First Principles For A New User

[Southernsunfish]

I first started experimenting with raster and vector charts back in 1995. I made my own and used CAPN and later some other software. I also have experience with aviation flight management software. I cruise occasionally, single handed in Bass Strait.



I am sorry to say that as a potential user of OpenCPN, the learning curve is too high for me, I am using Ubuntu linux. I don't have time at my desk at home to work out what is happening and the thought of having to play around and/or possibly rely on this software for navigation in bad weather, perhaps in an emergency, makes it unusable at least by me.


The problem is simple - there needs to be a quick start guide, or if there already is, I can't find it in the overly voluminous manuals. There also needs to be a plain vanilla install configuration that is daylight readable by anyone. The opening screen on my install appears to be a night brightness level with grey on grey texts that are impossible to read.



The manual need to be reorganised into a hierarchy of information: Must know, should know and could know is the usual way. I cannot find how to adjust display briightness and pallette in the documentation. Sure, there is stuff about pressing F^6 and cntrlG but it appears to do nothing.


Without the ability for the software to produce a simple readable display, there is no point in me trying to do anything else with this software.


Professional technology companies go to great lengths to write their manuals to be usable by new users with no prior experience of the system. The old story about the new user who was perplexed by the command "Press any key" because she couldn't find the "Any" key isn't a joke. Power users are not the best people to teach the system.



I will look agai at OpenCPN in a few months to see if anythinghas changed.

[mvweebles]

Originally Posted by Southernsunfish

..... Power users are not the best people to teach the system.

Well said. You're not the first to express similar frustration. The guru-elite are pretty proud of their software - anyone who thinks otherwise is not worthy.

There was a recent thread asking if anyone would use OpenCPN of it wasn't free? In response to frustrations like yours, the CF OpenCPN gurus asked for specific suggestions and examples but when offered, concerns were brushed aside as impractical or impossible. To my eyes, a bit thin skinned if your question isn't prefaced with glowing adulation. To their credit, they seem to answer technical propellor-head questions with aplomb. It's the beginner stuff they struggle with. For some reason, learning curve frustration just doesn't register.

Originally Posted by Southernsunfish

I will look agai at OpenCPN in a few months to see if anythinghas changed.

Do keep an open mind and keep coming back. Eventually. You'll bump into someone who can solve a barrier problem for you and get you in your way to the next level. There are some unique features to OpenCPN that justify the frustration though not everyone has a compatible use case. For me, the ability to accurately display satellite images for remote areas is invaluable. There are also so C- charts that cover poorly covered areas. For everything I use Coastal Explorer and have been happy with it for almost 25 years. Very intuitive and relatively stable compared to OpenCPN.

[rgleason]

The manual has been split between Manual Basic and Manual Advanced. It is still being edited. This project involves reorganization of the old manual. We try to take new users in a step by step fashion, starting with the "The Getting Started" section.



If there is some specific problem with the manual, or suggestions to improve the documentation, we are interested. Please keep in mind that the manual is edited by users and programmers, but is primarily maintained by users.

[rgleason]

I am not familiar with this thread or response:
"...CF OpenCPN gurus asked for specific suggestions and examples but when offered, concerns were brushed aside as impractical or impossible."


However that impression was ceetainly not intended.

[rgleason]

Also please note that the program is available on multiple OS and that the user interface has been improved and is being worked on actively.

[rgleason]

https://opencpn.org/wiki/dokuwiki/do...n:manual_basic

[rgleason]

Take a look at

https://opencpn.org/wiki/dokuwiki/do...ted#next_steps

[mvweebles]

Suggestions

1. Pre-load a better base chart than the giant squares and rectangles. Or at least pre-load a better link.

2. Quick start for charts. Make it easier to load US ENC charts (I mention these because they are open source).

3. Pre-build a base chart file structure. Give some automatic priority so they don't get lost if user loads too many chart files.

4. improve how the chart indicators along the bottom margin are represented. May be my stupidity but it took a long time to figure out how to manage charts by toggling these on/off. I also ended up with too many of these and created a mess of my screen. This is where finding a power user was helpful. I know, it's somewhere in the nega-manual, but this is type of stuff that should load super easily at the start. Then let users change as they gain more knowledge and their needs become more specific.

5. Prioritize the plug-ins so icons for certain ones are larger. Chart loader, etc. Some get used a lot, most are some sort of science project they were mistakenly loaded.

I'll wait for the response about how OCPN needs to be super flexible which means none of the above can be done. Or how all a user has to do is read the manual. This is the problem with letting power users make all the decisions on a consumer grade product.

[mvweebles]

Originally Posted by rgleason

Take a look at

https://opencpn.org/wiki/dokuwiki/do...ted#next_steps

One of my suggestions on the other thread was to place a new user in front of a PC and watch him/her as they attempt OpenCPN for the first time. This link would be a great place to start. I think you'd be stunned how quickly the user gives up out of frustration. The instructions make perfect sense if you already know the answer - the underlying statement in the OP about power users writing instructions.

BTW - the suggestion to watch a new user was more or less laughed at by the OCPN Elite. I don't know why I bother.....

[bdbcat]

Sunfish...


Thanks for your report. We are listening.
In the spirit of "watching a new user over their shoulder", I would like to see a screen shot of your initial load of OpenCPN.
There seems clearly something not right about the default settings, somehow.


Thanks
Dave

[rgleason]

Dear Sunfish


This observation has me very attentive
"I think you'd be stunned how quickly the user gives up out of frustration. The instructions make perfect sense if you already know the answer"


Of course this is not our intention and we need to find out how to make "Getting started" easier and more intuitive. If we need to change and improve the manual, lets do it together. I look forward to your reponse to Dave, so maybe new users will have an easier path.

[Southernsunfish]

Opening screen using ubuntu linux. Looks uninviting no practice chart and its hard to read. I don't even know where to find the "options ' tab to try to change things. Finding that wastes five minutes.

[Southernsunfish]

Sorry, I can't post screen shots and I've run out of time again.

[stevead]

1. Count to 10.
2. Take a deep breath.
3. Remember my New Year's Resolution was to be nice.
4. Ah, F..k it.

I don't even know where to find the "options ' tab to try to change things.

I don't know what software you have been using in the past but clearly you have missed the boat, so to speak.
It's the gear icon, like nearly every other piece of software.

[mgrouch]

One suggestion for touchscreen operations
would be to have a crosshairs in the middle of a chart canvas and a single button in a toolbar or detect an area touch around that crosshairs to display a context menu with options to add a waypoint or lookup what the object underneath crosshairs is, or create a point for a distance measurement.

AvNav does it.

Thanks