I think one thing that makes it more confusing for a newcomer to CLIM is the way many of the manuals are written.
I have looked at both the LW and the Allegro manuals, and maybe they're great manuals, but they are terrible to learn from.
For example, the Franz CLIM UG seems to be written from the bottom-up, in parallel to the architecture of the software. It starts with drawing planes and the screen, and then works up to gadgets.
But if one looks at sources that try to teach a programmer how to do things, they always start with tasks the programmer might want to accomplish, and work down into detail. So a guide to using CLIM should start with application frames, move to gadgets, etc.
Again, I'm not trying to complain that this isn't in those manuals --- manuals and tutorials aren't the same.
And I don't want to be seen as a whiner who just wants everything given to him on a platter.
What I'd like to do is just share some perceptions of what I think might make things easier for McCLIM users and might make McCLIM more popular.
Best, R