Documentation maintenance tasks
This is a list of tasks we need to do on a regular basis to maintain the documentation on Drupal.org.
Rolling comments into the handbook
People often add comments to handbook pages with corrections or extra information about the topic.
To improve the readability of the page, take the information from the comments and incorporate them into the body of the page, editing them as appropriate. You should then file an issue requesting that the comments be deleted. Be sure your issue request includes a link to the node/page you are changing
Section review
Pick a section of the handbook and read it from beginning to end. Look out for problems such as places where information is unclear, where more detail or screenshots are needed, where the order of sections could be improved. Make the changes that you feel able to tackle yourself, and file an issue listing those that you don't.
Section Terminology
While reading through the Handbook documentation, forum posts, comments, etc. you may find Drupal Jargon or "common English expressions & acronyms" that may not be familiar to non-native English speakers. Please take note and if it's not present in the "Terminology" and/or "Glossary" pages, make a comment on that page. Better still, add those terms, acronyms, and expressions yourself.
Issue queue cleanup
Go to the documentation issue queue and browse through the issues. Some may not be applicable or are obsolete (close them), or filed in the wrong component (move them). Others may be simple tasks such as corrections that you can tackle right away.
If an issue is assigned to someone, they have taken responsibility for seeing it through, but feedback and help will always be appreciated.
Adding screenshots
Screenshots, used in moderation, can help make documentation clearer and easier to follow. If you are not a member of the documentation team and you are using a handbook page that you feel would be improved by a screenshot, file an issue in the documentation queue. If you are a member of the documentation team, you have the permissions to add screenshots to handbook pages without needing to file an issue. Please note that the input format needs to be switched from Filtered HTML to Documentation.
For more information, read the screenshot guidelines.
Repeated Forum Topics
Frequently repeated forum posts are a good indication the topic needs a documentation page. After you create the page, add links from the forum entries to the new page.
Review pages by status
You can review handbook pages by status to see a list that needs attention. Here are direct links to the various status lists that need work done:
Incomplete
Insecure code
Needs updating
Deprecated
Other tasks that always need attention
(to be incorporated)
- There are patches for Drupal core that just need to have a text review to make sure they are readable.
- Forum discussions which indicate an update is needed and topics which should be incorporated into documentation. Add a reply in the forum pointing the updated or new documentation handbook page.
- Handbook updates is a list of recent changes to the handbook. Scanning this list often will help you keep tabs on what's new, and also help remove any spam.