Marine Aquarium Settings Panel - HELP
 

After the simulation is "feature complete" (i.e., no further changes are anticipated in top-level program behavior, etc.), I believe that the Settings Panel should be significantly improved.

A. HELP should be available for (at least) Program Settings, Fish Settings, and About. This should be based on the principle that what is obvious to us, and obvious to "experienced" users, may not be at all obvious to the first-time, casual user of MA3. In addition, for Display Settings and Music Playlist, either the text on the panel should be expanded to constitute "HELP", or a HELP should be provided.

B. Program Settings: On the panel, describe clearly what "mode(s)" the setting affects. For example, "Display Window Titlebar" only affects certain modes, as does "Exit on Mouse Move". [HELP can explain in more detail, including instances where there is interaction with "hot keys", etc.]

C. Fish Settings Really complex, and needs an extensive (and perhaps context-sensitive) HELP. And maybe an online tutorial. [Footnote: a link to the "Names of the Corals" would be really cool, too]

D. Music Playlist Just a bit more text -- unless this capability is expanded like the Fish Settings, to allow multiple playlists. In that case, more help will be needed.

E. Website Just fine - unless you want to have a separate button for the "Fan Website and Forum".

F. About First, clarify to the extent possible. For example, which keys are "sticky" (Fn?), which are toggles and which aren't, what modes are affected, etc. etc. Then do HELP for things that can't be explained in 3 or 4 words (e.g., Ctrl-C, etc.). Also, assuming it will eventually be helpful to the users, displaying the "location of custom files for the current user" would be good, perhaps with "click here to open that folder".

G. Logo Playlist (or whatever it will be called). I'm guessing that panel will need HELP.

No good program goes unpunished by paperwork. http://static03.instructables.com/file/FYJ7IBEFJ6MMMBJ/

Added editorial note: I selected "Feature Request" for the tag, but it seems to show up as "Feature".

Yes, some day.

Marine Aquarium Settings Panel - HELP
 

Well, this should slow down bringing the clams to life! - Dale, what part of Jim being preoccupied with forging ahead on the contents of the aquarium, do you not understand?. - Whilst I have long held the opinion that a 'Help' tab should contain more than just a list of Keyboard Shortcuts, (as in MA2.6), and therefore agree in principle with some of the above, - I also see that there is a time and place for suggesting yet more changes/modifications, to areas that Jim has repeatedly told us he is not currently planning to work on, - AT THIS TIME.

If we want to help him progress with what has been a major undertaking for the past few years, I think it is vital that we recognise that this is principally a one man operation. And we should leave him to get on with it in his own way! - There must be many times when our intended 'help', results in nothing of the sort.

Why is it wrong to write things down, so that they can be handled later at the appropriate time?

I tend to forget things, if I don't write them down. I also appreciate (in my work) knowing what may be needed in the future.

I have also experienced, quite frequently from "support", the comment that "you should have mentioned this sooner -- it's entirely too late to change that now".

And I really thought we were asked to test and comment - not test and forget.

Finally, why are comments on the number of crystals, or the movement speed of the fan coral, or the movement type of the hands of the clock, more acceptable than comments about the settings panel? [Otherwise, please talk to those folks, too]

However, I am quite willing to follow the author's wishes.

Jim, should I just forget writing things down until the whole thing is "finished"?

It's OK, Cliff - he's just adding things to the to-do list, without an eye toward any time-frame. I'll enter the HELP menu as item #1,543,211 on the list. (I don't ever actually look at the list - too depressing.)

When the time is appropriate, how will we find them all?
Then YOU write them down, and YOU keep them, - until the time is appropriate.
Then mention it, but when the time and place is appropriate.
Yes we were. But an experienced tester would know when his repeated comments could be seen to be counterproductive.
I have personally commented myself on all those, - at the appropriate time and place.
Good.

can't the extra markup in the forum be used ?
instead of bug or feature having a TODO item too.. i suppose they can be searched too.

Yep.

As far as I was concerned, the topic was finished when Jim said:

So am I allowed to close the topic?

I tend to focus on whatever the current topics are, and almost never go back to re-read any posts. Occaasionally my memory will be triggered by some current problem, and I'll ask if someone remembers posting something similar once upon a time. Also, I usually don't have the time to read long posts. I'm putting in 20-hour days, and a huge block of text just becomes a blur to me.

Maybe some day I'll get organized and become a list-maker, like my daughter. Probably not, though.

Please.

It would perhaps be helpful if the Prefix tag actually showed up as "Feature Request" - or even just "Later" or "ToDo".

Dale - I think it's quite reasonable to list things not to be forgotten in the future, as long as you aren't saying "do them now" then I think it's just being helpful, since you started by saying "after the simulation is feature complete..." I'd put it in that category. (Perhaps you are suffering for some of your early posts causing some friction.) I certainly think programs come across much better to casual users if they have at least a small amount of well thought-out help.

If Jim doesn't have the time to read them then perhaps it's time for single bullet points with follow-up detail if requested?

Add Display Settings panel help.