Bitching about the documentation...

[François Pinard]

[Ben Finney]

>> please study this form, carefully read the small print, fill it
>> properly and send the yellow copy at this address."

> ... "so that it can go with all the other requests I get at various
> times from various people".

If he wants pink forms with blue borders, let him grant himself with 
pink forms with blue borders.  His way of managing has not to be mine.
If he declares being unable to read information unless it is written on 
a pink form with blue borders, he has a serious communication problem, 
that should not receive encouragement from me.

>> Astonished, you just cannot believe what you hear.  Life is so
>> short, you think, why one would ought to stand with such guys?

> Perhaps because you have asked them to do something that benefits you,

Or perhaps not so specifically.  When I (attempt to) submit a Python 
problem (documentation or otherwise), I'm hoping some benefit to the 
Python community in the long run.  One of those humble drops which, 
accumulated, make oceans.  Most of times, in practice, I already solved 
my actual problem.  I'm merely trying to be a good citizen.  However, 
when people tell me I'm not a good citizen unless _I_ fill pink forms 
with blue borders, I think they lost part of their good judgement.
If they really want pink forms, they should serve themselves by filling 
pink forms, and leave me and the world alone with these forms.

>> As the room is full of other interesting people, you happily move on
>> towards them.

> If you just want to have conversations, talk to whomever you like.
> If you want someone specific to voluntarily do something, yes, you'll
> have to meet them halfway by helping them help you.

I do not want to force anyone to anything.  This is mostly volunteer 
work.  You know that.  The problem I'm reporting here is this pink form 
mania.   _I_ would volunteer something, that they'd ask for pink forms.

I've been in the area of free software maintainance for a very long 
while, collobarated with maybe a hundred of maintainers, and 
corresponded with surely many thousands of users.  No doubt it was a lot 
of work overall, but at least, communication was easy going (usually).
It's a relatively recent phenomenon that maintainers go berzerk, foaming 
at the mouth over forms, borders, colors, and various other mania!  :-)

-- 
François Pinard   http://pinard.progiciels-bpi.ca