Max Documentation assistance/refresh?
Hi,
Just wondering what the current dev plans and processes are with the documentation?
I have recently noticed there seem to be a lot of gaps, things like if I go to the reference for 'counter', a basic object, it mentions that one of the arguments is for direction, but it doesn't actually tell you what the possible values are.
I also personally dont like the lack of kind of functional naming convention for objects but understand maybe this is a stylistic or tradition thing. It's very hard as a programmer if you know what you want to do but don't know the object name. For example "uzi" like yeah I get it.. but how am I going to know that's what I want until I know thats what you called it?
I'd be happy to help with docco if there is any opportunity for community input, I have been on max for a long time although only now trying to seriously learn it.
(i did this work as a paid contract long ago(transferring the old docs from .pdf format to the newer format which helps it integrate ongoing), hit them up at contact (at) cycling74 (dot) com, get your name on their radar at the very least, tell them you'd love to do this work(and whatever else you're interested in), they like to hear from interested/enthusiastic community members, anyways)
a meta search to find objects you don´t know yet by using search terms sounds like a good idea, but it is questionable who and how the database with tags could be built.
otoh, i belileve that if you use the search in the app you can already find most things - sooner or later - by doing exactly that. you only have to inclulde tutorials, examples, and the reference in your search.
i wanted to show you an example now (can you find "uzi" by searching for "counting"?), but atm my max does not let me open the sidebar as it should. ;)
back in the days with 200 or so vanilla objects one should have advised you to try it the other way round: and simply learn about all objects by opening their helpfiles in alphabetical order. this takes one weekend, and then you know all objects.
but today your request is totally justified, and there is actually no good excuse why there is an extra submenu for the 3 type of number boxes (i would be fine with one menu for ALL GUI objects) - but not one for midi objects, math objects or bitwise operators.