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Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... [message #76882 is a reply to message #76672]

Fri, 08 July 2011 13:07

David Fanning
Messages: 11724
Registered: August 2001

Senior Member

Haje Korth writes:

> The issues I am having is that all the information on the new graphics
> system (NG) I absorb from the forum should be available via the IDL
> documentation in absence of third party books. In the past i went to
> David's book where the help was insufficient. I was desperately
> waiting for him to publish a book on the matter, but I gather from the
> forum he does not believe in it presumably due to lack in flexibility.

Mostly I don't "believe" in them because I don't know
anyone who uses them. I can't really say why this is so.
I don't use them because I don't think they behave
intuitively. I always find myself getting annoyed when
I use them. Life is too hard to work with tools that
annoy you! :-)

Personally, I think they haven't been accepted because
no one has a chance in hell of building a tool on their
own. They are unbelievably complex. I can teach someone,
even someone who knows next to nothing about IDL, how
to build a new Coyote Graphics tool in half an hour.
You get the same functionality, it's much faster than
these function graphics tools, and you can understand
how it works. Why would anyone want to use anything else!?

I've thought about writing a book about them from time
to time. But, writing a book is so hard, and takes so
much out of you, that I don't think I could do it and
handle the inevitable frustration with the lack of
documentation, etc. at the same time. I'd be kicking
the dog all day long! Plus, my wife's tolerance for
sulleness is not all that high these days. :-(

Also, I agree with Mike. There is no shelf life for
a book. In another year and a half, we will have another
"new" system to deal with. The last thing I need is
another 1000 books filling up my garage. :-)

Cheers,

David

--
David Fanning, Ph.D.
Fanning Software Consulting, Inc.
Coyote's Guide to IDL Programming: http://www.dfanning.com/
Sepore ma de ni thue. ("Perhaps thos speakest truth.")

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[Message index]

		Ready to quit after 25 years... By: Haje Korth on Thu, 23 June 2011 14:49
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: Klemen on Wed, 29 June 2011 02:50
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: Haje Korth on Thu, 30 June 2011 13:59
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: Haje Korth on Tue, 12 July 2011 05:16
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: Michael Galloy on Mon, 11 July 2011 14:54
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: penteado on Mon, 11 July 2011 08:45
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: David Fanning on Fri, 08 July 2011 20:22
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: penteado on Fri, 08 July 2011 14:33
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: David Fanning on Fri, 08 July 2011 13:07
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: Michael Galloy on Fri, 08 July 2011 12:33
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: ben.bighair on Wed, 13 July 2011 13:11
		Re: Ready to quit after 25 years... By: chris_torrence@NOSPAM on Wed, 13 July 2011 08:23

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