[Info-vax] HP stopping VMS paper documentation ?

[Fritz Wuehler]

Jan-Erik Soderholm <jan-erik.soderholm at telia.com> wrote:

> Fritz Wuehler wrote 2011-11-26 22:07:
> > Jan-Erik Soderholm<jan-erik.soderholm at telia.com>  wrote:
> 
> >> Everyone professionall enough reads the PDFs on a laptop or
> >> similar, not on the target system you are supporting, of course.
> >
> > I disagree with this. I've been writing code for a long time and it was
> > definitely easier and I still prefer having a manual open on the desk for
> > reference.
> 
> You missed the point.
> What I was commenting was reading the manuals on the VMS system itself.
> This part :
> 
>  >> JF Mezei wrote 2011-11-23 18:58:
>  >>> paper is also necessary when you do work at the SRM level or very low
>  >>> level (such as SYSBOOT) where your system has not booted sufficiently
>  >>> for you to access on-line documentation.
> 
> That was just silly. Noone would use the VMS system itself to
> read the docs. Today...

Ok, but then what does professionalism have to do with it? BTW I guess this
means there's no Adobe reader for VMS? Bastards! ;-)

> > Switching back and forth from where you are editing code to a
> > manual in PDF is extremely disruptive, and searching using Acrobat takes
> > longer than finding the information in a manual (even a very large one) if
> > you know the manual from years of using it. Paper manuals are a clear win
> > on this alone. I like having a full set of printed doc around and I prefer
> > real books as well.
> >
> 
> Then you expect to do all your work at some specific physical place.
> Or do you always bring your bookshelf (the "wall") with you?

At one point I did have an office with a full library in a room next
door. On my desk I had an interesting binder system that held a full manual
set (not VMS) and each book could be unclipped and replaced when needed.

> I do have an "office" but I'm not very much there. Mostly I work from home
> or at the customer sites. The PDF's weight *way* less then the binders!
> :-)

I mostly work from my home office and I don't have nearly enough books as I
did when somebody else was paying for the library. But I do have much old
printed doc that will do in a pinch. Point taken if you travel you don't
have many options, a netbook is the way to go. But for your home server room
why not have a full printed library? To each his own preference, but I find
working with online doc very difficult except for the times you need to look
up something very specific like an error code or API call.