maker2
Posts: 142
Joined: Sun Jul 19, 2015 9:05 am

a WIKI so that users can slowly create a complete manual

On reflection Simply is not the only piece of (complex) software to not create a manual. But it sure would be useful to have one. Easier than browsing the forums and trial and error to discover and answer basic questions. My requests are:

a) wiki pages on the site so that forum users can collate analyses, procedures and best practices by heading;

b) more extensive mouse-over tips and explanations in the software itself (some of these are obvious e.g. "nozzle diameter" but others need far more explanation e.g. "extrusion width" (auto, manual, relationship to toolpath, consequences upon print...) to be any use at all)

c) in the end help "?" question marks in the mouseover texts could link to the wiki;

Thanks.

Love this tool.
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dkightley
Posts: 2405
Joined: Tue Mar 10, 2015 4:09 pm

Re: a WIKI so that users can slowly create a complete manual

+1 on this.

The forum is a useful place to get advise....but there's an awful lot of information on pages 2 onwards that is unlikely to get looked at again.
Doug Kightley
Volunteer at the National Tramway Museum http://www.tramway.co.uk
Railway modeller and webmaster at http://www.talkingtgauge.net
Tetraodon
Posts: 59
Joined: Fri Jun 05, 2015 9:13 pm

Re: a WIKI so that users can slowly create a complete manual

+1

Some programs have videos/short GIFs if you hover over the object long enough - this would be really handy for those unfamiliar with the jargon :)
Narg
Posts: 21
Joined: Wed Apr 22, 2015 5:50 pm

Re: a WIKI so that users can slowly create a complete manual

+1 :)

The "Jargon" comment above is where I think S3D needs some work. Use more direct information in the program rather than the technical explanation. Truly simplify things rather than just throwing more commands at the process.
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dkightley
Posts: 2405
Joined: Tue Mar 10, 2015 4:09 pm

Re: a WIKI so that users can slowly create a complete manual

I'm very surprised that few others have picked up on this thread.....or should I say that probably the reason few having picked up on this thread is the very same reason for the request being raised in the first place!!!!!!

As I have already commented, this forum is an absolute mine of factual information that not only should be in a manual, but an enormous amount of advice, hints and tips that are essential to anyone starting up using Simplify3D. The only problem being that with the format and organisation of a forum, actually finding that very useful piece of information is very tedious and difficult. In fact, I've previously said that once a thread goes onto page two, then it might as well be deleted....as almost nobody looks that far!!!! Some will say "Do a search." , but the forum search facility is very, very basic, and its impossible to find specific threads easily.

Enter the concept of a WIKI. Years ago when WIKIs started to appear, I was of the opinion they were not that useful. But my opinion has changed...and I believe that what this forum....and Simplify3D....really needs is a WIKI set up so that all of the useful facts and information can be steadily and slowly transferred into a much more useable reference database.

To put together a WIKI, not only does there need to be a desire by Simplify3D to provide the framework , etc for the WIKI to exist, there needs to be a small core team of Simplify3D staff and users to design the starting menu structure and then to start transferring a starter amount of data over before letting the WIKI loose on the user base.

I would welcome the thoughts of others....and even those of Simplify3D staff & management, should someone be reading this section of the forum.......
Doug Kightley
Volunteer at the National Tramway Museum http://www.tramway.co.uk
Railway modeller and webmaster at http://www.talkingtgauge.net
Mechanician1946
Posts: 6
Joined: Sat Jun 13, 2020 9:44 am

Re: a WIKI so that users can slowly create a complete manual

I'm surprised that the folks at Simplify3D haven't produced a user guide. A downloadable PDF file would be far more useful than spurious links to YouTube and Wikis. There's nothing more off-putting than having to switch between an online presentation and translating its content back to the program in hand. A PDF can be printed out and referred to at your own convenience.

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