Re: Emacs Manual under a categorisation scheme

[Christopher Dimech <dimech@gmx.com>]

> Sent: Wednesday, July 13, 2022 at 4:27 AM
> From: "Eli Zaretskii" <eliz@gnu.org>
> To: "Christopher Dimech" <dimech@gmx.com>
> Cc: emacs-devel@gnu.org
> Subject: Re: Emacs Manual under a categorisation scheme
>
> > From: Christopher Dimech <dimech@gmx.com>
> > Date: Tue, 12 Jul 2022 18:13:55 +0200
> > Sensitivity: Normal
> >
> > With the Emacs Manual having 54 sections, could it be be categorised under a much smaller
> > scheme (perhaps five or eight).  This is to easily and quickly go through it for the
> > information one wants by using a category system.
>
> I don't think I understand what kind of category system do you have in
> mind.  Please elaborate and/or show an example.

One could arrange either by difficulty or frequency.

Basically, using a higher level categorisation to the 54 chapters, with each
high level category being independent of the others.  One can then quickly
skip whole categories one is not interested in, even when using the manual on
the website.

1. Comprehending the Graphical Display
2. Running Commands (by Name, using Minibuffer read and completion)
3. Editing Commands (moving and killing text)
4. Using and Controlling the Graphical Display (buffer, window, frame)
5. Major and Minor Modes
6. Using Help
7. Programming and Markup Modes
8. Compiling, Testing, and Maintaining Programs
9. Running Shell Commands
10. Calendar, Diary, Document Viewing
10. Web Applications (EWW, Mail)
11. Emacs Customisation
12. Handling Problems (crashes, reporting bugs)



> > For instance, the GNU Manuals Online is arranged by a limited number of categories.
> > See https://www.gnu.org/manual/manual.html
>
> This has about 40 categories: not a far cry from our 54 chapters.
>
> To look for some subject, one is supposed to use the Info-index
> command, bound to 'i' inside Info.  There's no need to look up
> subjects by reading the chapter titles.
>