through the alpha release post comments, and creating TracTrac Trac is the place where contributors create issues for bugs or feature requests much like GitHub.https://core.trac.wordpress.org/. tickets for suggested changes so the discussion can continue on the tickets.

4. Trac Tickets: @DrewAPicture brought up a new ticket that could be an interesting cross-team effort between CoreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress., Support, and Docs: #28551 – Add Better Debugging Documentation Into wp-config.php. In addition to providing more debug constants and documentation, the current user sections of the file can be improved with better inline documentation.

The chat logs are available here.

#chat-recap

Docs Chat: June 5, 2014

Thank you to everyone who came.

The following is a summary of the topics discussed:

1. DevHub: @siobhan said Post2Posts will be bundled with the parser. @coffee2code will be implementing source code on the individual pages, as well as the examples functionality. Feedback is still needed on implementing explanations in the code reference, and differentiation on the search results pages.

2. Handbooks: @blobaugh said part one of the Theme Developer Handbook is on schedule to be completed by early next week. Two sections of the PluginPlugin A plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party Developer Handbook are almost complete, and should be done by next week, with one more section near completion. If you are interested in getting involved, contact @blobaugh and @sewmyheadon at the email addresses listed in this post. The subject of a style guide for the handbooks was brought up in this week’s handbooks chat. I noted that the Docs Handbook has a style guide and a tutorial template for reference.

3. Admin Help: @Clorith said he still needs to talk with @jenmylo about working with local meetupMeetup All local/regional gatherings that are officially a part of the WordPress world but are not WordCamps are organized through https://www.meetup.com/. A meetup is typically a chance for local WordPress users to get together and share new ideas and seek help from one another. Searching for ‘WordPress’ on meetup.com will help you find options in your area. organizers to identify areas that their new users are struggling with.

For anyone unable to attend, you can read the chat logs here.

#chat-recap

Docs Chat: May 29, 2014

Thank you to everyone who came.

The following is a summary of the topics discussed:

1. DevHub: @siobhan said Post2Posts will be used to make everything relational, and @Rarst is looking at the best way to implement that. @coffee2code will implement source code on the individual pages, as well as the examples functionality. A link will be added at the top of the Codex to direct people to the new code reference. Feedback is still needed on implementing explanations in the code reference, and differentiation on the search results pages.

2. Handbooks: @blobaugh posted a summary of the weekly Handbooks chat containing the current status of both Developer Handbooks. Part One of the Theme Developer Handbook is on schedule for completion by June 7. One section of the PluginPlugin A plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party Developer Handbook is complete, and 2 more are near completion. Contact @blobaugh and @sewmyheadon at the email addresses listed in the post if you’re interested in getting involved. The next Docs Sprint is Saturday, June 7, 2014 at 10am PDT in Seattle. Contributors can also participate virtually in the #wordpress-sfd IRC channel.

3. CoreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. string feedback: TracTrac Trac is the place where contributors create issues for bugs or feature requests much like GitHub.https://core.trac.wordpress.org/. ticket #28199 is a request to improve the upgrade translations text, and needs feedback from the Docs team. @siobhan added her feedback to the ticket.

For anyone unable to attend, you can read the chat logs here.

#chat-recap

Handbooks Update May 28 2014 Our weekly chat…

Handbooks Update: May 28, 2014

Our weekly chat in #wordpress-sfd on IRC at 2:00 PM PST happened today with @blobaugh @sewmyheadon @topher1kenobe in attendance.

@blobaugh ran the meeting while @samuelsidler was out.

IRC log available https://irclogs.wordpress.org/chanlog.php?channel=wordpress-sfd&day=2014-05-28&sort=asc#m114132

Theme Handbook
Due to the U.S. holiday this week not much got done
Instead of a scattergun approach an intentional section by section approach is being taken that has helped progress
New contributors have contacted @sewmyheadon (Eric) about helping with the theme HB!
Interested in helping? Email eric@ivycat.com or comment here.

PluginPlugin A plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party Handbook
Due to the U.S. holiday this week not much got done
Following @sewmyheadon sectional approach, @topher1kenobe and @blobaugh have a Google Hangout triage meeting setup for Thursday May 29, 2014 at 7:30 AM PST. If you would like to join watch the #wordpress-sfd room for the link.
New contributors have contacted @blobaugh about the plugin HB
Interested in helping? Email ben@lobaugh.net or comment here.

@sewmyheadon is hosting an in-person/virtual Doc Sprint on June 7, 2014. http://www.meetup.com/SeattleWordPressMeetup/events/175531242/ Everyone is welcome to join. If you want to participate virtually join the #wordpress-sfd IRC channel.

#chat-recap, #handbooks, #plugin, #theme