C FAQ wiki

[Randy Howard]

Richard Heathfield wrote
(in article

Chris Torek, obviously. Duh.

LOL. Home run for Richard.

Oops. So it is. Perhaps we should get our own FAQ for this newsgroup,
instead of relying on someone else's all the time.

Or simply ask Steve is he is interested in the idea, in which
case perhaps he and Chris would decide who edits what.

 

[Randy Howard]

Mark wrote

Especially since the web version and the published version in
book form are not the same. (I have both)

Personally, I think a few of you have too much time on your hands.

Obviously. usenet is filled with such people.

That being said, why not just start compiling your own list of questions
starting today?

I've been doing that for years. It's mainly a very large text
file filled with questions and good answers collected from here
and a lot of other places for a really long time. It would take
more time to edit it than I wish to contemplate. It works well
for me though, since vi can find whatever part of it I am
interested in quite quickly.

Within a few weeks you'll have many of the questions
already answered in the faq (as most newcomers don't read it and ask
the same questions over and over and over...) and a few more for good
measure!

Actually, the newcomers don't read the FAQ in any form at all,
so I wonder what the point really is. The regulars get lots of
exercise pointing to FAQ chapter and verse, but that seems to be
its primary use.

It would probably be much more widely used if it had more
example code in it, rather than being primarily verbiage.

 

[Randy Howard]

Eric Sosman wrote

http://www.plethora.net/~seebs/faqs/c-iaq.html

In the hopes of confusing more newbies?

 

[Keith Thompson]

Actually, the newcomers don't read the FAQ in any form at all,
so I wonder what the point really is. The regulars get lots of
exercise pointing to FAQ chapter and verse, but that seems to be
its primary use.

It's entirely possible that many newcomers *do* read the FAQ, and that
we therefore never hear from them.

 

[pete]

Chris Torek, obviously. Duh.


Oops. So it is. Perhaps we should get our own FAQ for this newsgroup,
instead of relying on someone else's all the time.

I didn't know he was someone else.
I thought he was one of us.

 

[websnarf]

Although Steve Summit's C FAQ is really good, are there any C FAQ wikis?

Well there is this:

http://www.iso-9899.info/wiki/Main_Page

 

[Richard Heathfield]

I didn't know he was someone else.
I thought he was one of us.

Well, he doesn't post very often nowadays (except for the regular FAQ
posting, of course), but yes - Steve is one of us. His FAQ, however, is
his, not ours. He has copyright over it. Seen that way, I don't think it's
unreasonable to describe it as "someone else's", even if that someone is
the admirable Mr Summit.

 

[Mac]

Mark wrote


Especially since the web version and the published version in
book form are not the same. (I have both)


Obviously. usenet is filled with such people.


I've been doing that for years. It's mainly a very large text
file filled with questions and good answers collected from here
and a lot of other places for a really long time. It would take
more time to edit it than I wish to contemplate. It works well
for me though, since vi can find whatever part of it I am
interested in quite quickly.


Actually, the newcomers don't read the FAQ in any form at all,
so I wonder what the point really is. The regulars get lots of
exercise pointing to FAQ chapter and verse, but that seems to be
its primary use.

AFAICS none of us has any way of knowing how many potential posters found
the answer to their question from the clc faq and then didn't bother
posting. Perhaps I am just being naive. ;-)

--Mac

 

[Suman]

The "benevolent dictator" approach works for other projects; Chris seems
to meet the job description well. Alternatively - or in addition - new
members could be invited through vote of existing members. Details would
need to be considered further (e.g. How are the initial members selected?
How do the non-votes of inactive members affect the result? Can the
dictator override the democracy?).


I only thought about the copyright after posting. Perhaps Steve would be
amenable to use of the FAQ material as the initialisation of an official
c.l.c. wiki under terms agreeable to all. If not, the wiki could start
out empty, with additions made based on the currently topical threads.

A wiki is a wiki is a wiki. Don't make it look like
another *big* FAQ.
I would rather suggest:
0. If we really, *really*, like the idea of a wiki, to start off one,
by someone [or a small group], who knows what he is talking about.
And worry less about the copyright stuff right now.

Maybe two different groups -- one to concentrate on the content,
and the other to correct, and then published on the wiki.

1. Keep links to good things like the FAQ, the IAQ, the draft etc

2. Ususal wiki stuff, history, evolution, etc...
and then,

3. Something like *posts that stirred a hornet's nest* which can
be taken from clc starting from the present & working backwards, if and
when time permits. But then, The Posts should be edited, and mandated.
Maybe, even compiled to some other form.

 

[Peter Nilsson]

Well, he doesn't post very often nowadays (except for the regular FAQ
posting, of course), but yes - Steve is one of us. ...

I always knew there was a secret Order in clc. Of course, anyone who's
ever
converted 'The Last Supper' to ascii art already knows that the third
figure
from the left is a dead ringer for Dennis Ritchie...

 

[Richard Bos]

the scare quotes around my chosen handle are not helpful

Perhaps not. But frankly, being the 7843th to use "Anonymous" as a
handle isn't the wisest of choices, either. It does not automatically
mean that what you write will likely not be taken seriously (as, say,
peppering your posts with l33t-sp33k would), but you shouldn't be
surprised if others react to an obviously unhelpful handle in kind.

Richard

 

[Alan Balmer]

Perhaps not. But frankly, being the 7843th to use "Anonymous" as a
handle isn't the wisest of choices, either. It does not automatically
mean that what you write will likely not be taken seriously (as, say,
peppering your posts with l33t-sp33k would), but you shouldn't be
surprised if others react to an obviously unhelpful handle in kind.

Fact is, I have for years filtered messages with "anonymous" in the
address. Many of them are trolls from psychotics using anonymous
remailers, and I don't think I've missed a lot from the others.

So, "Anonymous", I'm not even seeing your posts, unless they're quoted
by someone else.

 

[Denis Kasak]

Actually, the newcomers don't read the FAQ in any form at all,
so I wonder what the point really is. The regulars get lots of
exercise pointing to FAQ chapter and verse, but that seems to be
its primary use.

You really cannot know how many of them actually do read the FAQ. I
think the number would be significant, despite what can be concluded
from looking at the number and quality of newcomer posts. If one is
intelligent enough to read and understand the FAQ, there is most
probably no room for asking stupid questions.

Also, a wiki could probably make the FAQ more popular, making it known
and useful not only to clc visitors, but to anyone who has interest in C.

It would probably be much more widely used if it had more
example code in it, rather than being primarily verbiage.

Not a bad idea. A few well-written examples might provide C beginners a
starting nudge in the direction of Good Code.

-- Denis

 

[Randy Howard]

Keith Thompson wrote

It's entirely possible that many newcomers *do* read the FAQ, and that
we therefore never hear from them.

True, it is possible. I don't find it likely, but it is
possible.

 

[Randy Howard]

Denis Kasak wrote

You really cannot know how many of them actually do read the FAQ. I
think the number would be significant, despite what can be concluded
from looking at the number and quality of newcomer posts. If one is
intelligent enough to read and understand the FAQ, there is most
probably no room for asking stupid questions.

When was the last time you a saw a post saying:

"I just read the CLC FAQ, and am still confused about..."

 

[Denis Kasak]

When was the last time you a saw a post saying:

"I just read the CLC FAQ, and am still confused about..."

You do have a point there, but I was counting on those people that did
read it and had no need to ask further questions about it. My
assumptions were based on personal experience. I was new to the group a
while back and one of the first things I did was read it's FAQ, despite
the fact that I was far from being a C beginner. Maybe I'm too
optimistic to think other people do the same?

-- Denis

 

[CBFalconer]

You do have a point there, but I was counting on those people that
did read it and had no need to ask further questions about it. My
assumptions were based on personal experience. I was new to the
group a while back and one of the first things I did was read it's
FAQ, despite the fact that I was far from being a C beginner.
Maybe I'm too optimistic to think other people do the same?

I have an alias set, so that I just type 'cfaq phrase' and it is
loaded and searched for that phrase. Similarly for the c standard,
with 'cstd phrase'. That's why I insist on using the N869 text
version.

 

[Michael Mair]

Keith Thompson wrote


True, it is possible. I don't find it likely, but it is
possible.

Well, I read (parts of) the FAQ and followed the discussions for a few
months before writing a message for the first time

Cheers
Michael

 

[Richard Heathfield]

I always knew there was a secret Order in clc.

TINC!

 

[CBFalconer]

TINC!

???