Date: Thu, 30 May 2013 23:12:44 -0600 (MDT) From: Warren Block <wblock@wonkity.com> To: Freddie Cash <fjwcash@gmail.com> Cc: freebsd-ports <freebsd-ports@freebsd.org> Subject: Re: shells/bash: Options slightly confusing Message-ID: <alpine.BSF.2.00.1305302304350.69685@wonkity.com> In-Reply-To: <CAOjFWZ4ztQsB92%2B8xJ8FZwA_o=WWK-qPHcj4YME46vbVTGh9=A@mail.gmail.com> References: <20130530132742.43455bba@bsd64.grem.de> <51A7413D.9010104@marino.st> <20130530150955.2916170a@bsd64.grem.de> <20130530105753.722eec41@scorpio> <CAOjFWZ4ztQsB92%2B8xJ8FZwA_o=WWK-qPHcj4YME46vbVTGh9=A@mail.gmail.com>
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On Thu, 30 May 2013, Freddie Cash wrote: > On Thu, May 30, 2013 at 7:57 AM, Jerry <jerry@seibercom.net> wrote: > >> I agree whole heartily. Unfortunately, all too many ports have >> options that all cryptic in nature. There really needs to be better >> documentation as to what the options actually do. Perhaps having an >> additional file in each port named "OPTDESC", or whatever that would >> list each available option for the port and exactly what it did would >> prove useful. It certainly would not be a burden as over 90% of the >> ports that have either none or just one or two options. Besides, if >> some maintainer created a port with 40 or 50 configurable options, then >> they certainly can take the time to fully document them. >> >> Isn't long options description support enabled in the ports tree now? Or > was that only available via Warren Block's dialogwrapper? Or maybe via > dialog4ports? > > I remember reading something about this a few months back, where the bottom > of the screen would show long descriptions of what the option would do, or > a separate help screen would be available. Or maybe that was just a > proof-of-concept? dialogwrapper did it. Still does, except the new dialog4ports supplants dialogwrapper. Unfortunately, dialog4ports does not show long option descriptions. I consider long options descriptions that are shown by default to be very important. I think dialog4ports has a way to show a help file on user request, but to me, that is a solution to a different problem.
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