Leaving: "I can't help"

[Graham Percival]

Some users may have read the emails "Leaving: replacements" and
and thought "gee, I wish I could help, but ``I don't know
enough''".  I would like to debunk this myth.


I don't know enough, either!
----------------------------

Neither did I when I began.  I was a music composition student,
with no experience with unix development tools.  No previous
experience writing documentation.  I'd never used LilyPond to do
anything other than string music -- no piano, no vocal music --
and only simply chamber music parts -- no cues, no polymetric
stuff, no \overrides.

These days, you don't need to know any unix development tools to
help with the lilypond docs.  And you don't need to know
everything about LilyPond to be helpful.  In fact, some tasks
require *NO* lilypond knowledge _at all_.  (ie lilypond-user
secretary)

And you know what?  After three years of being the doc editor, I
_still_ don't know how to do piano music, vocal music, or cues.
I've learned how to do \overrides, though.

I would like to emphasize this.  IF I HAD TO WRITE VOCAL MUSIC, I
WOULD NEED TO READ THE **TUTORIAL**!  I don't even know how to use
\lyricAdd, which is the easiest way to do vocal music!  And I
don't think that anybody would claim that I haven't been useful to
the project.

So trust me: if you're willing to help, we can find something
that's within your abilities.


I'm spend all my time writing music, so I don't have time!
----------------------------------------------------------

This is my favorite excuse for not getting involved... and by
"favorite", I mean "makes me grind my teeth".  If you're a
professional composer and use lilypond every day, then IMO you
should be the _most_ involved, not the least.  I mean, if the
heaviest users don't contribute to the project, then who else
should?

Cheers,
- Graham