Re: Roadmap for 0.92

[Lars Clausen <lrclause cs uiuc edu>]

On 31 Jul 2003, Alan Horkan wrote:
>
> On Thu, 31 Jul 2003, Lars Clausen wrote:
>
>> Date: Thu, 31 Jul 2003 01:56:40 -0500
>> From: Lars Clausen <lrclause@cs.uiuc.edu>
>> Reply-To: dia-list@gnome.org
>> To: dia-list@gnome.org
>> Subject: Roadmap for 0.92
>
>
>> It's time to look at getting 0.92 out (actually, more than time).  With
>> autorouting and parenting added, it'll be a worthwhile new version.
>> Here's a list of things that I'd like to see done before we release:
>>
>> Parenting:
>> * Undo support -- very important!
>> * Add menu items for parenting and unparenting single objects.
>
>> * Consider the file format -- old versions of Dia can't see children.
>
> I really should add the Dublin Core metadata to the file format, title,
> author date etc and try and update the DTD.
>
> it should be easy enough if i get off my ass and just do it

Don't make this your first priority.  It'd be nice, but is not essential.
Some of your point below are more important.

> I would very much like to specify the version number in the file format.
> I would like to also have the importer warn users that importing newer
> documents into older versions of Dia will definately cause severe
> dataloss.

There is a file format version, but that has not been used a lot.  It's
mostly been for figuring out backward compatibility.  

>> UI:
>> * Need some indication on the left/right arrow icons that these are for
>> selecting arrowheads.  I've had several bugreports of people who
>> couldn't figure that out:(
>
> dont do anything too complicated, longer term I think something radically
> differnt would be far easier to use (i have a few ideas, not practical in
> the 0.92 timeframe though).

I was thinking of having a vague outline of an arrow for the non-arrow case.

> There is a bug report filed suggesting that we should not have a Dialogs
> menu, but I was stopped in my tracks by not having somewhere to put the
> python console.  (sorry, i would normally provide a bug number but I am
> short for time).  I still think that Layers would be much better as the
> last item of the View menu and that Properties should be the first item
> of the Object menu.  (dont get me started on what a bad usability example
> the GIMP is...)

There is something to be said for redundancy.  Many programs now have the
same function in menus and toolbars, for instance.  The Dialogs menu is
good for when you remember there was this dialog about Layers, but can't
remember if it was put under Edit or View or Objects or what.

>> Other:
>> * Apply remaining patches.
>
> I think I can probably hackt together a working patch that would give a
> menu item Edit-Duplicate, I know it would improve my efficiency in Dia.
> Agian i just need to get off my ass and do it.

That'd be nice.

>> * Get Win32 runtimes in order.
>
> I would like to see the next version of Dia for windows built against a
> shared GTK 2 if Hans and Steffen dont mind.  I would be surprised if
> users of Dia on windows dont have any other GTK applications (the GIMP at
> least).  For convenience though the Dia installer would probably still
> need to bundle the GTK installer in case a user didn't already have it
> and only install as necesary.
>
> Being able to use GTK-WIMP with Dia would be even better.

Can't say too much about this.  Having a working Win32 Dia is more
important than using shared libs for it.

>> * More use of object menus, in particular for sheet-specific things.
>
> not sure i like the sound of that, but I am not entirely sure what you
> mean.

What I'm thinking of is to have the objects in a sheet work better with
each other.  It doesn't matter if UML doesn't know of SADT objects, but
there could be much labor-saving done by them knowing the most common
procedures.  For instance, I imagine putting inheritance between two
classes is very common -- why not have 'Inherit From' in the Class object
menu that'll let you just select the parent and the line is set up?  That
kind of thing -- making each sheet simpler to work with in its own way.

> I think it would be really helpful if we had an "Add to Sheet" option, to
> add an object (the current selection) to the current sheet.
>
> At the moment users (that is to say me, myself and I) have to copy the
> selection to a blank document and save as .shape and then open the sheets
> and objects dialog, switch to the sheet you want and add the shape.

True, that'd be good.

>> * Conversion of remaining non-stdprops objects.
>
> * Add more shapes
>
> We currently have some very fine shapes and it would be a terrible shame
> to ship another Dia release without them.  Top of my list are the
> Cybernetic Circuits shapes.  I figure writing the makefile should be easy
> enough - I just need to do it - but I dont relish the prospect of adding
> in a zillion _ underscores _ so that various bits and pieces can be
> localised.  As a selfish English speaker I would be very tempted not to
> be bad and bother allowing localisation of those shapes until later.  A
> script of some kind to help automate the process of adding in the
> underscores would be very very helpful.

If it's just a question of turning <name> into <_name> etc, then I can send
you a perl script to do that.

> Aside from adding more shapes there are not any issues of mine that
> should hold back the release.  Most of my suggestions are niceties that
> could wait but with a reasonablely clear targets and deadlines I will do
> my best to put other distractions aside and get some of the stuff I want
> done, done in time.

Why do you take a crack at Duplicate first, then start going through
accumulated shapes?

-Lars

-- 
Lars Clausen (http://shasta.cs.uiuc.edu/~lrclause)| HĂ„rdgrim of Numenor
"I do not agree with a word that you say, but I   |----------------------------
will defend to the death your right to say it."   | Where are we going, and
    --Evelyn Beatrice Hall paraphrasing Voltaire  | what's with the handbasket?