Here are some ideas from a triple-noob. That's noob to calibre, forums, and open software projects. So take this post as containing triple-noob suggestions and if any of the ideas aren't useful ignore them or modify them to fit as you like.
In thinking about potentially ideal documentation structure and forum structure (without knowing how forum software works and what's possible), I suggest using what is already structured in calibre's gui as a framework, so that those 3 structures (including calibre software) match at the highest level and are easily cross-linked between the software gui, the documentation, and the forum. As it stands now the calibre gui, specifically the tool bar and its icons, present the new user with a practical way to think about how calibre works and gives the user a general workflow, which is one reason why calibre is gaining popularity and lots of users don't need to go to the documentation or on to the forum with questions. At a high level of abstraction that structure/workflow is:
01. Add Book (a format file)
02. Get & Edit Book Metadata
03. Convert Book Format
04. View Book
05. Send Books to Device
06. Maintain Library of Books
07. Maintain Books in Device
08. Get News into Books
09. Save Books to Disk
10. Maintain Server
11. Remove Books or Formats
12. Get help
13. Configure preferences
The preferences pane also provides a useful conceptual structure.
A. Interface
- Look and Feel
- Behavior
- Add Your Own Columns
- Customize the Toolbar
B. Conversion
- Set Input Options
- Set Common Options
- Set Output Options
C. Import/Export
- Add Books
- Save Books to Disk
- Send Books to Devices
- Refine Device's Book File Structure (Metadata Plugboards)
D. Sharing
- Share by eMail
- Share over Net
E. Advanced
- Configure Plugins (if configurable)
- Set Tweaks
- Do Miscellaneous (debug device detection, open config dir, install cmd line tools)
- Create/Set Template Functions
At that level of abstraction, the calibre gui toolbar icon structure, or the preferences pane structure, or preferably some combo of both, seems ideal for structuring forum stickies and threads, and also for structuring documentation. Ideally this level of abstaction will apply equally to the software, the documentation, and the forum. And all 3 areas can have links between them at each level.
Another level of categorization can be applied within the overall abstract subject areas. I think it would be helpful to present content in skill-level subcategories for each subject:
1) Start Here, for beginners
2) Learn More, for beginning power-users
3) Do Sophisticated Actions, for advanced power-users
4) Develop calibre, for wannabe developers
Each of the skill levels on the forum for each subject area could be further divided into locked sticky how-to's and open discussion threads, in a structure containing something like these paths:
calibreforum/subject/skilllevel/howtostickyname001
[and]
calibreforum/subject/skilllevel//discussion_of_howtostickyname001
My next step, if anyone thinks it might be useful, would be to run a search of all my noob questions since I first joined the forum, and plug them into the overall subject structure discussed above. That provides pointers to areas that need locked How-To stickies, at least for beginning noobs like me, which could be written by anyone who knows how to do that specific action, including me if I know. At other skill levels people at appropriate level could do similar locked How-To stickies. Thread maintenance by mods is a slightly different issue than who writes the How-To content and should be considered separately, imho.
Anyway, that's an attempt at conceptualizing this. I'm willing to help further but feel shy about it since I'm a triple-noob still ascending steepening learning curves.
