Re: man pages
Joerg Schilling <schilling@fokus.gmd.de> writes:
> >From: Jan Schaumann <jschauma@netmeister.org>
>
> >> I don't think that man-pages should be standarized:
> >> - we can only specify them for LSB applications and not for a complete
> >> system (that would be part of FHS)
> >> - most LSB applications will not come with man pages at all
>
> >Any program *should* come with a man-page, IMHO. I feel strongly that
> >this ought to be part of the LSB. How often have you had to search for
> >documentation because the man-page was not available or unreadable or
> >badly written?
>
> 100% agreed!
>
> A man page is the default dodumentation. Any other documentation is optional.
> Any program must have a man page that will describe all functions and all
> options.
This approach is not suffient. While you can describe "ls" properly in
a manpage, it's not a valid option for bigger applications: emacs,
oracle, postgresql, kylix, sim city 3k etc.
A manpage should cover arguments for the program - covering the entire
behaviour is way beyond the scope of a manpage.
> Programs that don't have one or where it is incomplete should not be a part
> of the base distribution.
Not a valid option for complex apps.
--
Trond Eivind Glomsrød
Red Hat, Inc.
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