--- In LTspice@..., Robert Talty wrote:
I agree with AG, because I hate bloated help files that take 10
minutes just to find the correct syntax for a component. The
existing help file is great just the way it is.
Robert, I also am very happy with Help as is. However, I am
exploring how it might be improved because so many users seem
unable to benefit effectively from Help and I want to see LTspice
become as accessible as possible.
It is accurate and complete, so don't mess it up, with a wordy
probably inaccurate hot linked disaster.
Above all, Help must remain a terse, effective reference of LTspice
commands and how to use the unique features of the software package.
That stated, Help fails to document many useful features of LTspice,
contains unnecessarily inaccessible anachronistic language (e.g.
"cards" and "decks" for starters), generally uses netlist notation
and examples while yet the standard input is graphical via the
schematic editor. This is very confusing for those (i.e., novices)
who haven't developed an intuitive ability to correlate the two.
If a tool is required to introduce Spice to new users, then
make it a completely separate tutorial, maybe with schematic /
simulation screen shots.
The LTwiki might serve this purpose, or maybe if Mike or his minions
actively solicited suggestions to improve Help it might be made to
serve both purposes. Several obvious basic improvements come to
mind and might go a long way to making Help everybody's friend:
1. Expunge all the confusing, inconsistent terminology such as
"cards", "decks" and DOS style notations.
2. Provide at least one brief example of usage for each topic in
Help. If these are not graphical, there should be a working hot
link to either a graphical example or to launch an example
schematic.
3. Even though Help defines LTspice specific terminology and syntax,
every time and everywhere such terms are used such they should be
hot linked back to their original definitions.
4. Index terms of the most common guesses made by newbies when
searching Help for commands should be listed at the beginning of
each separate Help topic.
5. Help is not complete. Too many useful, de facto "official"
features actually are stable features of LTspice, yet are still
undocumented. There is no good excuse for this.
Personally, in spite of all of the above, I don't need any of the
list improvements and quite satisfied with Help as is (anything
missing that I feel a need for, I document in the wiki).
Regards -- analogspiceman
