Documentation has Little Value - Read the Code

Again, I got this from Jeff Atwood HERE. But I feel so strongly about this that I'm plagiarizing  and not just linking to his page...

"... writing for people is way harder than writing for machines, the documentation will continue to suck for the forseeable future. There's very little you can do about it.
Except for one thing... You can learn to read the source.

No matter what the documentation says, the source code is the ultimate truth, the best and most definitive and up-to-date documentation you're likely to find. This will be true forever, so the sooner you come to terms with this, the better off you'll be as a software developer.

Nobody reads other people's code for fun. But we must read other people's code because we have to understand it to get things done. So don't be afraid to read the source.

Good Software is Hard to Create

This is copied nearly verbatum from a post by Dave Winer, HERE. But I found it so compelling the I'm not just linking to it, but stating it.


"... to make good software, requires lots of thought, trial and error, evaluation, iteration, trying the ideas out on other users, learning, thinking, more trial and error, and on and on. At some point you say it ain't perfect, but it's useful, so let's ship. That process, if the software is to be any good, doesn't happen in 24 hours. Sometimes it takes years, if the idea is new enough.

If you want an idea of an art that's like making software, look at film and food. It's got a lot in common with both. But there will never be a Julia Child of software. It's not an art where you can observe the creative process, because that goes on inside the creator's head. In that sense it's like film. And it's not a science, as some people seem to think it is. Good software makers are also joyous software eaters. We use the stuff, so we know when it's done because it's useful."

Thanks Dave!