evolution/help/C/preface.sgml

  <preface id="introduction">
<!-- =============Introduction ============================= -->
    <title>Introduction</title> 

    <section id="what"> 
      <title> What is Evolution, and What Can It Do for Me?</title>
      <para>
        The idea of evolution as a process of improvement and
        development is a strong influence on the developers at Helix
        Code.  We named our <glossterm>groupware</glossterm> suite
        "Evolution" because we knew that it would be able to survive
        in the wilderness of the software marketplace for one reason:
        it's better.
      </para>
      <para>
        <application>Evolution</application> is a suite of groupware
        applications within the GNOME desktop environment that you can
        use to send, receive, and organize email, manage address and
        other contact information, and maintain a calendar.  It
        enables you to do those things on one or several computers,
        connected directly or over a network, for one person or for
        large groups.  <application>Evolution</application> can handle
        almost all your communications tasks with the power and
        flexibility of the GNOME desktop environment.
      </para>
      <para>
        We built <application>Evolution</application> with three groups of
        people in mind: everyday users, system administrators, and
        developers.  

        <itemizedlist>
	  <listitem>
	    <para>
              For <emphasis>everyday users</emphasis>, we made
              <application>Evolution</application> easy to use without
              sacrificing power.  We made the interface familiar and
              intuitive, but also allowed users to customize it to
              their liking.  We made the setup and configuration as
              easy as possible.  For any confusion, we wrote a
              comprehensive manual and help system.
            </para>
	  </listitem>
	  <listitem>
	    <para>
               For <emphasis>administrators</emphasis>, we made sure
              <application>Evolution</application> met and and
              exceeded the standards set by currently available
              groupware products, and we developed support for most
              major network protocols so that it can integrate
              seamlessly with existing hardware and network
              environments.  All of our efforts have made
              <application>Evolution</application> both easy to use
              and easy to support.
            </para>
	  </listitem>
	  <listitem>
	    <para>
               For <emphasis>developers</emphasis>, we built in
               support for open standards and protocols to turn
               <application>Evolution</application> into an advanced
               development platform.  From the simplest scripting to
               the most complex network and component programming,
               <application>Evolution</application> offers developers
               the ideal environment for cutting-edge application
               development.
            </para>
	  </listitem>
	  <listitem>
	    <para>
               For all three groups, we did our best to ensure the
               safety of data.
            </para>
          </listitem>
	</itemizedlist>
      </para>
      <para>
        In action, <application>Evolution</application> makes most
        daily tasks faster, because we built it to work with you
        instead of against you.  For example, it takes only one or two
        clicks to enter an appointment or an address card sent to you
        by email, or to send email to a contact or appointment.
        <application>Evolution</application> makes displays faster and
        more efficient, so searches are faster and memory usage is
        lower.  People who get lots of mail will appreciate
        advanced features like <link
        linkend="usage-mail-organize-vFolders">vFolders</link>, which
        let you save searches as though they were ordinary mail
        folders.
      </para>

    </section>

    <section id="aboutbook">
      <title>About This Book</title>
    <!-- ************** FOLLOWING PARAGRAPH FOR DRAFT ONLY ************* -->
      <para>
        This version of the <application>Evolution</application>
        User's Guide is a <emphasis>draft</emphasis>.  It is missing
        huge chunks of information, and many of the features it
        describes are unimplemented.  All the content is subject to
        change, especially if you help.  Please send comments on the
        guide to <email>aaron@helixcode.com</email>.  Items that are
        known to need action are indicated as such, often with
        notation like (INSERT CONTENT HERE).  If you would like to
        work on the guide please contact me or see the GNOME
        Documentation project <ulink
        url="http://www.gnome.org/gdp">web site</ulink>.  This
        paragraph will be removed in later versions of the manual.
      </para>
    <!-- ************* END DRAFT ONLY PARAGRAPH ************** -->

      <para>
        This book is divided into three sections. The first section is
        a <link linkend="usage">guided tour</link>&mdash; it will
        explain how to use <application>Evolution</application>.  If
        you are new to <application>Evolution</application> or to
        groupware in general, this is the section for you. The second
        section, covering <link linkend="config">configuration</link>,
        is targeted at advanced users and administrators.  If you are
        a network administrator, you may find yourself referring to
        this section frequently.  The third section is a quick <link
        linkend="devel">developer's guide</link>, for power users and
        hackers.  If you want to add advanced scripting to
        <application>Evolution</application>, write your own
        embeddable components, or simply want to find out just how
        powerful <application>Evolution</application> can be, this is
        the section for you.
      </para>
      <para>
        Throughout the book, you'll find examples, tips and warnings
        to help you along.  Most of them are decent, hardworking
        pieces of information, and genuinely try to be helpful. Some
        of the tips, entitled <emphasis>Bad Ideas</emphasis>,
        are, in fact, out to trick you.  Please don't follow their
        advice, no matter how appealing it may sound.
      </para>
      <formalpara>
        <title>Typographical conventions</title>
	<para>
          Some kinds of words are marked off with special typography.
          It's listed below:
          <simplelist>
	    <member><application>Applications</application></member>
	    <member><command>Commands</command> typed at the command line</member>
	    <member><guilabel>Labels</guilabel> for menu items and buttons</member>
	    <member>Other text treatments</member>
	    <member>Other text treatments</member>
	  </simplelist>
        </para>
      </formalpara>
    </section>
  </preface>