[irreverentbits]

Yeah, see, here's the thing: for many projects of noteworthy complexity, it'll be easier to gain an understanding of how to make use of it through a clear set of docs than it will be by slogging through source code.

Good documentation provides context and use cases. Good comments in source code provide clarity as to what the code is doing. They are in no way equivalent.

One of the benefits of encapsulation in software is that it enables individuals to program against a documented interface without spending (although in many cases I'd say wasting) time to understand the intricacies of implementation. You lose that benefit if you're forced to dip into code to understand how to use that code.

You do have a point, though - as an open source dev, it's your time to spend as you see fit. But a quality open-source project is more than the sum of its code.

[ZoFreX]

> You do have a point, though - as an open source dev, it's your time to spend as you see fit

I agree with both of you - I don't see software as "complete" unless it has documentation, it's part of the package to me. I happen to like writing it, but I hate some other aspects of programming - doesn't mean I skip those sections.

However, I have put things online without documentation before, because the software wasn't complete but maybe someone else would complete it, or find it useful, or learn something from it. Maybe they won't - but I lose nothing by putting it online, and the world stands to gain.