<teepee>
so shall we toss the "programmers" part of the subitle into the trash? it's been wrong for a long time anyway regardless of spelling and number of apostrophes
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<InPhase>
teepee: "Programmatic" is the term we need.
<InPhase>
teepee: It is still by definition, a programming approach. We don't check credentials at the door, however. ;)
<teepee>
true, but that sounds like that works only for native speakers
<InPhase>
"Solid" could maybe be removed as well.
<InPhase>
Nobody says you can't print with 0% infill. ;)
<InPhase>
I always describe it to people as programmatic 3D modeling, because that's the central philosophy behind how OpenSCAD differs from the majority of other solutions. And, honestly, most of the other programmatic 3D modeling solutions are trying to present themselves as an OpenSCAD alternative.
<teepee>
yes, human languages are even more a mess than most computer languages
<InPhase>
Programmatic is like "parametric" but up a notch in what it says. The key thing OpenSCAD has that non-programmatic approaches don't, is all the core stuff that comes with programming as a base, like a baked in ability to use flexible custom abstractions in the design of objects.
<InPhase>
So while one of the core goals is parametric design, parametric means something different when it's not just a few values derived from each other, but the shape itself being able to morph in arbitrary manners as a result of value changes.
<teepee>
that sounds like a good first paragraph for the introduction
<InPhase>
Where at, on the main page?
<teepee>
whereever it's needed, website, packages, about screen, appstores
<teepee>
the current one always feels a bit awkward
<InPhase>
I could take a stab at some new text phrasing. Maybe without fluffy words like "stuff".
<InPhase>
But maybe point to some specific locations to update. I kind of have to see surrounding contexts to fire up the right brain cells for this.
<teepee>
but that's used everywhere, sometimes only the first paragraph, sometimes the whole section
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<InPhase>
teepee: My proposal for About page text: https://bpa.st/J6XA Give that a review and let me know what you think. :)
<InPhase>
I think the first paragraph is properly extractable, as would be the first and second paragraph. Paragraphs 3, 4, 5, and 6 are an appropriate About page sales pitch of the program and ecosystem, but are not designed to be extracted for shorter descriptions like in distro package labeling.
<teepee>
nice!
<InPhase>
I purged some specifics like DXF, STL, and OFF as obviously these became dated and incomplete.
<teepee>
actually I can see 1,4,6 standalone as more detailed description than just 1
<teepee>
but 1 alone is also already a good summary
<InPhase>
I'd skip 6 in a package description, as it starts off with why you might not want it. :)
<InPhase>
The second half of paragraph 6 though, starting with "The heart of designing" can be extracted on its own though.
<teepee>
that's 5, no?
<teepee>
6 = last?
<teepee>
let me recount :)
<InPhase>
Oh. Yes, I miscounted. :)
<InPhase>
Well, there are many variations of extractions that work then. ;)
<teepee>
yep, which is good, quite adaptable to available space and intended detail
<InPhase>
(1, 4, 6), (1, 4, last half of 5), (1, 2, 4, last half of 5), etc.
<teepee>
but first dinner, to be ready for the new year :)
<InPhase>
I think I still have access to that website repo, and can swap out the About text if you think it's good to go as-is.
<InPhase>
Ah, but then it still says "The Programmers Solid 3D Modeller" there at the top of all the pages in big letters... Which was the original problem statement to fix.
* InPhase
ponders.
<InPhase>
I would say that should be swapped with "Programmatic 3D CAD Modeling". Which is a thing which is now explained clearly in the About page.
<InPhase>
I think it's fair to say we are the world's centerpoint for this as a notion and philosophy, so it's on us to present the term and define it.
<InPhase>
Certainly we're not the only project doing it by any measure. But I think this is the most prominent project that is primarily focused on it as a centerpoint.
<InPhase>
I see all the website instances of this with rgrep, and can update all of those as well if we agree it should be changed accordingly.
<teepee>
what about that hipster version? from the issue screenshot ^
<teepee>
I even have a t-shirt with that for years :-)
<teepee>
can't find the flyers though. kintel do you have those flyers with the new design as PDF? I think I only have the paper version lying around somewhere
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<kintel>
I probably have them lying around somewhere - it's been some years since I tested that concept
<kintel>
I even made a popup-banner for a make faire :)
<InPhase>
:) Well, "Design. Code. Create." sounds like something a marketing person would make to get all the buzzwords in and hit all the trendy bits, but without actually communicating clearly. ;)
<kintel>
I came up with it when in startup mode, so I was clearly influenced by what I observed around me ;)
<kintel>
Goal was to make it easy to remember and recognize, but yeah, it's more like a shoe brand tagline
<InPhase>
As far as that genre of communication goes, it's quite good I think. But I also think there's merit to not using that genre, given the intellectual caliber and propensities of the primary target audience.
<InPhase>
Aristotle's first rule of rhetoric is to examine the audience. :)
<kintel>
Can't remember which back page I used; it's a 3-way folder leaflet
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<InPhase>
A good brochure actually. I like almost everything on it. I'd maybe swap out "Designing with code is digital literacy" as unclear buzzwording, swap tense of the green box on page 2 with "Designing", "Teaching", "Developing", and "Creating", add the clarifying Oxford comma after "Open Source" in the yellow block, replace "design. code. create." and pick a demo piece for step 4 which goes one notch
<InPhase>
farther away from looking like blocking primitives piled up awkwardly so people can more quickly picture how this approach can lead to realistic useful designs. Step 4 is after all the "get buy-in to the idea" part of the brochure.
<kintel>
I think the main challenge is that, to need a brochure, we need to do in-person outreach :)
<InPhase>
Although actually the "design. code. create." is less troublesome there, due to the way it integrates with the rest of the content. So if there were ever a place where it fits, a brochure with this structure would be it.
<InPhase>
Well yeah, brochures as a whole have certainly become less popular. ;)
<kintel>
One of the other main ideas was to clean up the logo to make it easier to transfer to various use-cases, look better in monochome etc.
<InPhase>
Now what you need is a QR code. lol
<kintel>
My ultimate plan was to design a coffee mug based on the logo, and print in in ceramics
<kintel>
Heh, post-pandemic, QR codes are a thing :)
<InPhase>
I used to go to scientific conferences where I was presenting a poster with copies of my poster printed out to hand out. This has fallen hard out of favor. Now I just slap a QR code to a digital copy of the poster in the corner, which is the current way to do the same. People keep track of QR codes they've scanned better than they keep track of handouts anyway.
<kintel>
QR code with auto-signup to a mailing list
<InPhase>
Hahah.
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<teepee>
and yes, I agree that "Design. Code. Create." is a bit marketing speak and in general I don't like that too much, but I think it's still much better than the current slogan
<teepee>
it gives the main workflow OpenSCAD is intended for, it does point out the coding part, it still does not limit to "programmers" and it works visually in different combinations