
"Andy Little" <andy@servocomm.freeserve.co.uk> writes:
"David Maisonave" wrote
What's the point of creating a great class, if only a handfull of developers ues it, because the majority have no idea how to use it?
You cant escape the fact that writing documentation is the most tedious, rotten, boring, miserable, mind-numbing job imaginable ***.
I disagree. Finding the right way to explain something deepens one's own understanding of it and -- very often -- uncovers real problems with the design. I think the skills required are really essential to becoming a great software designer. If you give it the time it deserves and treat it as part of the process rather than just something to do after you've written the code, it can even be enjoyable. It may be awful for some people, but it doesn't have to be so for everyone. Your statement is just a little bit too self-fulfilling for my taste ;-)
Thats why so much documentation is bad or non-existent. Thats why some library is "nearly finished" after even a couple of years "except for the documentation", which is going to be started "very soon now"
I think that happens in part because people don't appreciate what they can get out of doing the documentation work. -- Dave Abrahams Boost Consulting www.boost-consulting.com