Re: Confusing section of 'Setting Parameters'

Josh Kupershmidt <schmiddy@gmail.com> writes:
> This bit of "Section 18.1. Setting Parameters"[1] is highly confusing:

Yeah, that's badly in need of editing.

> Second, I think Section 18.1 as a whole could be much improved by
> breaking it up into sub-sections; it seems too long and disjointed
> as-is. I gave this reorganization a shot with a larger patch
> (setting_parameters_subsections.diff) which includes the
> include_if_exists clarification, and also breaks the page up into
> three sub-sections.

I think this is a good idea, but I didn't like your section division
at all.  I broke it up like this instead:

    Parameter Names and Values
    Setting Parameters via the Configuration File
    Other Ways to Set Parameters
    Examining Parameter Settings

See what you think.

> This is my preferred fix (for now -- I'll try to
> send in some further explanation/consolidation of GUC contexts
> relevant to that page later).

Yeah, the discussion on the pg_settings page maybe should be moved here.
On the other hand, this is very introductory material, so it might not
be the best place for anything too detailed.

            regards, tom lane