[Bf-docboard] Good news!

[Ton Roosendaal]

Hi all,

News updates:

1.
I've finally managed to get the original DTP files from the 2.0 guide  
here. This will be reworked to a downloadable pdf, to be sold for a  
friendly price at the e-shop. With the original publisher of the guide  
I'm discussing the rights to do this, but according the publishing  
contract we are allowed to do so!
I don't want to take risks now, so I've asked for an official approval  
of the original Publisher first, to prevent ugly (legal) actions.

2.
Within a very short time I then will donate the original 2.0 Guide text  
and images (as Carsten has, hopefully in DocBook) as Open Content to  
the docboard. This will also include the 2 tutorial guides and the  
1.5/1.8 manual. Quite a nice headstart!
:-)
The only thing I prefer to postpone, is offering the original 2.0 guide  
text too obvious as a stand-alone download at blender.org, because it  
might hurt some of the sales. Hope you understand that...

3.
Gforge project space (a sourceforge fork) is finally shaping up. I  
don't dare to mention a delivery date yet, but the first tests were  
encouraging. The docboard projects will become part of this system as  
well.
Check http://gforge.org for more info.

4.
I've got a publishing deal for the GameKit, for retail sales worldwide.  
The publisher, NoStarch Press, is also very (*very!*) interested in  
publishing a big Complete Definite Bible Blah book on Blender in 2003.
There's a surprising business deal in the making with them, it seems  
that the value of having 'official' Blender Foundation approved  
documentation is worth quite some royalties. This means that the  
DocBoard efforts are potentially going to be in print soon as well.  
With at least - I will make sure about that - appropriate credits  
mentioned for contributors, and free copies of the book!

Cya soon, and happy holidays!

-Ton-

------------------------------------------------------------------------ 
--
Ton Roosendaal  Blender Foundation ton@blender.org