From: Bruce Momjian <maillist@candle.pha.pa.us>
Message-Id: <199910130236.WAA18587@candle.pha.pa.us>
Subject: Re: [DOCS] Re: [HACKERS] Outline for PostgreSQL book
In-Reply-To: <m11bDwZ-0003kLC@orion.SAPserv.Hamburg.dsh.de> from Jan Wieck at
	"Oct 13, 1999 04:15:07 am"
To: Jan Wieck <wieck@debis.com>
Date: Tue, 12 Oct 1999 22:36:54 -0400 (EDT)
CC: z.nijmeyers@cable.a2000.nl, olly@lfix.co.uk, pgsql-hackers@postgreSQL.org,
	docs@postgreSQL.org
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

> Bruce Momjian wrote:
> 
> > > OTOH an entry-level book is probably required to get as big a user-base as
> > > possible.
> >
> > Publishers have already talked to me about multiple books.  I think we
> > need to start with an newbie book, with the chapters clearly arranged so
> > experienced people can skip newbie chapters.
> 
>     I  don't  think it really matters that much if the first book
>     about PostgreSQL is more for a newbie than a professional  or
>     vice  versa.  What  count's  is  that  it  is  up to date and
>     correct. If I go to a book store and find only one book on  a
>     topic,  it's  usually  not  the one "I" was looking for.  But
>     what would make other authors write another book on the  same
>     topic  -  most likely the authors who write details I haven't
>     known before? It's the success of the former one.
> 
>     Think about it a little.
> 
>     The first book has to be  successful.  Therefore  it  has  to
>     address  most of the interested people. Those who know how to
>     get the information they need out of manpages, RFC's and  W3C
>     recommendations  aren't  the ppl who to address in this case.
>     So let it please be a newbie book, and  the  hard  ones  will
>     follow.


That was my thought too.


>     Another  problem  is  that during the last release cycles, it
>     wasn't  that  easy  to  follow  all  the   changes   in   the
>     capabilities  of  PostgreSQL.   Not  even for me, and I'm not
>     counting myself to the outermost circle.  Now what chance  do
>     you  give a book that's written based on v6.5 if we are about
>     to release v7.1 some months ahead? And more important, if  it
>     happens  this  way,  does our "aggressive" development invite
>     other authors to take a chance on the  same  topic?  I  don't
>     think so.
> 
>     If  we  really  want professional publishing about PostgreSQL
>     (we want - no?), the core team has  to  co-operate  with  the
>     authors  of  those  books in a way, that they can write their
>     book based on the upcoming release and  sell  it  with  a  CD
>     where that release is included.  At the time it is published,
>     there should only be bugfixes available  on  the  net  -  not
>     already two newer releases.

I have a list of interested publishers, and am going to post it so
people can get involved and start writing.


-- 
  Bruce Momjian                        |  http://www.op.net/~candle
  maillist@candle.pha.pa.us            |  (610) 853-3000
  +  If your life is a hard drive,     |  830 Blythe Avenue
  +  Christ can be your backup.        |  Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania 19026