Re: st: PDF Stata 8 manuals

[David Airey <david.airey@vanderbilt.edu>]

> Statalisters
>
> In December Bill Gould wrote concerning non-paper Stata documentation 
> as
> given below.  He states "I suggest we postpone this discussion until 
> you
> can see exactly what I'm talking about, and then reopen the discussion
> and the relative merits of PDF versus SMCL, how to charge, etc."
>
> Perhaps now would be a reasonable time to pick up this discussion 
> again.
>
> The online help for graphics is helpful.  I do, however, find it rather
> hard to read.  Is there any way to increase the point size on Stata
> interactive help?  Having a CD with pdf documentation would be very
> convenient.  Providing an inexpensive GradPlan for students who wish to
> buy a CD would increase Stata's attractiveness as a teaching tool.
>
> What are other listers thoughts on this topic?
>
> Bill Dupont
I very much like the graphics introduction, with hyperlinked examples. 
I'd pay to have the full text documentation implemented in similar 
fashion, but as carefully done as the hard copies. I'd also pay to have 
the documentation in full, hyperlinked PDF. In the end, I would 
probably use the viewer help significantly more than the PDF, and I 
doubt I would use the PDF significantly more than the hard copies, even 
though with a PDF view you can make it your full screen (theater view) 
which is the easiest way to read on computer monitors. But I guess it 
would take just as much effort to make a substantially linked PDF 
document as it would a hyperlinked SMCL help system, hence Bill's 
point? A flat PDF is OK, and perhaps a lot more convenient for those 
teaching.

-Dave

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