Re: changes and standards documents

[Raul Miller <rdm@test.legislate.com>]

Manoj Srivastava <srivasta@datasync.com> wrote:
> 	So? The program should still come with usage and configuration
>  documentation. Even then, the standard does not describe th e program
>  -- if the program does not do what the standard says, the program is
>  buggy, and should be changed -- not the standard. There is a big
>  difference between documentation for a program that may need to be
>  modified to match the behaviour, and a standard that should not be
>  changed. 	

So?  If the program implements some standards, why can't those standards
be used as the first draft for that aspect of the program's documentation?

Note that this is particularly important where the program doesn't fully
implement the standard, even though you might expect that it does.  Here,
it's worth including the parts of the standard that the program doesn't
implement so that potential contributors can quickly focus on any hot-spots
[and so that users understand what's going on].

>  Raul> So, I don't like the way the program behaves... is it buggy or have
>  Raul> I misunderstood what the program is supposed to do?
> 
> 	If you do not merely like how the program behaves, that does
>  not make it buggy. I don't like how ask wqorks. Big deal. 

You're saying that it doesn't even matter that the program be documented?

I'm surprised you're taking this tack.

Or maybe you're implying that the authors of the program have a duty
to re-write the concepts described in the standard, from scratch but
phrased differently so that it doesn't violate the copyright on the
standard?

Or...?

>  If the program does not follow what the stadard says, the program
>  is buggy. The standard is always authoritative (unless some one has
>  monkeyed with the standard, in which case it is no loger a standard).

This implies that there's only one standard, and that it's reasonable
to refer a person to that entire standard when learning to use the
program.  This might be true in some cases, but it's very far from being
accurate for the general case.

-- 
Raul