## The GNOME Handbook of Writing Software Documentation

### David Mason

Red Hat, Inc.
`<dcm@redhat.com>`

### Daniel Mueth

`<d-mueth@uchicago.edu>`

### Alexander Kirillov

`<kirillov@math.sunysb.edu>`

This is a pre-release!

Copyright © 2000 Red Hat, Inc., Daniel Mueth, and Alexander Kirillov

Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. You may obtain a copy of the GNU Free Documentation License from the Free Software Foundation by visiting their Web site or by writing to: Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.

Many of the names used by companies to distinguish their products and services are claimed as trademarks. Where those names appear in any GNOME documentation, and those trademarks are made aware to the members of the GNOME Documentation Project, the names have been printed in caps or initial caps.

Revision History
Revision 0.99 | 04.10.2000

## Introduction

### The GNOME Documentation Project

#### Goals

The GNOME Documentation Project (GDP) aims to provide GNOME and GNOME applications with a complete, intuitive, and clear documentation system. At the center of the GDP is the GNOME Help Browser, which presents a unified interface to GNOME-specific documentation as well as other Linux documentation such as man pages and texinfo documents. The GNOME Help System provides a comprehensive view of documentation on a machine by dynamically assembling the documentation of GNOME applications and components which are installed. The GDP is responsible for writing numerous GNOME-related documents, both for developers and for users. Developer documentation includes APIs for the GNOME libraries, GNOME White Papers, GNOME developer tutorials, the GNOME Developer FAQ, the GNOME Developer's Website, and GNOME Handbook's, such as the one you are reading. User documentation include the GNOME User's Guide, the GNOME FAQ, and GNOME application documentation. Most GNOME applications have their own manual in addition to context sensitive help.

#### Joining the GDP

Documenting GNOME and all the numerous GNOME applications is a very large project. The GDP is always looking for people to help write, update, and edit documentation. If you are interested in joining the GDP team, you should join the gnome-doc-list mailing list . Read the section called “Getting Started Writing GNOME Documentation”, for help selecting a project to work on. Feel free to introduce yourself on the gnome-doc-list mailing list and indicate which project you intend to work on, or else ask for suggestions of important documents which need work done. You may also want to join the #docs IRC channel on irc.gnome.org to meet other GDP members and discuss any questions you may have. For a list of GDP projects and members, see the GDP Website.

#### Collaborating with the GDP

GNOME developers, packagers, and translators may not be writing GNOME documentation but will want to understand how the GNOME documentation system works and will need to collaborate with GDP members. This document should help to outline the structure of how the GNOME documentation system works. Developers who do not write the documentation for their applications are encouraged to find a GDP member to write the documentation. This is best done by sending an email to the gnome-doc-list mailing list describing the application, where it can be downloaded from, and that the developer(s) would like a GDP member to write documentation for the application. The #docs IRC channel on irc.gnome.org is another option for contacting GDP members.

### Notation and Conventions

This Handbook uses the following notation:

`/usr/bin` | Directory
`foo.sgml` | Filename
command | Command or text that would be typed.
`replaceable` | "Variable" text that can be replaced.
`Program or Doc Code` | Program or document code

### About This Handbook

This Handbook is a guide for both writing documentation for GNOME components and applications and for properly binding and packaging documentation into GNOME applications.

This Handbook, like all GNOME documentation, was written in DocBook(SGML) and is available in several formats including SGML, HTML, PostScript, and PDF. For the latest version, see Getting The GNOME Handbook of Writing Software Documentation . Alternately, one may download it anonymously from GNOME CVS under `gnome-docu/gdp`.

## Getting Started Writing GNOME Documentation

### Selecting A Document

#### Document Something You Know

The most frequently asked question of new contributors who join the GDP is "which document should I start with?". Because most people involved are volunteers, we do not assign projects and applications to write documents for. The first step is all yours - you must decide what about GNOME interests you most and find out if it has complete documents or not.

It is also important to spend some time with GNOME to make sure you are familiar enough with it to be authoritative in your writing. The best way to do this is to just sit down and play with GNOME as much as possible before starting to write.

The easiest way to get started is to improve existing documentation. If you notice some inaccuracies or omissions in the documentation, or you think that you can explain the material more clearly, just send your suggestions to the author of the original documentation or to the GNOME documentation project at `<docs@gnome.org>`.

#### The GNOME Documentation Status Table

The GDP Documentation Status Table (DocTable) (http://www.gnome.org/gdp/doctable/) is a web page which tracks the status of all the various documentation components of GNOME. These components include application documentation, internal GNOME component documentation, user documentation, and developer documentation. For each documentation item, it tracks the current status of the documentation, who is working on the particular document, where the documentation can be found, and provides a forum for the discussion of each item.

You should use the DocTable to help you select a documentation item which needs work done. Once you have selected an item to work on, please register yourself as an author so that other authors do not duplicate your work and may contact you to help or offer suggestions. Also be sure to keep the status icons up-to-date so that the GDP team can easily identify which items need additional help. The DocTable also allows people to make announcements and suggestions and to discuss issues in the comments section.

### Note

Note that the information in the DocTable may not always be up-to-date or accurate. When you assign yourself to documenting an application, make sure you find out the latest status of documentation by contacting the application author.

### Installing and Using DocBook

All documentation for the GNOME project is written in SGML using the DocBook DTD. There are many advantages to using this for documentation, not least of which is the single source nature of SGML. To contribute to the GDP you should learn to use DocBook.

### NOTE

To get started writing for the GDP you do not need to rush out and learn DocBook - if you feel it is too much to handle for now, you can submit plain ASCII text to the gnome-doc-list mailing list and a volunteer will mark it up for you. Seeing your document marked up will also be a great way for you to start learning DocBook.

#### Installing DocBook

Download and install the following DocBook Tools packages: jade, docbook, jadetex, sgml-common, and stylesheets. (RPM users should note that jade is platform dependent (eg. i386), while the other packages are in the `noarch` directory.) You can find more information on DocBook Tools here.

If you are an Emacs user you may want to grab the psgml package as well. This is a major mode for editing sgml files in Emacs.

#### GDP Stylesheets

The GDP uses its own DocBook stylesheets. To use the GDP stylesheets, you should download the file `gdp-both.dsl` from the `gnome-docu/gdp/dsssl` module in CVS (or from GDP Custom DSSSL Stylesheet)and copy it over the file `/usr/lib/sgml/stylesheets/cygnus-both.dsl`. Alternately, you can download and install the gnome-doc-tools package which will set up the stylesheets as well as the DTD discussed below.

#### GDP DTD (PNG Image Support)

Due to some license issues involved with the creation of gifs, the GNOME Documentation Project has decided to use the PNG image format for all images in GNOME documentation. You can read more about the issues involved with gifs at http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/gif.html.

The current DocBook DTD(3.1) does not include support for embedding PNG images in your documents. Since the GDP uses many screenshots in its documentation, we use our own variation on the DocBook DTD which has PNG image support. We encourage everybody to use this DTD instead of the default DocBook DTD since your source document header and your output document appearance subtly vary between the two DTD's. To install the GDP custom DTD with PNG image support by hand:

- Download the GDP DocBook DTD for PNG support and install it where you keep your DTD's. (On Red Hat use `/usr/lib/sgml/`.) Note that the 3.0 DTD is missing support for the `<legalnotice>` tag, so it is recommended that you use version 3.1

- Add the new DTD to your SGML CATALOG file. The location of your SGML CATALOG file may vary depending upon your distribution. (On Red Hat it is usually in /usr/lib/sgml/CATALOG.) Add the following line to this file:

      PUBLIC "-//GNOME//DTD DocBook PNG Variant V1.0//EN" "png-support-3.0.dtd"

  If you are using the 3.1 DTD, use:

      PUBLIC "-//GNOME//DTD DocBook PNG Variant V1.1//EN" "png-support-3.1.dtd"

Alternately, you can download and install the gnome-doc-tools package which will set up the custom stylesheets and DTD for you.

To include PNG files in your documents, you will need to indicate that you are using this special DTD. To do this, use the following headers:

Articles:

    <!DOCTYPE Article PUBLIC "-//GNOME//DTD DocBook PNG Variant
    V1.1//EN"[]>

Books:

    <!DOCTYPE Book PUBLIC "-//GNOME//DTD DocBook PNG Variant
    V1.1//EN"[]>

#### Editors

There are many editors on Linux and UNIX systems available to you. Which editor you use to work on the sgml documents is completely up to you, as long as the editor is able to preserve sgml and produce the source in a format that is readable by everyone.

Probably the two most popular editors available are Emacs and vi. These and other editors are used regularly by members of the GDP. Emacs has a major mode, psgml, for editing sgml files which can save you time and effort in adding and closing tags. You will find the psgml package in DocBook Tools, which is the standard set of tools for the GDP. You may find out more about DocBook Tools in the section called “Installing DocBook”.

#### Creating Something Useful with your Docs

The tools available in DocBook Tools allow you to convert your sgml document to many different formats including html and Postscript. The primary tool used to do the conversion is an application called Jade. In most cases you will not have to work directly with Jade; Instead, you will use the scripts provided by DocBook Tools.

To preview your DocBook document, it is easiest to convert it to `html`. If you have installed the DocBook tools described above, all you have to do is to run the command `$`db2html mydocument.sgml. If there are no sgml syntax errors, this will create a directory `mydocument` and place the resulting html files in it. The title page of the document will typically be `mydocument/index.html`. If you have screenshots in your document, you will have to copy these files into the `mydocument` directory by hand. You can use any web browser to view your document. Note that every time you run db2html, it creates the `mydocument` directory over, so you will have to copy the screenshots over each time.

You can also convert your document to PostScript by running the command `$`db2ps mydocument.sgml, after which you can print out or view the resulting .ps file.

### NOTE

The html files you get will not look quite the same as the documentation distributed with GNOME unless you have the custom stylesheets installed on your machine. DocBook Tools' default stylesheets will produce a different look to your docs. You can read more about the GDP stylesheets in the section called “GDP Stylesheets”.

#### Images in DocBook Tools

If your document uses images you will need to take note of a few things that should take place in order for you to make use of those images in your output.

The DocBook Tools scripts and applications are smart enough to know that when you are creating html you will be using PNG files and when you are creating Postscript you will be using EPS files (you must use EPS with Postscript).

Thus, you should never explicitly include the extension of the image file, since DocBook Tools will automatically insert it for you. For example:

    <figure>
     <title>My Image</title>
     <screenshot>
      <screeninfo>Sample GNOME Display</screeninfo>
      <graphic  format="png" fileref="myfile" srccredit="me">
      </graphic>
     </screenshot>
    </figure>

You will notice in this example that the file `myfile.png` was referred to as simply `myfile`. Now when you run db2html to create an html file, it will automatically look for `myfile.png` in the directory.

If you want to create PostScript output, you will need to create an EPS version of your image file to be displayed in the PostScript file. There is a simple script available which allows you to change a PNG image into an EPS file easily. You can download this file - img2eps - from http://people.redhat.com/dcm/sgml.html (look for the img2eps section). Note that this script is included in the gnome-doc-tools package, so if you are using this package, you should already have img2eps on you system.

#### Learning DocBook

There are many resources available to help you learn DocBook. The following resources on the web are useful for learning DocBook:

- http://www.docbook.org - Norman Walsh's DocBook: The Definitive Guide. Online O'Reilly book on using DocBook. Contains an excellent element reference. May be too formal for a beginner.

- A Practical Introduction to DocBook - The Open Source Writers Group's introduction to using DocBook. This is an excellent HOW-TO type article on getting started.

- Getting Going with DocBook: Notes for Hackers - Mark Galassi's introduction to DocBook for hackers. This has to be one of the first introductions to DocBook ever - still as good as it ever was.

- FreeBSD Documentation Project Primer for New Contributors - FreeBSD documentation project primer. Chapter 4.2 provides a very good introduction to writing documentation using DocBook. Note that it also describes some custom extensions of DocBook; fortunately, they are clearly marked as such.

Norman Walsh's book is also available in print.

The following sections of this document are designed to help documentation authors write correct and consistent DocBook:

- the section called “DocBook Basics ” - Descriptions of commonly used DocBook tags.

You may also discuss specific DocBook questions with GDP members on the #docs IRC channel at irc.gnome.org and on the gnome-doc-list mailing list.

### GDP Document Templates

Templates for various types of GNOME documents are found in Appendix A. Document Templates. They are kept in CVS in gnome-docu/gdp/templates. The easiest source to get them from is probably the GDP Document Templates web page, which is typically kept completely up-to-date with CVS and has a basic description of each file from CVS.

### Screenshots

Most GNOME documents will have screenshots of the particular applet, application, GNOME component, or widget being discussed. As discussed above in the section called “GDP DTD (PNG Image Support)” you will need to install the special GDP DocBook DTD which supports PNG images, the format used for all images in GNOME documentation. For the basic DocBook structure used to insert images in a document, see the section called “Images in DocBook Tools” above.

#### Screenshot Appearance

For all screenshots of windows that typically have border decorations (e.g. applications and dialogs, but not applets in a panel), GDP standards dictate the appearance of the window. (This is to minimize possible confusion to the reader, improve the appearance of GNOME documents, and guarantee the screenshot is readable when printed.) All screenshots should be taken with the SawFish (formerly known as Sawmill) window manager using the MicroGui theme and Helvetica 12pt font. (A different window manager can be used provided the MicroGui theme is available for this window manager and the appearance is identical to that when using the SawFish window manager.) The default GTK+ theme(gtk) and font (Helvetica 12 pt) should be used for all screenshots. If you are unable to provide screenshots in this form, you should create screenshots as you wish them to appear and send them to the gnome-doc-list mailing list requesting a GDP member reproduce these screenshots in the correct format and email them to you.

#### Screenshot Tools

There are many tools for taking screenshots in GNOME/Linux. Perhaps the most convenient is the Screen-Shooter Applet. Just click on the window icon in the applet and then on the window you would like to take a screenshot of. (Note that at the time of this writing, PNG images taken by screenshooter do not appear properly in Netscape or the GNOME Help Browser. You should save your screenshot as a GIF and then use convert filename.gif filename.png.) For applets in a Panel, xv can be used to crop the screenshot to only include the relevant portion of the Panel. Note that xv and gimp can both be used for taking screenshots, cropping screenshots, and converting image formats.

#### Screenshot Files

Screenshots should be kept in the main documentation directory with your SGML file for applets, or should be kept in a directory called "figs" for application and other documentation. After you use db2html to convert your SGML file to HTML (see the section called “Creating Something Useful with your Docs”), you will need to copy your screenshots (either the individual PNG files for applet documentation, or the whole "figs" directory for other documentation) into the newly created HTML directory. Note that every time you use db2html the HTML directory is erased and rewritten, so do not store your only copy of the screenshots in that directory. If you wish to create PostScript or PDF output, you will need to manually convert the PNG images to EPS as described in the section called “Images in DocBook Tools”, but will not need to copy these images from their default location, as they are included directly into the output(PostScript of PDF) file.

### Application Bugs

Documentation authors tend to investigate and test applets and applications more thoroughly than most users. Often documentation authors will discover one or more bugs in the software. These bugs vary from small ones, such as mis-spelled words or missing About dialogs in the menu, to large ones which cause the applet to crash. As all users, you should be sure to report these bugs so that application developers know of them and can fix them. The easiest way to submit a bug report is by using the Bug Buddy applet which is part of the gnome-applets package.

### Using CVS

CVS (Concurrent Versions System) is a tool that allows multiple developers to concurrently work on a set of documents, keeping track of the modifications made by each person. The files are stored on a server and each developer checks files out, modifies them, and then checks in their modified version of the files. Many GNOME programs and documents are stored in CVS. The GNOME CVS server allows users to anonymously check out CVS files. Most GDP members will need to use anonymous CVS to download the most up-to-date version of documentation or programs. Modified documents will typically be emailed to the the application developer. Core GDP members may also be granted login CVS privileges so they may commit modified files directly to CVS.

#### Anonymous CVS

To anonymously check out documents from CVS, you must first log in. From the bash shell, you should set your CVSROOT shell variable with export CVSROOT=':pserver:anonymous@anoncvs.gnome.org:/cvs/gnome' and then login with cvs login(there is no password, just hit return). As an example, we will use the "gnome-docu/gdp" module which contains this and several other documents. To check these documents out for the first time, type cvs -z3 checkout gnome-docu/gdp. After you have this document checked out and you would like to download any updates on the CVS server, use cvs -z3 update -Pd.

#### Login CVS

If you have been given a login for the GNOME CVS server, you may commit your file modifications to CVS. Be sure to read the following section on CVS etiquette before making any commits to CVS. To log in to the CVS server as user `username` with a password, you must first set your CVSROOT shell variable with export CVSROOT=':pserver:`username`@cvs.gnome.org:/cvs/gnome'. Log in with cvs login and enter your password. You may check out and update modules as described above for anonymous CVS access. As a login CVS user, you may also check modified versions of a file into the CVS server. To check `filename` into the CVS server, type cvs -z3 commit `filename`. You will be given a vi editor window to type in a brief log entry, summarizing your changes. The default editor can be changed using the `EDITOR` environment variable or with the `-e` option. You may also check in any modifications to files in the working directory and subdirectories using cvs -z3 commit. To add a new file to the CVS server, use cvs -z3 add `filename`, followed by the commit command.

#### CVS Etiquette

Because files in CVS are typically used and modified by multiple developers and documentation authors, users should exercise a few simple practices out of courtesy towards the other CVS users and the project leader. First, you should not make CVS commits to a package without first discussing your plans with the project leader. This way, the project leader knows who is modifying the files and generally, what sort of changes/development is being done. Also, whenever a CVS user commits a file to CVS, they should make an entry in the CVS log and in the `ChangeLog` so that other users know who is making modifications and what is being modified. When modifying files created by others, you should follow the indentation scheme used by the initial author.

## The GNOME Documentation System

### The GNOME Help Browser

At the core of the GNOME help system is the GNOME Help Browser. The Help Browser provides a unified interface to several distinct documentation systems on Linux/Unix systems: man pages, texinfo pages, Linux Documentation Project(LDP) documents, GNOME application documentation, and other GNOME documents.

The GNOME Help Browser works by searching standard directories for documents which are to be presented. Thus, the documentation that appears in the GHB is specific to each computer and will typically only represent software that is installed on the computer.

### The GNOME Help Browser (GNOME-2.0)

In GNOME 2.0, the GNOME Help Browser will be replaced by Nautilus. Nautilus will be the file manager/graphical shell for GNOME 2.0 and will also implement a more sophisticated help system than that used by the GNOME Help Browser used in GNOME 1.0. It will read and display DocBook files directly, avoiding the need for duplicating documents in both DocBook and HTML formats. Its display engine for DocBook will be much faster than running jade to convert to HTML for rendering. Because it uses the original DocBook source for documentation, it will be possible to do more sophisticated searching using the meta information included in the documents. And since Nautilus is a virtual file system layer which is Internet-capable, it will be able to find and display documents which are on the web as well as those on the local file system. For more information on Nautilus, visit the #nautilus IRC channel on irc.gnome.org.

### Dynamic Document Synthesis(GNOME-2.0)

GNOME uses the documentation presented by all the various GNOME components and applications installed on the system to present a complete and customized documentation environment describing only components which are currently installed on a users system. Some of this documentation, such as the manuals for applets, will be combined in such a way that it appears to be a single document.

By using such a system, you can be sure that any GNOME app you install that has documentation will show up in the index, table of contents, any search you do in the help browser.

### The GNOME Documentation Components

#### Application Manuals

Every GNOME application should have an application manual. An application manual is a document specific to the particular application which explains the various windows and features of the application. Application Manuals typically use screenshots (PNG format) for clarity. Writing application manuals is discussed in more detail in the section called “Writing Application and Applet Manuals” below.

#### Application Help

Applications should have a Help button on screens on which users may need help. These Help buttons should pull up the default help browser, determined by the `ghelp` URL Handler (configured using the Control Center), typically the GNOME Help Browser. The help browser should show either the first page of the application manual, or else the relevant page thereof. Application help is described in more detail in the section called “Application Help Buttons” below.

#### Application Context Sensitive Help (coming in GNOME-2.0)

Context sensitive help is a system which will allow the user to query any part (button, widget, etc.) of an application window. This is done by either entering a CS Help mode by clicking on an icon or by right clicking on the application part and selecting "What's This" or whatever is decided on at the time. Context sensitive help is described in more detail in the section called “Writing Context Sensitive Help (coming in GNOME-2.0)” below.

#### The GNOME User Guide

The GNOME User Guide describes the GNOME desktop environment and core components of GNOME such as the panel and control center. In GNOME 1.x this was the main and only source of documentation. In GNOME 2.0 this will become a document for the web and for printing that is derived from various parts chosen in the system that are necessary for the new user to understand.

#### User Documents

Aside from the GNOME User Guide, there are several other documents to help GNOME users learn GNOME, including the GNOME FAQ, GNOME Installation and Configuration Guide, and the GNOME Administrators Guide.

#### Developer Documents

There are many White Papers, Tutorials, HOWTO's and FAQ's to make programming GNOME and GNOME applications as easy as possible.

API documentation is also available for the GNOME libraries. This is detailed documentation of the code that is used to build GNOME apps. You can keep up with the GNOME API docs on the GNOME API Reference page.

#### Project Documents

Some GNOME projects have documentation to maintain consistency in their product and to help new contributors get up to speed quickly. Among these are the GDP documents, such as the one you are reading now.

## DocBook Basics

### Introduction to DocBook

To understand DocBook, a basic understanding of SGML is helpful. SGML stands for Standard General Markup Language and is one of the first markup languages every created. HTML is actually derived from SGML and XML is a subset of SGML. SGML uses what is called a Document Type Definition to specify elements which are contained between brackets, < and >. Text is marked by both beginning and ending elements, for example in the DocBook DTD, one denotes a title with `<title>`The Title`</title>`.

The DTD (in the case of the GDP, DocBook) defines rules for how the elements can be used. For example, if one element can only be used when embedded within another, this is defined in the DTD.

An SGML file is just a plain ASCII file containing the text with the markup specified above. To convert it to some easily readable format, you need special tools. The GDP uses DocBook Tools, a free package of utilities for working with DocBook which includes Jade, which does the SGML/DSSL parsing. You can read more about DocBook Tools in the section called “Installing DocBook”.

The final appearance of the output (e.g. PostScript or HTML) is determined by a stylesheet. Stylesheets are files, written in a special language (DSSSL -- Document Style Semantics and Specification Language), which specify the appearance of various DocBook elements, for example, what fonts to use for titles and various inline elements, page numbering style, and much more. DocBook tools come with a collection of stylesheets (Norman Walsh's modular stylesheets); GNOME Document Project uses some customized version of this stylesheets -- see the section called “GDP Stylesheets”.

The advantage of specifying the structure of a document with SGML instead of specifying the appearance of the document with a typical word processor, or with html, is that the resulting document can be processed in a variety of ways using the structural information. Whereas formatting a document for appearance assumes a medium (typically written text on a standard-sized piece of paper), SGML can be processed to produce output for a large variety of media such as text, postscript, HTML, Braille, audio, and potentially many other formats.

Using 'content' as the elements to define the text of a document also allows for search engines to make use of the actual elements to make a "smarter search". For example, if you are searching for all documents written by the author "Susie" your search engine could be made smart enough to only search <author> elements, making for a faster and more accurate search.

Since the overall appearance of the output is determined not by the DTD or the SGML document, but rather by a stylesheet, the appearance of a document can be easily changed just by changing the stylesheet. This allows everyone in the project to create documents that all look the same.

As stated before, the GDP uses the DocBook DTD. For a list of introductory and reference resources on DocBook, see the section called “Resources”. The following sections also provide convenient instructions on which markup tags to use in various circumstances. Be sure to read the section called “GDP Documentation Conventions ” for GDP documentation-specific guidelines.

### XML and SGML

In not so distant future (probably before GNOME 2.0), DocBook itself and GNOME Documentation project will migrate from SGML to XML. This transition should be relatively painless: (almost) all DocBook tags will remain the same. However, XML has stricter syntax rules than SGML; thus, some constructions which are valid in SGML will not be valid in XML. Therefore, to be ready for this transistion, it is strongly advised that the documentation writers conform to XML syntax rules. Here are most important differences:

Minimization

  It is possible with some implementations of SGML to use minimizations to close elements in a document by using </>, for example: ``<title>`The Title`</>``. This is not allowed in XML. You can use sgmlnorm command, included in DocBook Tools package, to expand minimized tags; if you are using Emacs with psgml mode, you can also use menu command Modify->Normalize.

Self-closing tags

  Also, in SGML some tags are allowed not to have closing tags. For example, it is legal for `<xref>` not to have a closing tag: ``<xref linkend="someid">``. In XML, it is illegal; instead, you should use ``<xref linkend="someid"/>`` (note the slash!).

Case sensitive tags

  In XML, unlike SGML, tags are case-senstive `<title>` and `<TITLE>` are different tags! Therefore, please always use lowercase tags (except for things like `DOCTYPE, CDATA` and `ENTITY`, which are not DocBook tags).

### Structure Elements

#### Sections and paragraphs

Top-level element of a book body must be `<chapter>`; it may contain one or more `<sect1>`, each of them may contain `<sect2>` and so on up to `<sect5>`. The top-level element of an article body is always `<sect1>`. Regardless of which elements you use, give each structural element a unique id, so that you can link to it. For usage example, see the template.

Please try to avoid using deeply nested sections; for most situations, `<sect1>` and `<sect2>` should be sufficient. If not, you probably should split your `<sect1>` into several smaller ones.

Use the tag `<para>` for paragraphs, even if there is only one paragraph in a section--see template for examples.

#### Notes, Warnings, And Tips

For notes, tips, warnings, and important information, which should be set apart from the main text (usually as a paragraph with some warning sign on the margin), use tags `<note>`, `<tip>`, `<warning>`, `<important>` respectively. For example:

    <tip>
     <title>TIP</title>
     <para>
      To speed up program compilation, use <application>gcc</application>
      compiler with Pentium optimization.
     </para>
    </tip>

produces

### TIP

To speed up program compilation, use gcc compiler with Pentium optimization.

Note that this should not be inside a `<para>` but between paragraphs.

#### Screenshots and other figures

To include screenshots and other figures, use the following tags:

    <figure id="shot1">
     <title>Screenshot</title>
     <screenshot>
      <screeninfo>Screenshot of a program</screeninfo>
      <graphic format="PNG"  fileref="figures/example_screenshot" srccredit="ME">
      </graphic>
     </screenshot>
    </figure>

replacing `example_screenshot` with the actual file name (without extension). The result will look like this:

Figure 1. Screenshot

### NOTE

Notice in this example that the screenshot file name does not include the file type extension -- to find out why, please read the section called “Images in DocBook Tools”.

#### Program listings and terminal session

To show a file fragment--for example, program listing--use `<programlisting>` tag:

    <programlisting>
    [Desktop Entry]
    Name=Gnumeric spreadsheet
    Exec=gnumeric
    Icon=gnome-gnumeric.png
    Terminal=0
    Type=Application
    </programlisting>

which produces

    [Desktop Entry]
    Name=Gnumeric spreadsheet
    Exec=gnumeric
    Icon=gnome-gnumeric.png
    Terminal=0
    Type=Application

As a matter of fact, all examples in this document were produced using `<programlisting>`.

To show a record of terminal session--i.e., sequence of commands entered at the command line--use `<screen>` tag:

    <screen>
    <prompt>bash$</prompt><userinput>make love</userinput>
    make: *** No rule to make target `love'. Stop.
    </screen>

which produces

    bash$make love
    make: *** No rule to make target `love'.  Stop.

Note the use of tags `<prompt>` and `<userinput>` for marking system prompt and commands entered by user.

### NOTE

Note that both `<programlisting>` and `<screen>` preserve linebreaks, but interpret SGML tags (unlike LaTeX verbatim environment). Take a look at the source of this document to see how you can have SGML tags literally shown but not interpreted,

#### Lists

The most common list types in DocBook are `<itemizedlist>`, `<orderedlist>`, and `<variablelist>`.

`<itemizedlist>`

  This is the simplest unnumbered list, parallel to `<ul>` in HTML. Here is an example:

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para>
            <guilabel>Show backup files</guilabel> &mdash; This will
            show any backup file that might be on your system.
          </para>
        </listitem>
        <listitem>
          <para>
            <guilabel>Show hidden files</guilabel> &mdash; This will
            show all "dot files" or files that begin with a dot.  This
            files typically include configuration files and directories.
          </para>
        </listitem>
        <listitem>
          <para>
            <guilabel>Mix files and directories</guilabel> &mdash; This
            option will  display files and directories in the order you
            sort them instead of
            always having directories shown above files.
          </para>
         </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>

  and output:

  - Show backup files -- This will show any backup file that might be on your system.

  - Show hidden files -- This will show all "dot files" or files that begin with a dot. This files typically include configuration files and directories.

  - Mix files and directories -- This option will display files and directories in the order you sort them instead of always having directories shown above files.

  Note the use of `&mdash;` for long dash (see the section called “ Special symbols ”). Also, please note that the result looks much nicer because the terms being explained (Show backup files, etc.) are set in a different font. In this case, it was achieved by using `<guilabel>` tag. In other cases, use appropriate tags such as `<guimenuitem>`, `<command>`, or -- if none of this applies -- use `<emphasis>`.

`<orderedlist>`

  This list is completely analogous to `<itemizedlist>` and has the same syntax, but it produces numbered list. By default, this list uses Arabic numerals for numbering entries; you can override this using `numeration`, for example `<orderedlist numeration="lowerroman">`. Possible values of these attribute are `arabic`, `upperalpha`, `loweralpha`, `upperroman`, `lowerroman`.

`<variablelist>`

  This list is used when each entry is rather long, so it should be formatted as a block of text with some subtitle, like a small subsection. The `<variablelist>` is more complicated than itemizedlists, but for larger blocks of text, or when you're explaining or defining something, it's best to use them. Their greatest advantage is that it's easier for a computer to search. The lines you are reading now were produced by `<variablelist>`. The source looked liked this:

      <variablelist>
        <varlistentry>
          <term> <sgmltag>&lt;itemizedlist></sgmltag></term>
          <listitem><para>
      	This is the simplest unnumbered list, parallel to
              <sgmltag>&lt;ul></sgmltag> in HTML. Here is an example:...
          </para></listitem>
          </varlistentry>
          <varlistentry>
      	<term> <sgmltag>&lt;orderedlist></sgmltag></term>
           <listitem><para>
      	This list is completely analogous to
      	<sgmltag>&lt;itemizedlist></sgmltag>
          </para></listitem>
          </varlistentry>
          <varlistentry>
      	<term> <sgmltag>&lt;variablelist></sgmltag></term>
           <listitem><para>
      		This list is used when each entry is rather long,...
          </para></listitem>
          </varlistentry>
      </variablelist>

Lists can be nested; in this case, the stylesheets are smart enough to change the numeration (for `<orderedlist>`) or marks of each entry (in `<itemizedlist>`) for sub-lists

### Inline Elements

#### GUI elements

- `<guibutton>` -- used for buttons, including checkbuttons and radio buttons

- `<guimenu>`, `<guisubmenu>` --used for top-level menus and submenus respectively, for example `<guisubmenu>Utilities</guisubmenu> submenu of the <guimenu>Main Menu</guimenu>`

- `<guimenuitem>`--an entry in a menu

- `<guiicon>`--an icon

- `<guilabel>`--for items which have labels, like tabs, or bounding boxes.

- `<interface>`-- for most everything else... a window, a dialog box, the Panel, etc.

If you need to refer to a sequence of menu choices, such as Main Menu->Utilities->GNOME terminal there is a special construction for this, too:

    <menuchoice>
     <guimenu>Main Menu</guimenu> <guisubmenu>Utilities</guisubmenu>
     <guimenuitem>GNOME terminal</guimenuitem> </menuchoice>

#### Links and references

To refer to another place in the same document, you can use tags `<xref>` and `<link>`. The first of them automatically inserts the full name of the element you refer to (section, figure, etc.), while the second just creates a link (in HTML output). Here is an example:

    An example of a <link linkend="extip">tip</link> was given in
    <xref linkend="notes" />.

which produces: An example of a tip was given in the section called “Notes, Warnings, And Tips”.

Here `notes` and `extip` are the id attributes of the section called “Notes, Warnings, And Tips” and of the example of a tip in it.

To produce a link to an external source, such as a Web page or a local file, use `<ulink>` tag, for example:

     To find more about GNOME, please visit <ulink type="http"
    url="http://www.gnome.org">GNOME Web page</ulink>

which produces: To find more about GNOME, please visit The GNOME Web Site You can use any of the standard URL types, such as `http, ftp, file, telnet, mailto` (in most cases, however, use of `mailto` is unnecessary--see discussion of `<email>` tag).

#### Filenames, commands, and other computer-related things

Here are some tags used to describe operating system-related things:

- `<filename>` -- used for filenames, e.g.`<filename>` foo.sgml `</filename>` produces: `foo.sgml`.

- `<filename class="directory">` -- used for directories, e.g.`<filename class="directory">`/usr/bin `</filename>` produces: `/usr/bin`.

- `<application>` -- used for application names, e.g. `<application>`Gnumeric `</application>` produces: Gnumeric.

- `<envar>` -- used for environment variables, e.g. `<envar>`PATH`</envar>`.

- `<command>` -- used for commands entered on command line, e.g. `<command>`make install `</command>` produces: make install.

- `<replaceable>` -- used for replaceable text, e.g. `<command>`db2html`<replaceable>` foo.sgml `</replaceable>``</command>` produces: db2html `foo.sgml`.

#### Keyboard input

To mark up text input by the user, use `<userinput>`.

To mark keystrokes such as shortcuts and other commands, use `<keycap>`. This is used for marking up what is printed on the top of the physical key on the keyboard. There are a couple of other tags for keys, too: `<keysym>` and `<keycode>`. However you are unlikely to need these for most documentation. For reference, `<keysym>` is for the “symbolic name” of a key. `<keycode>` is for the “scan code” of a key. These are not terms commonly required in GNOME documentation, although `<keysym>` is useful for marking up control codes.

To mark up a combination of keystrokes, use the `<keycombo>` wrapper:

    <keycombo>
     <keycap>Ctrl</keycap>
     <keycap>Alt</keycap>
     <keycap>F1</keycap>
    </keycombo>

Finally, if you want to show a shortcut for some menu command, here are the appropriate tags (rather long):

    <menuchoice>
     <shortcut>
      <keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>q</keycap></keycombo>
     </shortcut>
     <guimenuitem> Quit</guimenuitem>
    </menuchoice>

which produces simply Quit (Ctrl-q)

#### E-mail addresses

To mark up e-mail address, use `<email>`:

     The easiest way to get in touch with me is by e-mail
    (<email>me@mydomain.com</email>)

which produces: The easiest way to get in touch with me is by e-mail (`<me@mydomain.com>`) Note that `<email>` automatically produces a link in html version.

#### Special symbols

DocBook also provides special means for entering typographic symbols which can not be entered directly form the keyboard (such as copyright sign). This is done using entities, which is SGML analogue of macros, or commands, of LaTeX. They generally have the form `&entityname;`. Note that the semicolon is required.

here is partial list of most commonly used enitites:

- `&amp;` -- ampersend (&)

- `&lt;` -- left angle bracket (<)

- `&copy;` -- copyright sign (©)

- `&mdash;` -- long dash (--)

- `&hellip;` -- ellipsis (...)

Note that the actual look of the resulting symbols depends on the fonts used by your browser; for example, it might happen that long dash (`&mdash;`) looks exactly like the usual dash (-). However, in the PostScript (and thus, in print) the output will look markedly better if you use appropriate tags.

## GDP Documentation Conventions

### Conventions for All GDP Documentation

#### XML compatibility

All GNOME documentation should conform to XML syntax requirements, which are stricter than SGML ones -- see the section called “XML and SGML” for more informaion.

#### Authors' names

All GNOME documentation should contain the names of both the application authors and documentation authors, as well as a link to the application web page (if it exists) and information for bug submission -- see templates for an example.

### Conventions for Application Documentation

#### Application Version Identification

Application documentation should identify the version of the application for which the documentation is written:

    <sect1 id="intro">
     <title>Introduction</title>
     <para>
      blah-blah-blah This document describes version 1.0.53 of gfoo.
     </para>
    </sect1>

#### Copyright information

Application documentation should contain a copyright notice, stating the licensing terms. It is suggested that you use the GNU Free Documentation License. You could also use some other license allowing free redistribution, such as GPL or Open Content license. If documentation uses some trademarks (such as UNIX, Linux, Windows, etc.), proper legal junk should also be included (see templates).

#### Software license

All GNOME applications must contain information about the license (for software, not for documentation), either in the "About" box or in the manual.

#### Bug reporting

Application documentation should give an address for reporting bugs and for submitting comments about the documentaion (see templates for an example).

## Writing Application and Applet Manuals

Every GNOME application or applet should have a manual specific to that particular application. This manual should be a complete and authoritative guide. The manual should describe what the program does and how to use it. Manuals will typically describe each window or panel presented to the user using screenshots (in PNG format only) when appropriate. They should also describe each feature and preference option available.

### Documentation Availability

Applications and applets should not rely on documentation which is only available on the internet. All manuals and other documentation should be packaged with the application or applet and be made available to the user through the standard GNOME help system methods described below.

Application manuals should be based on the template in the section called “Template 1: Application Manual”. Applet manuals should be based on the templates in the section called “Template 2: Applet Manual For GNOME 1.x” for GNOME versions 1.x and the templates in the section called “Template 2: Applet Manual For GNOME 2.x” for GNOME versions 2.x.

### Manuals For Large Applications

Manuals for very large applications, such as GNOME Workshop components should be a `<book>` (and thus use `<chapter>` for each primary section) , instead of `<article>` which most applications use(with each primary section being a `<sect1>`).

### Applet Manuals in GNOME 2.0

Note that applet manuals in GNOME 2.0 are treated in a special way. The manuals for all applets are merged into a single virtual document by Nautilus. For this reason, the header information for applet manuals is omitted and the first section of each applet is `<sect1>`. Applet manuals will typically have several sections, each of which is `<sect2>`.

Application manuals should be made available by having a "Manual" entry in the Help pull-down menu at the top of the application, as described in the section called “Listing Documents in the Help Menu”. Applets should make their manuals available by right-clicking on the applet.

## Listing Documents in the Help Menu

### Developer Information

This section is for developers. Documentation authors generally do not need to know this material.

Typically the application manual and possibly additional help documents will be made available to the user under the Help menu at the top right of the application. To do this, you must first write a `topic.dat` file. The format for this file is:

    One line for each 'topic'.

    Two columns, as defined by perl -e 'split(/\s+/,$aline,2)'

    First column is the HTML file (and optional section) for the topic,
    relative to the app's help file dir.

    Second column is the user-visible topic name.

For example, Gnumeric's `topic.dat` file is:

    gnumeric.html   Gnumeric manual
    function-reference.html Gnumeric function reference

When the application is installed, the `topic.dat` file should be placed in the `$prefix/share/gnome/help/`appname`/C/` directory where `appname` is replaced by the application's name. The application documentation (converted from SGML into HTML with db2html) should be placed in this directory too.

### Note

If the help files are not present in the correct directory, the menu items will NOT appear when the program is run.

The `topic.dat` file is used by the GNOME menu building code to generate the Help menu. When you define your menu:

    GnomeUIInfo helpmenu[] = {
                  {GNOME_APP_UI_ITEM,
                   N_("About"), N_("Info about this program"),
                   about_cb, NULL, NULL,
                   GNOME_APP_PIXMAP_STOCK, GNOME_STOCK_MENU_ABOUT,
                   0, 0, NULL},
                   GNOMEUIINFO_SEPARATOR,
                   GNOMEUIINFO_HELP("appname"),
                   GNOMEUIINFO_END
            };

the line specifying `GNOMEUIINFO_HELP` causes GNOME to create a menu entry which is tied to the documentation in the directory mentioned above. Also, all the topics in the `topic.dat` file will get menu entries in the Help menu. When the user selects any of these topics from the Help menu, a help browser will be started with the associated HTML documentation.

## Application Help Buttons

### Developer Information

This section is for developers. Documentation authors generally do not need to know this material.

Most GNOME applications will have Help buttons. These are most often seen in Preference windows. (All Preference windows should have Help buttons.) Most Help buttons will connect to the application manual, although some may connect to special documents. Because the Help buttons do not generally have their own special documentation, the documentation author(s) do not need to do very much. However, the application author must be careful to guarantee that the application correctly opens the help documentation when the Help buttons are pressed.

To make the Help buttons call the correct document in the GNOME Help Browser the developer should add code based on the following example:

    gchar *tmp;
    tmp = gnome_help_file_find_file ("module", "page.html");
    if (tmp) {
      gnome_help_goto(0, tmp);
      g_free(tmp);
    }

### NOTE

The example above is in the C language, please refer to other documentation or forums for other GNOME language bindings.

## Packaging Applet Documentation

### Applet Documentation Files

In GNOME 2.0 each applet will have its own documentation installed separately, and the GNOME 2.0 help browser (Nautilus) will dynamically merge the applet documents into a single virtual book called GNOME Applets. During the transitionary stage between GNOME 1.0 and GNOME 2.0, each applet in the gnome-applets package has its own manual(stored with the applet in CVS), but they are merged together manually to create the GNOME Applets book before distribution. Telsa `<hobbit@aloss.ukuu.org.uk>` is the maintainer of this document. Applet documentation should be sent to Telsa (or placed in CVS) who will make sure they are correctly packaged with the applets. The applet author should be contacted to modify the menu items and help buttons to bind to the applet documentation if necessary.

Images which are part of the applet documentation should be in PNG format and should reside in the same directory as the SGML document file in CVS(gnome-applets/APPLETNAME/help/C).

Applets which are not part of the gnome-applets package must package their documentation with the particular applet package. They should use the same applet template as other applets. However, the `<xref>` links to the introductory chapter of the GNOME Applets book must be removed (as the 1.x GNOME Help Browser does not allow you to create links between separate documents) and replaced with suitable text. Note that since this document is not part of the GNOME Applets book, you must remember to add `<legalnotice>` and `<copyright>` sections.

### Adding Documentation to an Applet Menu

### Developer Information

This section is for developers. Documentation authors generally do not need to know this material.

Applets should have About and Manual menu items, typically as the first and second top-most items in the menu respectively. This section describes how the developer creates these menu items and links them to the documentation.

To add an applet's manual to its applet menu, use:

    /* add an item to the applet menu */
    applet_widget_register_callback(APPLET_WIDGET(applet), "manual",
    _("Manual"), &open_manual, NULL);

Here the second argument is an arbitrary name for the callback, the third argument is the label which will appear when the user right clicks on the applet, and the fourth argument is the callback function.

You will need to write a simple callback function to open the help browser to the appropriate document. This is done using the `gnome_help_file_find_file` function, as described in the section called “Application Help Buttons”.

You will also want to add an About menu item to the applet's menu. This is a stock menu item and is done:

    applet_widget_register_stock_callback (APPLET_WIDGET(applet), "about",
           GNOME_STOCK_MENU_ABOUT, _("About"), &my_applet_cb_about,
           NULL);

More information can be found at Writing GNOME panel applets using the GTK+/GTK-- widget set.

## Writing Context Sensitive Help (coming in GNOME-2.0)

Context sensitive help, also known as "pop-up" help, will allow a user to obtain help information about specific buttons or parts of an application.

Context sensitive help is still under development and not all the details are available at this time. However, the basics can be shown here so that you can understand how the system will work.

The Context Sensitive Help system is designed to allow the developer to give an id to a particular portion of the User Interface, for example, a button. Once the interface is complete a Perl script can then be run against the interface code to create a "map" file. This map file allows the developer or writer to associate particular paragraph sections from an XML document to the interface items.

The XML used for the document is a small XML DTD that is being developed to use the same tags (albeit, much fewer) as DocBook so that writers do not have to re-learn a new DTD.

Once the document is written and map file is complete, when the user launches context sensitive help on the interface (either by pressing a button and then clicking on the interface item they want information on, or by right mouse clicking on the interface item and selecting a pop-up menu item like "What's This") a small transient window will appear with brief but detailed information on the interface item.

## Referring to Other GNOME Documentation (coming in GNOME-2.0)

In the GNOME 2.0 Help System, you will be able to create links from one document to another. The exact mechanism for doing this is in development.

## Basics of Documentation Style

Most people have never enjoyed reading a software manual, and they probably never will. Many times, they'll read the documentation only when they run into problems, and they'll be frustrated and upset before they even read a word. On the other hand, some readers will read the manual all the way through, or at least look at the introduction before they start. Your document might serve as a reference for an expert or a guide to a beginner, and it must have enough depth to satisfy the first without overwhelming the second. Ideally, it will serve beginners as they become experts. Remember, your goal is to produce complete, intuitive and clear documentation.

In order to write useful documentation, you'll have to know who your audience is likely to be. Then, you can look for the problems they're likely to run into, and solve them. It will also help if you focus on the tasks users will perform, and group features accordingly, rather than simply describing features at random.

### Planning

Begin documenting by learning how to use the application and reading over any existing documentation. Pay attention to places where your document will differ from the template. It may help to develop a document skeleton: a valid XML or SGML document that has little or no content. For very large applications, you will need to make significant departures from the templates, since you'll be using the `<book>` tag instead of `<chapter>` or `<article>`.

### Achieving a Balanced Style

Just as you need to juggle expert and novice readers, you'll have to juggle a number of other extremes as you write:

- Documents should be complete, yet concise. You should describe every feature, but you'll have decide how much detail is really necessary. It's not, for example, necessary to describe every button and form field in a dialog box, but you should make sure that your readers know how to bring up the dialog and what it does. If you spend fewer words on the obvious, you can spend more time clarifying the ambiguous labels and explaining items that are more complex.

- Be engaging and friendly, yet professional. Games documents may be less formal than productivity application documents (people don't use games, they play them), but all of them should maintain a standard of style which holds the reader's interest without resorting to jokes and untranslatable allusions or puns.

- Examples, tips, notes, and screenshots are useful to break up long stretches of text, but too many can get in the way, and make your documents too choppy to read. It's good to provide a screenshot of any dialog windows a user might run into, but if a dialog box has several tabs, it's not usually necessary to have one for each.

- The GDP strives to have all of its documentation conform to certain standards of style and content, but every document (and every writer) is different. You will need to use your judgement, and write documents to fit with the rest of the project, without compromising the individual needs of your subject, or your own individuality as a writer.

### Structure

In general, you won't have to worry too much about structure, because the templates provide you with an excellent example. As a general rule, try to follow that structural example. That means using links, hierarchical nesting, and, if necessary, a glossary or index. You probably won't need to use every available structural tag, but take advantage of what DocBook provides you.

As to linking, there's some disagreement about whether to use `<xref>` `<link>` when you make links within your documents. You'll have to decide, based on the different ways that they are presented in output, which is more appropriate given the context. Regardless of which you use, you should not forget to use them. Help your readers find information that relevant to the issue at hand.

The table of contents will be generated automatically, but you will probably have to develop your own index if you wish to have one. The Nautilus Help Browser will have new, and currently unknown, indexing capabilities, so index style and structure are still under discussion. The GNOME User's Guide will contain a glossary in its next versions; unless you're writing a`<book>`, it will probably be best to contribute to that rather than developing your own.

### Grammar and Spelling

Nobody expects you to be perfect; they just expect the documentation for their software to be error-free. That means that, in the same way that developers look for bugs and accept bug reports, writers must check for errors in their documents. Poor grammar, bad spelling, and gross technical errors in draft documents are fine. However, if those problems show up in a "real" release, they can count against the credibility of GNOME and Linux. They'll also make you look bad.

There is no substitute for a human proofreader; use a spell-check program, then read it over yourself, and then find someone else to help you. Other GDP members are, of course, willing and able to help you, but non-writers are often at least as helpful.

Proofreading documents is both a also a good way to familiarize yourself with documentation, and it certainly makes you valuable to the GDP. Help other writers proof their documents, and they will help you with yours.

## Teamwork

### Working With The GDP Team

The GDP team is a valuable resource for any documentation author. GDP members can answer most questions documentation authors have during the course of their work. It is also important to make sure you are not duplicating work of other GDP members by visiting the GDP Documentation Status Table (http://www.gnome.org/gdp/doctable/) and assigning a documentation item to yourself. This table also provides a forum for making suggestions and announcements for each documentation item. The best way to get in touch with GDP members is on the #docs IRC channel at irc.gnome.org or else by emailing the gnome-doc-list mailing list.

After an author has finished a document (or even a draft version of the document), it is a good idea to ask a member of the GDP team to read the document, checking it for grammar, proper DocBook markup, and clarity. One may typically find another author to do this by either asking on the #docs IRC channel at irc.gnome.org or by emailing the gnome-doc-list mailing list.

### Working With Developers

Writing documentation typically involves a certain amount of interaction with the developers of GNOME or the application which is being documented. Often a document author will need to ask the developer technical questions during the course of writing a document. After the document is finished, it is good idea to ask the developer to read the document to make sure it is technically correct. The documentation author should also make sure that the application author correctly binds and packages the documentation with the application.

## Finishing A Document

### Editing The Document

When the document is finished, the document should be edited by another member of the GDP for spelling, clarity, and DocBook markup. It should also be read by an application author to make sure the document is technically accurate.

### Submitting The Document

After the document has been edited and checked for technical accuracy, it is ready to be combined with the application or documentation package. This is typically done by passing the document to the application or package developer. In some cases, the documents can be committed directly into CVS, however this should only be done after obtaining permission to make CVS commits from the developer. Note that in many cases, the application may need to be modified to correctly link to the documentation. The packaging system (tarballs and binary packages) may also need to be modified to include the documentation in the package. Generally, this should be done by the developers.

The final step is to email the GNOME Translation Team at `<gnome-i18n@nuclecu.unam.mx>` to notify them that there is a new document for them to translate.

## Resources

### Resources On The Web

The GNOME Documentation Project Web page lists current GDP projects and members.

The GDP Documentation Status Table tracks the status of all the various documentation components of GNOME.

Norman Walsh's DocBook: The Definitive Guide in an excellent book on DocBook, available both online and in print.

### Books

Docbook: The Definitive Guide is available in both printed form and on the web at: Docbook: The Definitive Guide

### Mailing Lists

The gnome-docs-list mailing list is the main discussion area for all contributors to the GNOME Documentation Project. You can find out how to subscribe to this list on GNOME Mailing Lists. This is a rather low-volume list, so you will not be flooded with messages.

### IRC

Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a fast and easy way to get in touch with other GDP members. There are generally at least a few members here who can answer questions or discuss documentation issues. The IRC channel is #docs at irc.gnome.org.

## A. Document Templates

## Template 1: Application Manual

The following template should be used for all application manuals. You can always get the latest copy of this template from GDP Documentation Templates.

    <!DOCTYPE Article PUBLIC "-//GNOME//DTD DocBook PNG Variant V1.1//EN"[
            <!-- if not using PNG graphic, replace reference above with
                 .....PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook V3.1//EN"[
             -->
    <!ENTITY version "1.0.53">
            <!-- replace version above with actual application version number-->
    	<!--  Template Version: 1.0.1  (do not remove this line) -->
    ]>

    <!-- This is a GNOME documentation template, designed by the GNOME
      Documentation Project Team. Please use it for writing GNOME
      documentation, making obvious changes. In particular, all the words
      written in UPPERCASE (with the exception of GNOME) should be
      replaced. As for "legalnotice", please leave the reference
      unchanged.

      Remember that this is a guide, rather than a perfect model to follow
      slavishly. Make your manual logical and readable.  And don't forget
      to remove these comments in your final documentation!  ;-)
      -->

    <!-- =============Document Header ============================= -->

    <article id="index"> <!-- please do not change the id -->

      <artheader>
        <title>MY-GNOME-APP</title>
        <copyright>
          <year>2000</year>
          <holder>ME-THE-AUTHOR</holder>
        </copyright>

      <!-- translators: uncomment this:

      <copyright>
       <year>2000</year>
       <holder>ME-THE-TRANSLATOR (Latin translation)</holder>
      </copyright>

       -->

      <!-- do not put authorname in the header except in copyright - use
      section "authors" below -->

        <legalnotice>
          <para>
            Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
            document under the terms of the <citetitle>GNU Free
            Documentation License</citetitle>, Version 1.1 or any later
            version published by the Free Software Foundation with no
            Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover
            Texts. You may obtain a copy of the <citetitle>GNU Free
            Documentation License</citetitle> from the Free Software
            Foundation by visiting <ulink type="http"
            url="http://www.fsf.org">their Web site</ulink> or by writing
            to: Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite
            330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.
          </para>
          <para>
            Many of the names used by companies to distinguish their
            products and services are claimed as trademarks. Where those
            names appear in any GNOME documentation, and those trademarks
            are made aware to the members of the GNOME Documentation
            Project, the names have been printed in caps or initial caps.
          </para>
        </legalnotice>

      <!-- this is the version of manual, not application -->
        <releaseinfo>
           This is version 1.0 of MY-GNOME-APP manual.
        </releaseinfo>

      </artheader>

     <!-- ============= Document Body ============================= -->

     <!-- ============= Introduction ============================== -->
      <sect1 id="intro">
        <title>Introduction</title>

        <para>
         <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> is an application which
         proves mathematical theorems.  It has all the basic features
         expected from a mathematical theorem prover, as well as a number
         of advanced ones, such as proof by confusion.  In fact, many of
         the proofs produced by <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application>
         are so complex that they are capable of proving almost anything
         with a virtually null likelihood of being disproven.  It also has
         the very popular predecessor of proof by confusion, proof by
         dialog, first implemented by Plato.
        </para>
        <para>
          It also allows you to save and print theorem proofs and to add
          comments to the proofs it produces.
        </para>

        <para>
          To run <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application>, select
          <menuchoice>
    	<guisubmenu>SUBMENU</guisubmenu>
    	<guimenuitem>MY-GNOME-APP</guimenuitem>
          </menuchoice>
          from the <guimenu>Main Menu</guimenu>, or type
          <command>MYGNOMEAPP</command> on the command line.
      </para>

        <para>
          <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> is included in the
          <filename>GNOME-PACKAGE</filename> package, which is part of the
          GNOME desktop environment. This document describes version
          &version; of <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application>.
        </para>
      </sect1>

     <!-- ================ Usage ================================ -->
     <!-- This section should describe basic usage of the application. -->

      <sect1 id="usage">
        <title>Using MY-GNOME-APP</title>
        <para>
          <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> can be used to produce a
          perfect proof of <emphasis>any</emphasis> mathematical theorem
          (provided, of course, that this theorem is correct), thus
          providing for new users an easy-to-use graphical interface to
          modern mathematics. This section describes basic usage of
          <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application>.
        </para>

        <!-- ========= Basic Usage =========================== -->
        <sect2 id="mainwin">
          <title>Basic usage</title>
          <para>
            Starting <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> opens the
            <interface>Main window</interface>, shown in <xref
            linkend="mainwindow-fig">. The window is at first empty.

            <!-- ==== Figure ==== -->
            <figure id="mainwindow-fig">
    	  <title>MY-GNOME-APP Main Window</title>
    	  <screenshot>
    	    <screeninfo>MY-GNOME-APP Main Window</screeninfo>
    	    <graphic fileref="SCREENSHOT" format="png" srccredit="ME">
                </graphic>
    	  </screenshot>
    	</figure>
        <!-- ==== End of Figure ==== -->
          </para>

     <!-- For this app, one could put "proving" or "edit" (probably even
          both of them) as sect2's seperate from the main window
          section. Since they were both so closely involved with the main
          window, I decided to have them as sect3's isntead. Judgement
          call. -->

          <sect3 id="proving">
    	<title>Proving a Theorem</title>
    	<para>
              To get a proof of a theorem, select
              <menuchoice>
    	    <guisubmenu>File</guisubmenu>
    	    <guimenuitem>New</guimenuitem>
    	  </menuchoice>,
                which will
    	    bring up the <interface>New Proof</interface> dialog box.
    	    Enter the statement of the theorem in the
    	    <guilabel>Theorem statement</guilabel> field, select your
    	    desired proof type from the drop-down menu, and and press
    	    <guibutton>Prove!</guibutton>.
            </para>
    	<para>
              If <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> cannot prove the
              theorem by the method you have chosen, or if you have not
              selected a proof type at all,
              <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> will attempt to
              choose the one that it thinks is most conclusive.  In order,
              it will attempt to prove the theorem with the following techniques:

                    <variablelist>
    	    <varlistentry>
    	      <term>Deduction</term>
    	      <listitem>
    		<para>
                      This is a proof method that is generally accepted
                      for full credit by Logic professors.
                    </para>
    	      </listitem>
    	    </varlistentry>
    	    <varlistentry>
                <term>Induction</term>
    	    <listitem>
    	      <para>
                    This logical style will also earn you full credit on
                    your homework.
                 </para>
    	    </listitem>
                </varlistentry>
    	    <varlistentry>
    	      <term>Dialog</term>
    	      <listitem>
    	      <para>
                    This logical method is best for Philosophy classes,
                    and will probably only merit partial credit on Logic
                    or Mathematics homework.
                  </para>
    	    </listitem>
                </varlistentry>
                <varlistentry>
    	      <term>Confusion</term>
    	      <listitem>
    	      <para>
                    Suitable only for political debates, battles of wits
                    against the unarmed, and Philosophy classes focusing
                    on the works of Kant. Use with caution.
                  </para>
    	      </listitem>
    	    </varlistentry>
    	  </variablelist>
              </para>

       <!-- You might want to include a note, warning, or tip, e.g. -->

    	<warning>
    	  <title>Proving Incorrect Theorms</title>
    	  <para>
                <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> cannot prove
                incorrect theorems. If the theorem you have entered is not
                demonstrably true, you will get a message to that effect
                in the main window.  To disprove a theorem, ask
                <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> to prove its
                logical inverse.
              </para>
    	</warning>
          </sect3>
          <sect3 id="editing">
    	<title>Editing Proofs</title>
    	<para>
              Once you have proven the theorem, it will be displayed in
              the <interface>main window</interface>.  There, you can read
              it over, choose text styles for different portions of it,
              and make comments on it. This section will guide you through
              that process.
            </para>
    	<para>
              To alter text styles, first select the statement you wish to
              change by clicking on it once.  You can select several
              statements by Then, choose the style you want to apply from
              the <guisubmenu>Style</guisubmenu> submenu of the
              <guimenu>Edit</guimenu> menu.
              <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> will convert the
              text to that style.
            </para>
            <para>
              You can also enter comments on a statement by selecting that
              statement, and then beginning to type.  Comments will appear
              after the statement you have selected.
            </para>

    	<note>
    	  <title>Altering The Proofs Themselves</title>
              <para>
                <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> does not allow you
                to alter a proof it has produced itself.  You can, save
                your proof as a plain text file (using the
                <guimenuitem>Save as...</guimenuitem> menu), and alter it
                that way.  Be aware, however, that
                <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> uses its own file
                format for saved proofs, and cannot re-open a file unless
                it is in the .mga format.
              </para>
    	</note>
          </sect3>

      <!-- If there are other functions performed from the main window,
           they belong here.   -->

        </sect2>

        <!-- =========================================================
          Additional Sect2's should describe additional windows, such as
          larger dialog boxes, or functionality that differs significantly
          from the most immediate functions of the application. Make the
          structure logical.
          =============================================================  -->

        <sect2 id="toolbar">
          <title>Toolbar</title>
          <para>
            The toolbar (shown in <xref linkend="figure-usage-toolbar">)
            provides access to several commonly used routines.
            <figure id="figure-usage-toolbar">
    	  <title>MY-GNOME-APP Toolbar</title>
    	  <screenshot>
    	    <screeninfo>MY-GNOME-APP Toolbar</screeninfo>
    	    <graphic fileref="usage-toolbar.png" format="png"></graphic>
    	  </screenshot>
    	</figure>
            <variablelist>
    	  <varlistentry>
    	    <term>New</term>
    	    <listitem>
    	      <para>
                    Brings up the <interface>New Theorem</interface>
                    dialog.
                  </para>
    	    </listitem>
    	  </varlistentry>
    	  <varlistentry>
    	    <term>Open</term>
    	    <listitem>
    	      <para>
                     Open an exisiting theorem you want to prove, or a
                     completed proof you wish to print or format.
                   </para>
    	    </listitem>
    	  </varlistentry>
    	  <varlistentry>
    	    <term>Save</term>
    	    <listitem>
    	      <para>
    	         Save the current theorem permanently in a
    	         file.
                   </para>
    	    </listitem>
    	  </varlistentry>
    	</variablelist>
           </para>
        </sect2>
        <!-- ========= Menus =========================== -->

        <sect2 id="menubar">

           <!-- Describing the menubar ensures comprehensive feature
           coverage. Nest itemizedlists inside variablelists so that each
           menu is easily located by indexing software. Proper indentation
           makes it easier! -->

          <title>Menus</title>
          <para>
    	The menu bar, located at the top of the <interface>Main
    	Window</interface>, contains the following menus:
           </para>
          <variablelist>
    	<varlistentry>
    	  <term><guimenu>File</guimenu></term>
    	  <listitem>
    	    <para>
    	       This menu contains:
    	       <itemizedlist>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	            <menuchoice>
    		      <shortcut>
    			<keycap>F3</keycap>
    		      </shortcut>
    		      <guimenuitem>Open</guimenuitem>
    		     </menuchoice>
    	             &mdash; This opens a file which is saved on your computer.
    	           </para>
    		</listitem>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	             <menuchoice>
    		      <shortcut>
    			<keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>S</keycap></keycombo>
    		      </shortcut>
    		      <guimenuitem>Save</guimenuitem>
    		    </menuchoice>
    	            &mdash; This saves your file.
    	          </para>
    		</listitem>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	             <menuchoice>
    		      <shortcut>
    			<keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>W</keycap></keycombo>
    		      </shortcut>
    		      <guimenuitem>Close</guimenuitem>
    		    </menuchoice>
    	            &mdash; This closes your file.
    	          </para>
    		</listitem>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	            <menuchoice>
    		      <shortcut>
    			<keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>Q</keycap></keycombo>
    		      </shortcut>
    		      <guimenuitem>Exit</guimenuitem>
    		    </menuchoice>
    	            &mdash; This quits the application.
    	          </para>
    		</listitem>
    	      </itemizedlist>
    	  </para>
    	  </listitem>
    	</varlistentry>

    	<varlistentry>
    	  <term><guimenu>Edit</guimenu></term>
    	  <listitem>
    	    <para>
    	   This menu contains:
    	   <itemizedlist>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	            <menuchoice>
    		      <shortcut>
    			<keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>X</keycap></keycombo>
    		      </shortcut>
    		      <guimenuitem>Cut</guimenuitem>
    		    </menuchoice>
    	            &mdash; This removes any text or data which is selected and
    	            places it in the buffer.
    	          </para>
    		</listitem>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	            <menuchoice>
    		      <shortcut>
    			<keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>C</keycap></keycombo>
    		      </shortcut>
    		      <guimenuitem>Copy</guimenuitem>
    		    </menuchoice>
    	            &mdash; This copies any text or data which is selected into
    	            the buffer.
    	          </para>
    		</listitem>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	           <menuchoice>
    		      <shortcut>
    			<keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>V</keycap></keycombo>
    		      </shortcut>
    		      <guimenuitem>Paste</guimenuitem>
    		    </menuchoice>
    	            &mdash; This pastes any text or data which is copied into
    	            the buffer.
    	        </para>
    		</listitem>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	             <guimenuitem>COMMAND1&hellip;</guimenuitem>
    	             &mdash; This opens the <interface>COMMAND1</interface>
    	             dialog, which is used to ....
    	          </para>
    		</listitem>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	            <guimenuitem>COMMAND2</guimenuitem>
    	            &mdash; This ....
    	          </para>
    		</listitem>
    	      </itemizedlist>
    	    </para>
    	  </listitem>
    	</varlistentry>

    	<varlistentry>
    	  <term><guimenu>Settings</guimenu></term>
    	  <listitem>
    	    <para>
    	   This menu contains:
    	   <itemizedlist>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	      <guimenuitem>Preferences&hellip;</guimenuitem>
    	       &mdash; This opens the <link
    	       linkend="prefs"><interface>Preferences
    	       Dialog</interface></link>, which allows you to configure
    	       many settings.
    	     </para>
    		</listitem>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	            <guimenuitem>COMMAND3</guimenuitem> &mdash;
        	            This command does something.
        	    	   </para>
    		</listitem>
    	      </itemizedlist>
    	    </para>
    	  </listitem>
    	</varlistentry>

    	<varlistentry>
    	  <term><guimenu>Help</guimenu></term>
    	  <listitem>
    	    <para>
    	      This menu contains:
    	       <itemizedlist>
    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	             <guimenuitem>Manual</guimenuitem> &mdash; This
        	              opens the <application>GNOME Help
        	              Browser</application> and displays this manual.
    	          </para>
    		</listitem>

    		<listitem>
    		  <para>
    	            <guimenuitem>About</guimenuitem> &mdash; This
        	            opens the <interface>About</interface> dialog
        	            which shows basic information about
        	            <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application>, such as
        	            the author's name, the application version number,
        	            and the URL for the application's Web page if one
        	            exists.
    	          </para>
    		</listitem>
    	      </itemizedlist>
                </para>
    	  </listitem>
    	</varlistentry>
          </variablelist>
        </sect2>
      </sect1>

     <!-- ============= Customization ============================= -->

     <sect1 id="prefs">
      <title>Customization</title>
      <para>
       To change the application settings, select
       <menuchoice>
        <guimenu>Settings</guimenu>
        <guimenuitem>Preferences...</guimenuitem>
       </menuchoice>.  This opens the
       <interface>Preferences</interface> dialog, shown in <xref
       linkend="preferences-fig">.
      </para>

      <figure id="preferences-fig">
       <title>Preferences Dialog</title>
       <screenshot>
        <screeninfo>Preferences Dialog</screeninfo>
        <graphic fileref="SCREENSHOT" format="png"
         srccredit="ME">
        </graphic>
       </screenshot>
      </figure>

      <para>
       The properties in the <guilabel>PREFSTABNAME</guilabel> tab are:

       <!--many people use itemizedlists in cases like this. Variablelists
       are more appropriate -->

          <variablelist>
    	<varlistentry>
    	  <term> <guilabel>Default Text Style</guilabel></term>
    	  <listitem>
    	    <para>
                  Select the default text style for statements in your
                  proof.  You can still change the style for individual
                  proofs or sections of a proof at a later date.
                </para>
    	  </listitem>
    	</varlistentry>
    	<varlistentry>
    	  <term>(Configuration Item Label)</term>
    	  <listitem>
    	    <para>
                 (Description of Configuration)
                 </para>
    	  </listitem>
    	</varlistentry>
    	<varlistentry>
    	  <term>(Configuration Item Label)</term>
    	  <listitem>
    	    <para>
                 (Description of Configuration)
                 </para>
    	  </listitem>
    	</varlistentry>
          </variablelist>
        </para>

        <para>
         The properties in the <guilabel>SECONDTABNAME</guilabel> tab are:
           <variablelist>
    	<varlistentry>
    	  <term>(Configuration Item Label)</term>
    	  <listitem>
    	    <para>
                 (Description of Configuration)
                 </para>
    	  </listitem>
    	</varlistentry>
    	<varlistentry>
    	  <term>(Configuration Item Label)</term>
    	  <listitem>
    	    <para>
                 (Description of Configuration)
                 </para>
    	  </listitem>
    	</varlistentry>
          </variablelist>
        </para>

      <para>
        After you have made all the changes you want, click on
        <guibutton>OK</guibutton> to apply the changes and close the
        <interface>Properties</interface> dialog. To cancel the changes
        and return to previous values, click the
        <guibutton>Close</guibutton> button.
      </para>

     </sect1>

     <!-- ============= Various Sections ============================= -->

     <!-- Here you should add, if necessary, several more sect1's,
     describing other windows (besides the main one), file formats,
     preferences dialogs,  etc. as appropriate. Try not to make any of
     these sections too long. -->

     <!-- ============= Bugs ================================== -->
     <!-- This section should describe known bugs and limitations of
          the program if there are any - please be frank and list all
          problems you know of. -->
     <sect1 id="bugs">
      <title>Known Bugs and Limitations</title>
      <para>
       This application has no known bugs.
      </para>
     </sect1>

    <!-- ============= Authors ================================ -->

     <sect1 id="authors">
      <title>Authors</title>
      <para>
       <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application> was written by GNOME-HACKER
       (<email>hacker@gnome.org</email>). To find more information about
       <application>MY-GNOME-APP</application>, please visit the <ulink
       url="http://www.my-gnome-app.org" type="http">MY-GNOME-APP Web
       page</ulink>.  Please send all comments, suggestions, and bug
       reports to the <ulink url="http://bugs.gnome.org" type="http">GNOME
       bug tracking database</ulink>. (Instructions for submitting bug
       reports can be found <ulink
       url="http://bugs.gnome.org/Reporting.html" type="http">
       on-line</ulink>.)  You can also use <application>Bug Report
       Tool</application> (<command>bug-buddy</command>), available in the
       <guisubmenu>Utilities</guisubmenu> submenu of <guimenu>Main
       Menu</guimenu>, for submitting bug reports.
      </para>

      <para>
       This manual was written by ME
       (<email>MYNAME@MYADDRESS</email>). Please send all comments and
       suggestions regarding this manual to the <ulink type="http"
       url="http://developer.gnome.org/projects/gdp">GNOME Documentation
       Project</ulink> by sending an email to
       <email>docs@gnome.org</email>. You can also add your comments online
       by using the <ulink type="http"
       url="http://www.gnome.org/gdp/doctable/">GNOME Documentation Status
       Table</ulink>.
      </para>

      <!-- For translations: uncomment this:

      <para>
       Latin translation was done by ME
       (<email>MYNAME@MYADDRESS</email>). Please send all  comments  and
       suggestions regarding this translation to SOMEWHERE.
      </para>

      -->

     </sect1>

     <!-- ============= Application License ============================= -->

     <sect1 id="license">
      <title>License</title>
      <para>
       This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
       modify it under the terms of the <citetitle>GNU General Public
       License</citetitle> as published by the Free Software Foundation;
       either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later
       version.
      </para>
      <para>
       This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
       WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
       MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
       <citetitle>GNU General Public License</citetitle> for more details.
      </para>
      <para>
       A copy of the <citetitle>GNU General Public License</citetitle> is
       included as an appendix to the <citetitle>GNOME Users
       Guide</citetitle>.  You may also obtain a copy of the
       <citetitle>GNU General Public License</citetitle> from the Free
       Software Foundation by visiting <ulink type="http"
       url="http://www.fsf.org">their Web site</ulink> or by writing to
       <address>
        Free Software Foundation, Inc.
        <street>59 Temple Place</street> - Suite 330
        <city>Boston</city>, <state>MA</state> <postcode>02111-1307</postcode>
        <country>USA</country>
       </address>
      </para>
     </sect1>
    </article>

## Template 2: Applet Manual For GNOME 1.x

The following templates should be used for all applet manuals in GNOME 1.x releases. You can always get the latest copy of these templates from GDP Documentation Templates. Note that the template consists of two files; the first file calls the second as an entity. You should name the first file ``appletname`-applet.sgml` and the second file should be named ``appletname`.sgml`, where ``appletname`` is the name of the applet.

    <!DOCTYPE Article PUBLIC "-//GNOME//DTD DocBook PNG Variant V1.1//EN"[
     <!entity APPLETNAME.sgml SYSTEM "applet_template_1.sgml">
            <!--  Template Version: 1.0.1  (do not remove this line) -->
    ]>

    <!-- This is a GNOME documentation template, designed by the GNOME
      Documentation Project Team. Please use it for writing GNOME
      documentation, making obvious changes. In particular, all the words
      written in UPPERCASE (with the exception of GNOME) should be
      replaced. As for "legalnotice", please leave the reference
      unchanged,make sure to add/remove trademarks to the list as
      appropriate for your document.

      Please don't forget to remove these comments in your final documentation,
      thanks ;-).
    -->

    <article id="index"> <!-- please do not change the id -->

     <!-- ============= Document Header ============================= -->
     <artheader>
      <title>APPLETNAME Applet</title>
      <copyright>
       <year>2000</year>
       <holder>YOURFULLNAME</holder>
      </copyright>

      <!-- translators: uncomment this:

      <copyright>
       <year>2000</year>
       <holder>ME-THE-TRANSLATOR (Latin translation)</holder>
      </copyright>

       -->

      <!-- do not put authorname in the header except in copyright - use
      section "authors" below -->

      <legalnotice>
       <para>
        Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
        document under the terms of the <citetitle>GNU Free Documentation
        License</citetitle>, Version 1.1 or any later version published
        by the Free Software Foundation with no Invariant Sections, no
        Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. You may obtain a copy
        of the <citetitle>GNU Free Documentation License</citetitle> from
        the Free Software Foundation by visiting <ulink type="http"
        url="http://www.fsf.org">their Web site</ulink> or by writing to:
        Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite 330,
        Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.
       </para>
       <para>
        Many of the names used by companies to distinguish their products and
        services are claimed as trademarks. Where those names appear in any
        GNOME documentation, and those trademarks are made aware to the members
        of the GNOME Documentation Project, the names have been printed in caps
        or initial caps.
       </para>
      </legalnotice>

      <releaseinfo>
       This is version XXX of the APPLETNAME applet manual.
      </releaseinfo>
     </artheader>

     <!-- ============= Document Body ============================= -->

     &APPLETNAME.sgml;

    </article>

            <!--  Template Version: 1.0.1  (do not remove this line) -->

     <sect1 id="APPLET">
      <title>APPLET Applet</title>

      <para>
       <application>APPLET</application> applet, shown in <xref
       linkend="APPLETapplet-fig">, allows you to &hellip;.  To add this
       applet to a <interface>Panel</interface>,
       right-click on the <interface>Panel</interface> and choose
       <menuchoice>
        <guimenu>Panel</guimenu>
        <guisubmenu>Add to panel</guisubmenu>
        <guisubmenu>Applet</guisubmenu>
        <guisubmenu>SECTION</guisubmenu>
        <guimenuitem>APPLET</guimenuitem>
       </menuchoice>.
      </para>

      <figure id="APPLETapplet-fig">
       <title>APPLET Applet</title>
       <screenshot>
        <screeninfo>APPLET Applet</screeninfo>
        <graphic format="png" fileref="APPLET_applet"
        srccredit="YOURNAME">
        </graphic>
       </screenshot>
      </figure>

      <!-- ============= Usage  ================================ -->
      <sect2 id="APPLET-usage">
       <title>Usage</title>
       <para>
        (Place a short description of how to use the applet here.)
       </para>

       <para>
        Right-clicking on the applet brings up a menu containing the
        following items:
        <itemizedlist>

         <listitem>
          <para>
           <guimenuitem>Properties&hellip;</guimenuitem> &mdash;
           opens the <link linkend="APPLET-prefs">
           <guilabel>Properties</guilabel></link> dialog.
          </para>
         </listitem>

         <listitem>
          <para>
           <guimenuitem>Help</guimenuitem> &mdash;
           displays this document.
          </para>
         </listitem>

         <listitem>
          <para>
           <guimenuitem>About&hellip;</guimenuitem> &mdash;
           shows basic information about <application>APPLET
           Applet</application>, including the applet's version and the
           author's name.
          </para>
         </listitem>

        </itemizedlist>
       </para>
      </sect2>

      <!-- ============= Customization ============================= -->
      <sect2 id="APPLET-prefs">
        <title>Customization</title>
        <para>
          You can customize <application>APPLET</application>
          applet by right-clicking on it and choosing
          <guimenuitem>Properties&hellip;</guimenuitem>. This will open the
          <interface>Properties</interface> dialog(shown in <xref
          linkend="APPLET-settings-fig">), which allows you to
          change various settings.
        </para>

        <figure id="APPLET-settings-fig">
         <title>Properties dialog</title>
         <screenshot>
          <screeninfo>Properties dialog</screeninfo>
          <graphic format="png" fileref="APPLET_settings"
          srccredit="YOURNAME">
          </graphic>
         </screenshot>
        </figure>

        <para>
         The properties are:
         <itemizedlist>

          <listitem>
           <para>
            (Configuration Item Label) &mdash; If this button is
            checked&hellip;(description)
           </para>
          </listitem>

          <listitem>
           <para>
            (Configuration Item Label) &mdash; Selecting this
            button&hellip;(description)
           </para>
          </listitem>

          <listitem>
           <para>
            (Configuration Item Label) &mdash; Enter the name of
            &hellip;(description)
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </itemizedlist>
        </para>

        <para>
          After you have made all the changes you want, click on
          <guibutton>OK</guibutton> to apply the changes and close the
          <interface>Properties</interface> dialog. To cancel the changes
          and return to previous values, click the
          <guibutton>Close</guibutton> button.
        </para>
      </sect2>

      <!-- ============= Bugs ================================== -->
      <!-- This section should describe known bugs and limitations of
           the program if there are any - please be frank and list all
           problems you know of -->
      <sect2 id="bugs">
       <title>Known Bugs and Limitations</title>
       <para>
        This applet has no known bugs.
       </para>
      </sect2>

      <!-- ============= Authors ================================ -->

      <sect2 id="authors">
       <title>Authors</title>
       <para>
        <application>APPLET</application> was written by GNOME-HACKER
        (<email>hacker@gnome.org</email>).  Please send all comments,
        suggestions, and bug
        reports to the <ulink url="http://bugs.gnome.org" type="http">GNOME
        bug tracking database</ulink>. (Instructions for submitting bug
        reports can be found <ulink
        url="http://bugs.gnome.org/Reporting.html" type="http">
        on-line</ulink>.  You can also use <application>Bug Report
        Tool</application> (<command>bug-buddy</command>), available in the
        <guisubmenu>Utilities</guisubmenu> submenu of <guimenu>Main
        Menu</guimenu>, for submitting bug reports.
       </para>

       <para>
        This manual was written by ME
        (<email>MYNAME@MYADDRESS</email>). Please send all comments and
        suggestions regarding this manual to the <ulink type="http"
        url="http://developer.gnome.org/projects/gdp">GNOME Documentation
        Project</ulink>  by sending an email to
        <email>docs@gnome.org</email>. You can also submit comments online
        by using the <ulink type="http"
        url="http://www.gnome.org/gdp/doctable/">GNOME Documentation
        Status Table</ulink>.
       </para>

       <!-- For translations: uncomment this:

       <para>
        Latin translation was done by ME
        (<email>MYNAME@MYADDRESS</email>). Please send all  comments  and
        suggestions regarding this translation to SOMEWHERE.
       </para>

       -->

      </sect2>

      <!-- ============= Application License ============================= -->

      <sect2 id="license">
       <title>License</title>
       <para>
        This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
        modify it under the terms of the <citetitle>GNU General Public
        License</citetitle> as published by the Free Software Foundation;
        either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later
        version.
       </para>
       <para>
        This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
        WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
        MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
        <citetitle>GNU General Public License</citetitle> for more details.
       </para>
       <para>
        A copy of the <citetitle>GNU General Public License</citetitle> is
        included as an appendix to the <citetitle>GNOME Users
        Guide</citetitle>.  You may also obtain a copy of the
        <citetitle>GNU General Public License</citetitle> from the Free
        Software Foundation by visiting <ulink type="http"
        url="http://www.fsf.org">their Web site</ulink> or by writing to
        <address>
         Free Software Foundation, Inc.
         <street>59 Temple Place</street> - Suite 330
         <city>Boston</city>, <state>MA</state> <postcode>02111-1307</postcode>
         <country>USA</country>
        </address>
       </para>
      </sect2>

     </sect1>

## Template 2: Applet Manual For GNOME 2.x

The following templates should be used for all applet manuals in GNOME 2.x releases. You can always get the latest copy of these templates from GDP Documentation Templates.

Note that this template consists of two files. The first file is an introductory chapter. You should not modify this chapter. The second file is the actual applet document, which you should modify to describe the applet you are documenting. You can name the first file whatever you like, such as `gnome-applets.sgml`. Name the second file according to the applet's name: ``appletname`-applet.sgml`. Make sure you update the entity at the top of the shell document to reflect the new name of the applet document.

    <!DOCTYPE book PUBLIC "-//GNOME//DTD DocBook PNG Variant V1.1//EN"[
    <!ENTITY TEMPLATE-APPLET SYSTEM "gnome-applet-template.sgml.part">

    ]>

    <book id="gnome-applets">

     <bookinfo>
      <title>GNOME Applets</title>
      <authorgroup>
       <author><firstname>Telsa</firstname><surname>Gwynne</surname></author>
       <author><firstname>John</firstname><surname>Fleck</surname></author>
       <author><firstname>David</firstname><surname>Mason</surname>
          <affiliation><orgname>Red Hat, Inc.</orgname></affiliation>
        </author>
        <author><firstname>Dan</firstname><surname>Mueth</surname></author>
        <author><firstname>Alexander</firstname><surname>Kirillov</surname></author>
      </authorgroup>
      <edition>GNOME Applets version 0.1 for GNOME 1.1.5</edition>
      <pubdate>2000</pubdate>
      <copyright>
       <year>2000</year>
       <holder>Telsa Gwynne, John Fleck, Red Hat Inc., Dan Mueth, and
        Alexander Kirillov</holder>
      </copyright>
      <legalnotice>
       <para>
        Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this
        manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are
        preserved on all copies.
       </para>
       <para>
        Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of
        this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that
        the entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
        permission notice identical to this one.
       </para>
       <para>
        Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this
        manual into another language, under the above conditions for modified
        versions, except that this permission notice may be stated in a
        translation approved by the Free Software Foundation.
       </para>
       <para>
        Many of the names used by companies to distinguish their products and
        services are claimed as trademarks. Where those names appear in any
        GNOME documentation, and those trademarks are made aware to the members
        of the GNOME Documentation Project, the names have been printed in caps
        or initial caps.
       </para>
      </legalnotice>
     </bookinfo>

     <!-- #### Introduction ###### -->
     <chapter id="applets-intro">
      <title>Introduction</title>

      <!-- #### Intro | What Are Applets? ###### -->
      <sect1 id="applets-what-are">
       <title>What Are Applets?</title>
       <para>
        Applets are one of the most popular and useful objects you can add
        to your <interface>Panel</interface> to customize your desktop.
        An applet is a small application which runs inside a small area of
        your <interface>Panel</interface>. Applets have been written for
        a wide range of purposes.  Some are very powerful interactive
        tools, such as the <application>Tasklist</application> Applet
        which allows you to easily
        control all of your main applications.  Others are simple system
        monitors, displaying information such as the amount of power left
        in the battery on your laptop (see <application>Battery Charge
        Monitor</application>) or weather
        information(see <application>GNOME Weather</application>).  Some
        are simply for amusement(see <application>Fish</application>).
       </para>

       <para>
        Applets are similar to swallowed applications in that both of them
        reside within the <interface>Panel</interface>. However,
        swallowed applications are generally applications which were
        not designed to run within the <interface>Panel</interface>.
        Typically one will swallow an application which already exists in
        the main <interface>desktop</interface> area, putting it into your
        <interface>Panel</interface>.  The application will continue to
        run in the <interface>Panel</interface> until you end the
        application or  unswallow it,  placing it back onto the main part of
        your desktop when you need to.
       </para>

       <para>
        <figure id="example-applets-fig">
         <title>Example Applets</title>
         <screenshot>
          <screeninfo>Example Applets</screeninfo>
           <graphic fileref="example_applets" format="png"
           srccredit="muet">
           </graphic>
         </screenshot>
        </figure>
        Several example applets are shown in <xref
        linkend="example-applets-fig">.  From left to right, they are: (1)
        <application>Mixer Applet</application>, which allows you to turn
        on/off sound and control its volume by clicking on the applet.  (2)
        <application>Sound Monitor</application> Applet, which displays
        the current volume of sound being played and allows you to control
        various sound features.  (3) <application>GTCD</application>
        Applet, a CD player which has all its controls
        available in the applet and displays the track and time. (4)
        <application>Drive Mount</application> Applet, used to mount and
        unmount drives with a single click of the mouse. (5)
        <application>Desk Guide</application> which allows you to view
        and control multiple virtual screens. (6)
        <application>Tasklist</application> Applet which allows you to
        control your various windows and applications.
       </para>
       <para>
        There are many other applets to choose from.  The rest of this
        chapter will explain the basic information to get you started
        adding, moving, and removing applets from your
        <interface>Panels</interface> and using them. The following
        chapters go through each of the standard GNOME applets describing
        them in detail.  There are also additional applets which can be
        downloaded off the Web.   See <ulink type="http"
         url="http://www.gnome.org/applist/list-martin.phtml">The GNOME
        Software Map</ulink> for lists of additional GNOME applications
        and applets.
       </para>
       <para>
        As you read through the the rest of this chapter, you should try
        adding and removing applets from your <interface>Panel</interface> and
        experiment with them freely.
       </para>
      </sect1>

      <!-- #### Intro | Adding, Moving, and Removing Applets ###### -->
      <sect1 id="applet-add-move-replace">
       <title>Adding, Moving, and Removing Applets</title>

       <sect2 id="adding-applets">
        <title>Adding Applets to a Panel</title>
        <para>
         To add an applet to a <interface>Panel</interface>, right-click
         on the <interface>Panel</interface> and select
         <menuchoice><guimenu>Panel</guimenu><guisubmenu>Add to panel</guisubmenu>
         <guisubmenu>Applet</guisubmenu></menuchoice>. This will show you
         the menu of all the applets on your system, divided into
         categories. Choosing any applet from this menu will add it to the
         <interface>Panel</interface>.
        </para>
       </sect2>

       <sect2 id="moving-applets">
        <title>Moving Applets In or Between Panels</title>
        <para>
         It is easy to move applets in a <interface>Panel</interface> or
         between two <interface>Panels</interface>. If you have a
         three-button mouse, just move the mouse over the applet, depress
         the middle mouse button and drag the applet to its new location,
         releasing the middle mouse button when you are finished.  Note
         that you can drag applets within a <interface>Panel</interface>
         or between two <interface>Panels</interface> this way. If you
         don't have a three-button mouse, just
         right-click on the applet and choose
         <guimenuitem>Move</guimenuitem>. The cursor will turn into a
         cross and the applet will move with your mouse until you press
         any mouse button to indicate you are finished moving it.
         If, in the course of this movement, it hits
         other objects, the behavior depends on the global preferences
         you have set for your <interface>Panels</interface> in the
         <application>GNOME Control Center</application>: the applet you are
         moving can switch places with other objects, "push" all objects
         it meets, or "jump" over all other objects without disturbing
         them. You can also override the default behavior by holding
         <keycap>Shift</keycap> button (for "push" mode),
         <keycap>Ctrl</keycap> (for "switched" mode), or
         <keycap>Alt</keycap> (for "free" mode, i.e. jumping other other
         objects without disturbing them) button while dragging.
        </para>
        <para>
         To change the global Panel preferences, right-click on any applet
         or <interface>Panel</interface> and select
         <menuchoice>
          <guimenu>Panel</guimenu>
          <guimenuitem>Global Preferences...</guimenuitem>
         </menuchoice>.
         The <guilabel>Default movement mode</guilabel> is set under the
         <guilabel>Applets</guilabel> tab.
        </para>
       </sect2>

       <sect2 id="removing-applets">
        <title>Removing Applets from a Panel</title>
        <para>
         To remove an applet from a <interface>Panel</interface>,
         right-click on the applet and select <guimenuitem>Remove from
         panel...</guimenuitem>.
        </para>
       </sect2>
      </sect1>

      <!-- #### Intro | The Right-Click Pop-Up Menu ###### -->
      <sect1 id="right-click-pop-up-menu">
       <title>The Right-Click Pop-Up Menu</title>
       <para>
        Clicking the right mouse button on any applet brings up
        a <guimenu>pop-up menu</guimenu>. This
        menu always has certain standard menu items in it and
        often has additional items which vary depending on the particular
        applet.
       </para>
       <sect2 id="standard-right-click-items">
        <title>Standard Pop-Up Items</title>
        <para>
         All applets should have the following items in their right-click
         <guimenu>pop-up menu</guimenu>:
         <variablelist>
          <varlistentry>
           <term>Remove from panel</term>
           <listitem>
            <para>
             The <guimenuitem>Remove from panel</guimenuitem> menu item
             removes the applet from the <interface>Panel</interface>.
            </para>
           </listitem>
          </varlistentry>

          <varlistentry>
           <term>Move</term>
           <listitem>
            <para>
             After selecting <guimenuitem>Move</guimenuitem>, your mouse
             pointer will change appearance (typically to a cross with
             arrows in each direction). As you move your mouse, the applet
             will move with it.  When you have finished moving the applet,
             click any mouse button and the applet will anchor in its
             current position.  Note that applets can be moved between two
             <interface>Panels</interface> this way.
            </para>
           </listitem>
          </varlistentry>

          <varlistentry>
           <term>Panel</term>
           <listitem>
            <para>
             The <guisubmenu>Panel</guisubmenu> submenu contains various
             items and submenus for adding and removing
             <interface>Panels</interface> and applets and for changing
             the configuration.
            </para>
           </listitem>
          </varlistentry>

          <varlistentry>
           <term>About</term>
           <listitem>
            <para>
             The <guimenuitem>About...</guimenuitem> menu item brings up a
             dialogue box containing various information about the applet,
             typically including the applet's  name, version, author,
             copyright, license and desciption.
            </para>
           </listitem>
          </varlistentry>

          <varlistentry>
           <term>Help</term>
           <listitem>
            <para>
             The <guimenuitem>Help</guimenuitem> menu item brings up the help
             manual for the applet.
            </para>
           </listitem>
          </varlistentry>
         </variablelist>
        </para>
       </sect2>

       <sect2 id="applet-properties-dialog">
        <title>The Applet Properties Dialog</title>
        <para>
         Many applets have customizable properties.  These applets will
         have a <guimenuitem>Properties...</guimenuitem> menu item in their
         right-click <guimenu>pop-up menu</guimenu> which brings up the
         <interface>Properties</interface> dialog where you can alter the
         appearance or behaviour of the applet.
         <figure id="example-props-dialog-fig">
          <title>An Example Applet Properties Dialog</title>
          <screenshot>
           <screeninfo>An Example Applets Properties Dialog</screeninfo>
           <graphic fileref="applet_props_dialog" format="png"
            srccredit="muet">
           </graphic>
          </screenshot>
         </figure>
         All <interface>Properties</interface> dialogs have the following
         buttons at the bottom of the dialog:
         <itemizedlist>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            <guibutton>OK</guibutton> &mdash;
            Pressing <guibutton>OK</guibutton> will activate any changes
            in the properties you have made and close the
            <interface>Properties</interface> dialog.
           </para>
          </listitem>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            <guibutton>Apply</guibutton> &mdash;
            Pressing <guibutton>Apply</guibutton> at any time will
            make your changes active without closing the
            <interface>Properties</interface> dialog.  This is helpful if
            you would like to test the effects of the changes you have
            made but may want to continue changing the properties.
           </para>
          </listitem>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            <guibutton>Close</guibutton> &mdash;
            Pressing <guibutton>Close</guibutton> will close the
            <interface>Properties</interface> dialog.  Only changes in the
            configuration which were previously applied with the
            <guibutton>Apply</guibutton> button will persist.  Other
            changes will not be made active.
           </para>
          </listitem>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            <guibutton>Help</guibutton> &mdash;
            Pressing <guibutton>Help</guibutton> brings up the manual for
            the application, opening it to the page describing the
            <interface>Properties</interface> dialog.
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </itemizedlist>
        </para>
       </sect2>

       <sect2 id="common-right-click-items">
        <title>Other Common Pop-Up Items</title>
        <para>
         Many applets also have one or more of the following items in their
         right-click pop-up menu:
         <variablelist>
          <varlistentry>
           <term>Run...</term>
           <listitem>
            <para>
             The <guimenuitem>Run...</guimenuitem> menu item generally
             invokes a program  which is related to the applet in some way
             but which runs in its own window rather than in the
             panel. For example:
            </para>
            <orderedlist>
             <listitem>
              <para>
               The <application>CPU Load</application> applet, which monitors
               what programs are running, has a <guimenuitem>Run
               gtop...</guimenuitem>  menu item. Selecting this menu item
               starts <application>GTop</application>, which allows you to
               view and control programs which are running.
              </para>
             </listitem>
             <listitem>
              <para>
               The <application>CD Player</application> applet has a
               <guimenuitem>Run gtcd...</guimenuitem> menu item which
               starts the GNOME <application>CD Player</application> when
               selected, which has more capabilities than the applet.
              </para>
             </listitem>
            </orderedlist>
           </listitem>
          </varlistentry>
         </variablelist>
        </para>
       </sect2>
      </sect1>

      <sect1 id="feedback">
       <title>Feedback</title>
       <sect2 id="reporting-bugs">
        <title>Reporting Applet Bugs</title>
        <para>
         GNOME users are encouraged to report bugs to <ulink type="http"
         url="http://bugs.gnome.org">The GNOME Bug Tracking
         System</ulink>.  The easiest way to submit bugs is to use the
         <application>Bug Report Tool</application> program by selecting
         <menuchoice>
          <guimenu>Main Menu</guimenu> <guisubmenu>Utilities</guisubmenu>
          <guimenuitem>Bug Report Tool</guimenuitem>
         </menuchoice>.
         Be sure to be complete in describing what you did to cause the
         bug to surface and, if possible, describe how the developer can
         reproduce the the scenario.
        </para>
       </sect2>
       <sect2 id="documentation-feedback">
        <title>Providing Feedback</title>
        <para>
         GNOME users are welcome to provide suggestions for how
         applications and documentation can be improved.  Suggestions for
         application changes should be submitted using the
         <application>Bug Report Tool</application> discussed above.
         Suggestions for documentation changes can be emailed directly to
         the documentation author (whose email should be included in the
         "Authors" section of the document) or by sending an email to
         <email>docs@gnome.org</email>.
        </para>
       </sect2>
       <sect2 id="joining-gnome">
        <title>Joining GNOME</title>
        <para>
         GNOME is a community project, created by hundreds of programmers,
         documentation writers, icon design artists, web masters, and
         other people, most of whom work on a volunteer basis.  New GNOME
         contributors are always welcome. To join the GNOME team, visit
         these web sites: developers &mdash; <ulink type="http"
         url="http://developer.gnome.org">The GNOME Development
         Site</ulink>, documentation writers &mdash; <ulink type="http"
         url="http://developer.gnome.org/projects/gdp">The GNOME Documentation
         Project</ulink>, icon design artists &mdash; <ulink type="http"
         url="http://gnome-icons.sourceforge.net/">Gnome Icon Web</ulink>,
         general &mdash; <ulink type="http"
         url="http://developer.gnome.org/helping/">Helping GNOME</ulink>,
         or just join the gnome-list email list (see <ulink type="http"
         url="http://www.gnome.org/resources/mailing-lists.html">GNOME Mailing
         Lists</ulink>) to discuss what you are interested in doing.
        </para>
       </sect2>
      </sect1>
     </chapter>

     <!-- ############### Template Applets ##################### -->
     <chapter id="template-applets">
      <title>Template Applets</title>

      &TEMPLATE-APPLET

     </chapter>

    </book>

      <!-- Please replace everywhere below GNOMEAPPLET with the name of -->
      <!-- your applet. Most importantly, all id attributes should start -->
      <!-- with the name of your applet - this is necessary to avoid name -->
      <!-- conflict among different applets -->
      <!-- Please replace YOUR-NAME with your name and YOUR-EMAIL with your email-->
      <!-- Please replace HACKER-NAME with the applet author's name and -->
      <!-- HACKER-EMAIL with the applet author's email -->

      <!-- You should name your file: GNOMEAPPLET-applet.sgml -->
      <!-- Screenshots should be in PNG format and placed in the -->
      <!-- same directory as GNOMEAPPLET-applet.sgml -->

      <!-- Applet docs will be merged into <chapter>'s inside a -->
      <!-- <book>. Thus, the indentation below (2 spaces before the <sect1>) is -->
      <!-- correct.-->

      <!-- Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of -->
      <!-- this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission -->
      <!-- notice are  preserved on all copies. -->
      <!-- -->
      <!-- Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of -->
      <!-- this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided -->
      <!-- that the entire resulting derived work is distributed under the -->
      <!-- terms of a permission notice identical to this one. -->
      <!-- -->
      <!-- Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this -->
      <!-- manual into another language, under the above conditions for -->
      <!-- modified versions, except that this permission notice may be -->
      <!-- stated in a translation approved by the Foundation. -->

      <!-- ###############   GNOMEAPPLET   ############### -->
      <sect1 id="GNOMEAPPLET">
       <title>GNOMEAPPLET Applet</title>

       <para>
        <application>GNOMEAPPLET</application> applet, shown in <xref
        linkend="GNOMEAPPLET-fig">, does this and that. To learn how to
        add this applet to a <interface>Panel</interface>, see <xref
        linkend="adding-applets">.
       </para>

       <figure id="GNOMEAPPLET-fig">
       <title>GNOMEAPPLET</title>
       <screenshot>
        <screeninfo>GNOMEAPPLET</screeninfo>
        <graphic format="png" fileref="GNOMEAPPLET-fig" srccredit="ME">
        </graphic>
       </screenshot>
       </figure>

       <sect2 id="GNOMEAPPLET-usage">
        <title>Usage</title>
        <para>
         This applet does nothing. To use it, just
         left-click on it and it will instantly do nothing.
        </para>
       </sect2>

       <sect2 id="GNOMEAPPLET-right-click">
        <title>Right-Click Pop-Up Menu Items</title>
        <para>
         In addition to the standard menu items (see <xref
         linkend="standard-right-click-items">), the right-click pop-up menu has
         the following items:
         <itemizedlist>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            <guimenuitem>Properties...</guimenuitem> &mdash; This menu
            item opens the <interface>Properties</interface> dialog (see
            <xref linkend="GNOMEAPPLET-properties">) which allows you to
            customize the appearance and behavior of this applet.
           </para>
          </listitem>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            <guimenuitem>Run Hello World...</guimenuitem> &mdash; This
            menu item starts the program <application>Hello
            World</application>, used to say "hello" to the world.
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </itemizedlist>
        </para>
       </sect2>

       <sect2 id="GNOMEAPPLET-properties">
        <title>Properties</title>
        <para>
         You can configure <application>GNOMEAPPLET</application> applet by
         right-clicking on the applet and choosing the
         <guimenuitem>Properties...</guimenuitem> menu item. This will open the
         <interface>Properties</interface> dialog, shown in <xref
         linkend="GNOMEAPPLET-properties-fig">.
        </para>
        <figure id="GNOMEAPPLET-properties-fig">
         <title>Properties Dialog</title>
         <screenshot>
          <screeninfo>Properties Dialog</screeninfo>
          <graphic format="png" fileref="GNOMEAPPLET-properties" srccredit="ME">
          </graphic>
         </screenshot>
        </figure>

        <para>
         To change the color of the applet, click on the
         <guibutton>color</guibutton> button. To change other properties,
         click on other buttons.
        </para>

        <para>
         For more information on the <interface>Properties</interface>
         dialog, including descriptions of the <guibutton>OK</guibutton>,
         <guibutton>Apply</guibutton>, <guibutton>Cancel</guibutton>, and
         <guibutton>Help</guibutton> buttons, see <xref
         linkend="applet-properties-dialog">.
        </para>
       </sect2>

       <sect2 id="GNOMEAPPLET-bugs">
        <title> Known Bugs and Limitations</title>
        <para>
         There are no known bugs in the
         <application>GNOMEAPPLET</application> applet.
        </para>
       </sect2>

       <sect2 id="GNOMEAPPLET-authors">
        <title>Authors</title>
        <para>
         This applet was writen by HACKER-NAME
         <email>HACKER-EMAIL</email>.  The documentation for this applet
         which you are reading now was written by
         YOUR-NAME <email>YOUR-EMAIL</email>. For information on submitting
         bug reports and suggestions for improvements, see <xref
         linkend="feedback">.
        </para>
       </sect2>

      </sect1>