Taking the Plunge
Yesterday a momentous switchover took place: the www.sun.com/blueprints page was redirected to the new Wiki. That may seem like a minor event, but it eliminates a redundant feed and gets everyone reading out of the same book. And, the new book is well worth reading. Although still a work in progress, it now gives us the ability to get content up almost instantly. We have dropped the monthly edition designation and are publishing as quickly as possible.
Another enhancement, which I hope is appreciated, is that the summary page for each article has a more complete description of the contents, including the table of contents for longer articles. It is our hope that this will help the busy reader better assess the potential value of the blueprint. Also included on the summary page are two important additional pieces of information: the author biographies and the acknowledgments. Anyone who has tried to write (or practices it regularly) knows that it is a time-consuming avocation. Busy engineers who take time (often personal) to inscribe their best practices so formally demonstrate a special level of commitment: we should honor them. Likewise, those who assist with advice, review and corrections deserve everyone's thanks.
What about the future? More content, of course. We have a summer intern starting the end of the month and have great plans for her time:
- We will get the rest of the books posted.
- In response to a reasonable request, we will make sure articles are clearly designated with their publication date. This is always a potentially important gauge of relevance; the older a publication, the more likely it is dated.
- We are thinking of adding summary pages for older articles. Right now, we go back through 2004. It is my belief that earlier content is suspect, but it is always difficult to "throw away" technical content that might be of value.
We are also considering new media, such as podcast interviews, to enhance at least some of the blueprints. We are very much interested in your ideas.
