linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH v3 7/7] docs: add a man-pages link to the front page

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Date:   Wed, 28 Sep 2022 15:00:37 -0600
From:   Jonathan Corbet <corbet@....net>
To:     Thorsten Leemhuis <linux@...mhuis.info>, linux-doc@...r.kernel.org
Cc:     linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org, Kees Cook <keescook@...omium.org>,
        Jani Nikula <jani.nikula@...ux.intel.com>,
        Joe Perches <joe@...ches.com>,
        David Vernet <void@...ifault.com>
Subject: Re: [PATCH v3 7/7] docs: add a man-pages link to the front page

Thorsten Leemhuis <linux@...mhuis.info> writes:

> On 27.09.22 18:05, Jonathan Corbet wrote:
>> Readers looking for user-oriented information may benefit from it.
>> 
>> Signed-off-by: Jonathan Corbet <corbet@....net>
>> ---
>>  Documentation/index.rst | 2 ++
>>  1 file changed, 2 insertions(+)
>> 
>> diff --git a/Documentation/index.rst b/Documentation/index.rst
>> index 5a700548ae82..85eab6e990ab 100644
>> --- a/Documentation/index.rst
>> +++ b/Documentation/index.rst
>> @@ -76,6 +76,8 @@ developers seeking information on the kernel's user-space APIs.
>>     User-space tools <tools/index>
>>     userspace-api/index
>>  
>> +See also: the `Linux man pages <https://www.kernel.org/doc/man-pages/>`_,
>> +which are kept separately from the kernel's own documentation.
>
> People following that link might be inclined to click on the section 1
> and then find a lot of stuff that has nothing or not much to do with the
> kernel and then might feel lost. So how about a text like this instead:
>
> ```
> See also the `Linux man pages <https://www.kernel.org/doc/man-pages/>`_,
> as that where some of the kernel's documentation is kept. Among it are
> for example descriptions of Linux' `system calls
> <https://man7.org/linux/man-pages/dir_section_2.html>`_ and `devices
> <https://man7.org/linux/man-pages/dir_section_4.html>`_; the sections
> `files <https://man7.org/linux/man-pages/dir_section_5.html>`_ and
> `overviews, conventions, and miscellaneous
> <https://man7.org/linux/man-pages/dir_section_7.html>`_ also contain
> many documents dedicated to aspects of the kernel.
> ```

Honestly, if the landing page for the man pages is not sufficiently
clear to guide readers toward their goal, then I think the fix needs to
be applied there.  Reproducing parts of it on the kernel front page
seems like the wrong solution, somehow...

Thanks,

jon