IntroPages

= "Welcome" to the Eclipse Intro =

PageOutline

Eclipse provides intro pages, accessible via the menu Help/Welcome, which also show up when the user starts CSS for the first time.

CSS products used to include a custom welcome/intro.

ITER collaborators suggested the use of the "Universal Intro", see online help.

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The following is based on thoughts collected from email threads; a basis for discussion

== Use the Universal Intro == CSS products should use the Universal Intro. That way plugins that offer something that's visible to the user (SDS/BOY, Alarm System, Data Browser, ...) can contribute content. No need to update a custom, product-specific intro when adding/changing plugins.

== How to Contribute == For plugin org.csstudio.XXX, provide intro in separate plugin org.csstudio.XXX.intro. That way the product integrator can select to include or omit the intro content.

== Where to Contribute == Technically, one can contribute to universal intro pages overview,firststeps,tutorials,samples,whatsnew,migrate,webresources.

Should we enable them all in a CSS product? Many may remain empty, which confuses the user.

Suggestion is that CSS products only enable the following:

• overview This is where each site can publish their site-specific content. {{{ Welcome to CSS for ... users! CSS is ... To get started, read the 'first steps' that introduce the various tools. You can also read the online help, ... }}}

• firststeps This is where each tool, via a separate org.csstudio..intro plugin, can contribute some how-to-get-started content.

• whatsnew This is were each site and each tool may add info about most recent changes, so users who've used CSS before can read up on what changed

== Issue: Main Intro Screen == There isn't much to customize beyond

• Title
• Small icon

NSLS2 example shows that one can hack into the Title by setting it to ".....

Second line

Third line

" because the title happens to be rendered as a level 1 header. Unclear how long that will work.

== Issue: Cheat Sheets == In principle, it's nice to be able to link to Cheat Sheets from for example the firststeps section with code like this: {{{

But that requires the plugin org.eclipse.platform, which in turn adds quite some intro content that is useful for Eclipse programmers but potentially confusing for CSS end-users.