www.kraytracing.com

i just have a suggestion that i wanted to share with you.

it seems to me, by looking at the forums and the chapters of the incomplete 1.7 manual, that instead of trying to write down a manual, you people try to put together a complete set of tutorials with examples, screenshots and renders which is quite understanable and perfectly ok with me.

my suggestion is this.
Maybe for this beta phase it would be enough for us to just have a simple text that very briefly describes what each tab, menu, setting, button, number etc. represents or maybe just the general idea behind them or even describing their function in strict and brief coders language and/or logic.

thats only a suggestion.

thank you.

aombk wrote:Maybe for this beta phase it would be enough for us to just have a simple text that very briefly describes what each tab, menu, setting, button, number etc. represents or maybe just the general idea behind them or even describing their function in strict and brief coders language and/or logic.

This is a good idea. I think I'm getting the hang of Kray now but there is definitely still much that eludes me. It would be very useful to have a little 'bare bones' run-down of the major functions of each tab, and their likely effect on rendering time and quality.

Edit:

Actually, Jure's tutorial on 1.7 does a very good job of illustrating what I mean - worked examples with a commentary are always the best. A bit more detail is always welcome though!

Phil

Yes it is the plan to deliver manual with descriptions about each tab...

Manuals and/or tutorial videos!

I don´t know if I shall say this again but it happends to be 2009 and there are supportive formats out there for interactive learning processes where users immediatly can get in touch with a choosen software enough to start creating stuff. With all respect I know that some people still enjoy reading white paper manuals before bedtime but nowadays when internet and different media formats allow us to learn from interactive processes and I guess at least just as many users as the white paper guys would be interested in video format with nice speaker texts!

I think this says more about people with a limited attention span than it does about the Kray manual

What would you like, a Facebook page or a Twitter feed, or maybe a special performance of the manual by the Reduced Shakespeare Company?

I mean really, books aren't going to be obsolete any time soon, and 3d rendering is time-consuming to become competent with. High-end render engines are complicated and some things don't lend themselves to bite-sized chunks. Sometimes it is better to spend time understand the full detail rather than trying to work out individual aspects.

I'm sure you know all this already. Except maybe about the RSC

There aren't many shortcuts. Instead of complaining, just jump in, experiment and learn. I'm sure in a short while you will be able to teach some of the regular users some new things!