Smalltalk tutorial is broken
So say many visitors to https://amber-lang.net/learn.html. The problem is this: visitors are failing to read and comprehend the last instruction on the first page of the tutorial. The one that reads: *Select the text below and click on the 'DoIt' button*. They're not selecting the text. They do not understand what is meant by "select the text below." So they immediately encounter a parse error and conclude that the tutorial is broken. This is a horrible, horrible first impression for Smalltalk. It's not a rare occurrence, either. I've received this complaint numerous times on Quora and Medium. So the question is: How to fix this? How to avoid this PR nightmare?
We have too many Bill Gatesâs and too few Steve Jobsâs. âuglification of the world - itâs a universal trendâ (Unbearable Lightness of Being, 1984). Smalltalk community suffers from too few people in general. For every 10000 âokâ worker you need one genius visionary to turn things upside down. Itâs always going to be a struggle. Feeling like being philosophical this morning...
On May 10, 2019, at 06:31, Richard Kenneth Eng <horrido.hobbies@gmail.com> wrote:
So say many visitors to https://amber-lang.net/learn.html.
The problem is this: visitors are failing to read and comprehend the last instruction on the first page of the tutorial. The one that reads: Select the text below and click on the 'DoIt' button.
They're not selecting the text. They do not understand what is meant by "select the text below."
So they immediately encounter a parse error and conclude that the tutorial is broken. This is a horrible, horrible first impression for Smalltalk.
It's not a rare occurrence, either. I've received this complaint numerous times on Quora and Medium.
So the question is: How to fix this? How to avoid this PR nightmare?
On Fri, May 10, 2019, 15:32 Richard Kenneth Eng <horrido.hobbies@gmail.com> wrote:
So say many visitors to https://amber-lang.net/learn.html.
The problem is this: visitors are failing to read and comprehend the last instruction on the first page of the tutorial. The one that reads: *Select the text below and click on the 'DoIt' button*. ...
How to fix this? How to avoid this PR nightmare?
I can think of at least three easy solutions: Change the button from "DoIt" to "do the selected text" Change the first line to: Profstef next "(you must select this entire line of text.)" But the best one might be: Catch the parse error and if it's a null, remind the user she must first select the text.
On May 10, 2019, at 8:53 AM, Christopher Fuhrman <christopher.fuhrman@gmail.com> wrote:
On Fri, May 10, 2019, 15:32 Richard Kenneth Eng <horrido.hobbies@gmail.com <mailto:horrido.hobbies@gmail.com>> wrote: So say many visitors to https://amber-lang.net/learn.html <https://amber-lang.net/learn.html>.
The problem is this: visitors are failing to read and comprehend the last instruction on the first page of the tutorial. The one that reads: Select the text below and click on the 'DoIt' button. ... How to fix this? How to avoid this PR nightmare? I can think of at least three easy solutions:
Change the button from "DoIt" to "do the selected text"
Change the first line to: Profstef next "(you must select this entire line of text.)"
But the best one might be: Catch the parse error and if it's a null, remind the user she must first select the text.
Some Smalltalk implementations auto-select the entire line if nothing is selected. I like that very much.
Yes, I like that best, too. I wonder how hard it would be to add this to Amber. jgfoster wrote
On May 10, 2019, at 8:53 AM, Christopher Fuhrman <
christopher.fuhrman@
> wrote:
On Fri, May 10, 2019, 15:32 Richard Kenneth Eng <
horrido.hobbies@
<mailto:
horrido.hobbies@
>> wrote:
So say many visitors to https://amber-lang.net/learn.html <https://amber-lang.net/learn.html>;.
The problem is this: visitors are failing to read and comprehend the last instruction on the first page of the tutorial. The one that reads: Select the text below and click on the 'DoIt' button. ... How to fix this? How to avoid this PR nightmare? I can think of at least three easy solutions:
Change the button from "DoIt" to "do the selected text"
Change the first line to: Profstef next "(you must select this entire line of text.)"
But the best one might be: Catch the parse error and if it's a null, remind the user she must first select the text.
Some Smalltalk implementations auto-select the entire line if nothing is selected. I like that very much.
-- Sent from: http://forum.world.st/Pharo-Smalltalk-Users-f1310670.html
A picture is worth a thousand words. What it needs is an animated GIF on loop demonstrating what to do. cheers -ben On Fri, 10 May 2019 at 21:32, Richard Kenneth Eng <horrido.hobbies@gmail.com> wrote:
So say many visitors to https://amber-lang.net/learn.html.
The problem is this: visitors are failing to read and comprehend the last instruction on the first page of the tutorial. The one that reads: Select the text below and click on the 'DoIt' button.
They're not selecting the text. They do not understand what is meant by "select the text below."
So they immediately encounter a parse error and conclude that the tutorial is broken. This is a horrible, horrible first impression for Smalltalk.
It's not a rare occurrence, either. I've received this complaint numerous times on Quora and Medium.
So the question is: How to fix this? How to avoid this PR nightmare?
<http://forum.world.st/file/t128560/ProfStef.gif> Ben Coman wrote
A picture is worth a thousand words. What it needs is an animated GIF on loop demonstrating what to do.
cheers -ben
On Fri, 10 May 2019 at 21:32, Richard Kenneth Eng <
horrido.hobbies@
> wrote:
So say many visitors to https://amber-lang.net/learn.html.
The problem is this: visitors are failing to read and comprehend the last instruction on the first page of the tutorial. The one that reads: Select the text below and click on the 'DoIt' button.
They're not selecting the text. They do not understand what is meant by "select the text below."
So they immediately encounter a parse error and conclude that the tutorial is broken. This is a horrible, horrible first impression for Smalltalk.
It's not a rare occurrence, either. I've received this complaint numerous times on Quora and Medium.
So the question is: How to fix this? How to avoid this PR nightmare?
-- Sent from: http://forum.world.st/Pharo-Smalltalk-Users-f1310670.html
On Sat, 11 May 2019 at 07:33, horrido <horrido.hobbies@gmail.com> wrote:
Looks good. cheers -ben
Ben Coman wrote
A picture is worth a thousand words. What it needs is an animated GIF on loop demonstrating what to do.
cheers -ben
On Fri, 10 May 2019 at 21:32, Richard Kenneth Eng <
horrido.hobbies@
> wrote:
So say many visitors to https://amber-lang.net/learn.html.
The problem is this: visitors are failing to read and comprehend the last instruction on the first page of the tutorial. The one that reads: Select the text below and click on the 'DoIt' button.
They're not selecting the text. They do not understand what is meant by "select the text below."
So they immediately encounter a parse error and conclude that the tutorial is broken. This is a horrible, horrible first impression for Smalltalk.
It's not a rare occurrence, either. I've received this complaint numerous times on Quora and Medium.
So the question is: How to fix this? How to avoid this PR nightmare?
-- Sent from: http://forum.world.st/Pharo-Smalltalk-Users-f1310670.html
I think the animation is much better than the idea of "if nothing is selected, then auto-select the entire line". The auto-select idea teaches bad habits, or it teaches something different from how the UI normally works / is supposed to work. And then you start a schism of Smalltalk UIs: Some that have this behavior and some that don't, which leads to confusion -- and turns people off. The GIF instructs visually, by example, how the UI works rather than compensating for the user's lack of understanding. Much better! -Ted horrido wrote
<http://forum.world.st/file/t128560/ProfStef.gif>;
Ben Coman wrote
A picture is worth a thousand words. What it needs is an animated GIF on loop demonstrating what to do.
cheers -ben
On Fri, 10 May 2019 at 21:32, Richard Kenneth Eng <
horrido.hobbies@
> wrote:
So say many visitors to https://amber-lang.net/learn.html.
The problem is this: visitors are failing to read and comprehend the last instruction on the first page of the tutorial. The one that reads: Select the text below and click on the 'DoIt' button.
They're not selecting the text. They do not understand what is meant by "select the text below."
So they immediately encounter a parse error and conclude that the tutorial is broken. This is a horrible, horrible first impression for Smalltalk.
It's not a rare occurrence, either. I've received this complaint numerous times on Quora and Medium.
So the question is: How to fix this? How to avoid this PR nightmare?
-- Sent from: http://forum.world.st/Pharo-Smalltalk-Users-f1310670.html
-- Sent from: http://forum.world.st/Pharo-Smalltalk-Users-f1310670.html
participants (7)
-
Ben Coman -
Brainstorms -
Christopher Fuhrman -
horrido -
James Foster -
Jerry Kott -
Richard Kenneth Eng