From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Fri Dec 30 17:20:50 2011 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D96AD106564A for ; Fri, 30 Dec 2011 17:20:50 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from doug@safeport.com) Received: from fledge.watson.org (fledge.watson.org [65.122.17.41]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 784628FC22 for ; Fri, 30 Dec 2011 17:20:50 +0000 (UTC) Received: from fledge.watson.org (localhost.watson.org [127.0.0.1]) by fledge.watson.org (8.14.4/8.14.4) with ESMTP id pBUHKlUf077014; Fri, 30 Dec 2011 12:20:47 -0500 (EST) (envelope-from doug@safeport.com) Received: from localhost (doug@localhost) by fledge.watson.org (8.14.4/8.14.4/Submit) with ESMTP id pBUHKlb4077003; Fri, 30 Dec 2011 12:20:47 -0500 (EST) (envelope-from doug@safeport.com) X-Authentication-Warning: fledge.watson.org: doug owned process doing -bs Date: Fri, 30 Dec 2011 12:20:47 -0500 (EST) From: doug@safeport.com X-X-Sender: doug@fledge.watson.org To: Polytropon In-Reply-To: <20111230170339.6d6af931.freebsd@edvax.de> Message-ID: References: <201112300604.pBU64dqB069626@mail.r-bonomi.com> <20111230170339.6d6af931.freebsd@edvax.de> User-Agent: Alpine 2.00 (BSF 1167 2008-08-23) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; format=flowed; charset=US-ASCII X-Greylist: Sender IP whitelisted, not delayed by milter-greylist-4.2.3 (fledge.watson.org [127.0.0.1]); Fri, 30 Dec 2011 12:20:48 -0500 (EST) Cc: David Jackson , freebsd-questions@freebsd.org, Robert Bonomi Subject: Re: FreeBSD Kernel Internals Documentation X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list Reply-To: doug@fledge.watson.org List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Fri, 30 Dec 2011 17:20:50 -0000 On Fri, 30 Dec 2011, Polytropon wrote: > On Fri, 30 Dec 2011 10:22:31 -0500, David Jackson wrote: >> Of course, those best able to document are those who wrote it in >> the first place, since they already know how it works. > > A fact seems to be: "Modern" programmers don't bother > with documenting, or coding guidelines, or style or > other things that "slow down" development. This > attitude isn't new in general, as it has been done > that way even in IT dinosaur times: There are COBOL > programs still running, and nobody knows _why_ they > are running and _how_. If someone had written usable > documentation at the time the program was created > and maintained, skilled COBOL h4x0rs wouldn't be > able to write the desired salary on the contract > as _they_ wish. :-) As a [former] mainframer, I might take issue limiting the above to modern. I learned MVT and then MVS from the microfish and crashing rather larger (physically) and expensive computers. Not much else was available [outside of IBM]. > But keep in mind: Writing code and writing documentation > are two different things. There are people who are > excellent coders, but bad writers. In some teams, > you'll find code writers and doc writers separated, > but working together. This approach isn't free of > problems, but also seems to work. > In this thread if anyone mentioned Robert Watson, kernel source cross-reference, I missed it. Also every so often Kirk McKusick teaches a course on BSD internals. Kind of expensive but very thorough.