RE: [user-assistance-discuss] Announcing the user-assistance-discuss mailing list

["Paul Prescod" <paul.prescod@xmetal.com>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Norman Walsh [mailto:ndw@nwalsh.com] 
> Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 9:01 AM
> To: user-assistance-discuss@lists.oasis-open.org
> Subject: Re: [user-assistance-discuss] Announcing the 
> user-assistance-discuss mailing list
> 
> ...
> 
> Please tell me you have DocBook (or perhaps a DocBook 
> customization) in mind for the markup part of this project. 

Yes, DocBook was mentioned explicitly in the email. ;)

> DocBook already supports callouts and includes the markup you 
> need for GUI fields.
>
> I'm not sure how you imagine standardizing context 
> sensitivity or interaction with the application. Maybe you 
> could sketch out what you're thinking?

Clarifying the requirements is part of what I'm hoping to accomplish in
the next few weeks and months.

With respect to context sensitivity: we might standardize the mapping
file that maps a particular application's context identifiers (numbers,
strings, whatever) to a particular information set's content identifiers
(typically element IDs).

With respect to interaction with the application. We might standardize a
way that an action callback can be embedded in content to actually do
something. For example, if I ask Windows about help on a VPN, it offers
me the option of opening the Network Connections dialog box. Are these
actions just URLs? Should they have a standardized syntax? Should they
be dispatched through a generic "operating system" URL resolver, or
should the application get first crack? In a trouble-shooter type
context would you want to move on to the next step? Those are some of
the things I'd like to clarify.

 Paul Prescod