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% ======================================================================
\KOMAProvidesFile{preface.tex}
- [$Date: 2019-10-10 10:04:30 +0200 (Thu, 10 Oct 2019) $
+ [$Date: 2019-12-19 10:20:31 +0100 (Thu, 19 Dec 2019) $
Preface to version 3.25]
-\translator{Markus Kohm\and Karl Hagen}
+\translator{Markus Kohm\and Karl Hagen\and DeepL}
-% Date of the translated German file: 2019-10-10
+% Date of the translated German file: 2019-12-19
-\addchap{Preface to \KOMAScript~3.25}
+\addchap{Preface to \KOMAScript~3.28}
-The \KOMAScript~3.25 manual,\---\,especially the German version\,---\,once
+The \KOMAScript~3.28 manual,\,---\,not only the German version\,---\,once
again benefits from the fact that a new edition of the print version
\cite{book:komascript} and the eBook version \cite{ebook:komascript} will be
published at almost the same time as this version. This has led to many
improvements which also affect the free manual, in both the German and the
English version.
-One of these improvements is the linking to the explanations of commands,
-environments, options, etc., within the manual. To avoid the temptation to
-jump to the beginning of the explanation within the explanation itself, and
-so to avoid reading recursively, as it were, these links only take effect
-if they actually lead away from the current location.
+In \KOMAScript~3.28 there are also some significant changes. In some cases,
+compatibility with earlier versions has been waived. Thus a recommendation
+from the ranks of \emph{The LaTeX Project Team} regarding \Macro{if\dots}
+statements is complied with. If you use such statements, you should refer to
+the manual again.
-Another important improvement to the English guide has been accomplished by
-Karl Hagen, who has newly translated the entire manual. Many, many thanks to
-him! Additional editors or translators, however, would still be welcome!
-
-\iffree{Readers of this free, screen version, however, still have to live with
- some restrictions. So some information\,---\,mainly intended for advanced
- users or capable of turning an ordinary user into an advanced one\,---\,is
- reserved for the printed book, which currently exists only in German. As a
- result, some links in this manual lead to a page that simply mentions this
- fact. In addition, the free version is scarcely suitable for making a
- hard-copy. The focus, instead, is on using it on screen, in parallel with
- the document you are working on. It still has no optimized wrapping but is
- almost a first draft, in which both the paragraph and page breaks are in
- some cases quite poor. Corresponding optimizations are reserved for the
- German book editions.}{}
+It is not just about the manual that I now receive little criticism. I
+conclude from this fact that \KOMAScript{} has reached the level that it
+fulfils all desires. At the same time, the project has\,---\,not only starting
+with the current release\,---\,reached a scale that makes it almost impossible
+for a single person to accomplish
+\begin{itemize}
+\item the search for and elimination of errors,
+\item the development and implementation of new functions,
+\item the observation of changes in other packages and the \LaTeX{} kernel
+ with regard to effects on \KOMAScript,
+\item the rapid response to such changes,
+\item the maintenance of the guides in two languages,
+\item help for beginners far beyond the functions of \KOMAScript{} down to the
+ basic operation of a computer,
+\item assistance in the implementation of tricky solutions for advanced users
+ and experts,
+\item moderation and participation in the maintenance of a forum for all kind
+ of help around \KOMAScript.
+\end{itemize}
+While I am personally have most fun with the development of new functions, I
+consider troubleshooting in existing features, compatibility with new \LaTeX{}
+kernel versions, and above all instructing users for the most important
+tasks. Therefore I will focus in the future on and new functions will be
+available only in exceptional cases. Therefore already in \KOMAScript~3.28
+some experimental functions and packages have been removed. In future releases
+this should be continued.
-It is not just about the manual that I now receive little criticism. For the
-classes and packages as well, there are hardly any requests for new features.
-For me, this means that my knowledge about user desires stagnates. So for a
-few years, I mostly implemented things that I thought could be useful.
-However, the feedback that I have received about these new possibilities was
-largely limited to complaints that old \emph{hacks} based on undocumented
-\KOMAScript{} features sometimes no longer work. Little was said about the
-happiness that such dirty workarounds were no longer necessary. Therefore, I
-have decided to limit extensions and improvements to \KOMAScript{} more and
-more to those things that are explicitly requested by users. Could it be that
-\KOMAScript{}, after only 25 years, has reached the level that it fulfils all
-desires?
+This, of course, also reduces the effort for the documentation of new
+functions. Readers of this free, screen version, however, still have to live
+with some restrictions. So some information\,---\,mainly intended for advanced
+users or capable of turning an ordinary user into an advanced one\,---\,is
+reserved for the printed book, which currently exists only in German. As a
+result, some links in this manual lead to a page that simply mentions this
+fact. In addition, the free version is scarcely suitable for making a
+hard-copy. The focus, instead, is on using it on screen, in parallel with the
+document you are working on. It still has no optimized wrapping but is almost
+a first draft, in which both the paragraph and page breaks are in some cases
+quite poor. Corresponding optimizations are reserved for the German book
+editions.
-Unfortunately, the declining number of error reports is not purely gratifying.
-Over this period, I have often observed that those who discover a problem no
-longer report it directly to me but work around it with the help of some
-Internet forums. Often, there are more or less ingenious workarounds in these
-forums. Although this is generally helpful, it unfortunately, as a rule,
-causes the problem to remain unreported and therefore never really eliminated.
-It goes without saying that such workarounds can sometimes become a problem
-themselves, as mentioned in the previous paragraph.
-
-Thankfully, there are third parties who occasionally point out such issues.
-This applies to individual contributions in a very few forums. Direct contact
-with the person for whom the problem occurred is in this case usually not
-possible, although it would sometimes be desirable.
+Another important improvement to the English guide has been accomplished by
+Karl Hagen, who has continued the translation of the entire manual. Many, many
+thanks to him! Everything that is fine in this English manual is because of
+him. Everything that is not good in this manual\,---\,like the translation of
+this preface\,---\,is because of me. Additional editors or translators,
+however, would still be welcome!
-Therefore, let me please ask again explicitly that you report all suspected
-bugs directly, either in German or in English. Linguistic perfection is less
-important. The message should be reasonably understandable and the problem
-comprehensible. A code example that is as short as possible is generally
-independent of the language used. With direct contact, I can ask further
-questions, if necessary. Please do not rely on anyone else to report the
-problem at some point. Assume that it will only be fixed if you report it
-yourself. More about error messages can be found in the first chapter of the
-manual.
+But the biggest thanks go to my family and above all to my wife. They absorb
+all my unpleasant experiences on the Internet. They have also tolerated it for
+more than 25~years, when I am again not approachable, because I am completely
+lost in \KOMAScript{} or some \LaTeX{} problems. The fact that I can afford to
+invest an incredible amount of time in such a project is entirely thanks to my
+wife.
\bigskip\noindent
-Markus Kohm, Neckarhausen in the March rain, 2018.
+Markus Kohm, Neckarhausen in the foggy December of 2019.
\endinput