Infrastructure

Some additional comments to my first posting; partially triggered by reading website mails.

What follows is basically a sketch on how the LibO download page (http://www.libreoffice.org/download/libreoffice-fresh/) could look like to provide all information needed and being very easy to be used..

I had a look at the AOO download site and their "Download Apache OpenOffice" looks pretty good to me; the rest I regard not as that good.

As for our page "http://www.libreoffice.org/download/libreoffice-fresh/" , my proposal for an easy to understand and easy to handle LibO download page is:
- Use the OS and language selection in the same way as AOO
- For the versions have 3 selection fields:
------Still version (currently 4.2.8 as default offer, but earlier versions of the same branch could be selected back to 4.2.4 )
----- Fresh version (currently 4.3.5 as default offer, but earlier versions of the same branch could be selected back to 4.3.4)
----- Experimental version (currently 4.4.0 as default offer, but earlier versions of the same branch could be selected back to 4.4.0 if newer already available)

Shifting of the versions should be done when the experimental version has reached x.y. 4. With other words, the experimental version should then become the fresh version and the previous fresh becomes the still version. The still version would be out of support and will available under "Older Versions". Experimental version should clearly be explained as only for advanced users, still version for conservative users, and the fresh version for people who want to enjoy a stable version with new features.

Older Versions - for them there should be only one button called "Older Versions" leading to http://downloadarchive.documentfoundation.org/libreoffice/old/
On the current homepage I have problems to find the older version page; fortunately I once saved the link.

SDK and Source Code - like for the "Older Versions" only one button leading to a separate page. People who want to download the source code - I guess - are only a few compared to downloaders of version ready for use.. Thus people with source code interest can be guided with one button to a separate page.

The text and link "For commercial support around LibreOffice see our list of certified partners." and a link to the extensions could become big green buttons currently on the right side. If needed the currently green buttons on the right side could be made a bit smaller. Therefore most likely all can fit on the page that scrolling might not even be needed.

Bringing effectiveness & efficiency into companies' operation is my daily work and from that point of view I am looking at our LibO download page and made above proposal. Having said this, I do NOT want to negatively criticizes the work done a group of volunteers before. Without the work of these volunteers I would not have been able to right what I wrote.. I only keep in mind that improvements are a never ending story.

I also want to apologize for being forced to say that I unfortunately don't have the knowledge to program such a page. Otherwise I would offer to program these ideas in test version somewhere at my homepage. (My own homepage is built by my ITWYB (IT Wizard Younger Brother).)

Completely agreed with Bjoern; we love to have people testing our master builds - this is by far the best place to watch for changes, and test them in such a way to improve quality the fastest, and get to know the developers too: http://dev-builds.libreoffice.org/daily/master/ Thanks.