@ -17,12 +20,14 @@ The first flow seems nothing new, just the nature of every kind of technical doc
The second one is more labile and subtle: it deals with softer things than software. With political choices that inform technical details, with code close to codes of conduct, with power dynamics and forms of exclusion in the making of software. It is slippery matter, practiced with a range of different approaches, such as reclaiming spaces, re-enchanting tools and reassuring others.
```placeholder
And these different techniques will be addressed in the second part of the thesis.
```
### Coding contingencies
```todo
- elaborate on references
- how to quote propperly an introduction from a book series? (software studies)
```
How do you choose a particular programming language, a coding paradigm, a development environment, an infrastructure where to run the code, and so on? These are not just technical choices, but rather coding contingencies.
@ -33,29 +38,31 @@ These contingencies are situated in specific contexts.
Programming then is not just sharing code, but sharing context. A significant statement about our relationship to the world, and how we organize our understanding of it (Ullman, 2017). A perspective to look at reality, before attempting to get some grip onto it with a script. A way to deal with both the software and hardware circumstances of code (Marino, 2020), but also engaging with the sociality and communities around it.
It's an approach that helps us to think about software as a cultural object. Something "deeply woven into contemporary life –economically, culturally, creatively, politically– in manners both obvious and nearly invisible." (Software Studies, 2009), and not just as technical tool existing in a vacuum.
It's an approach that helps us to think about software as a cultural object. Something "deeply woven into contemporary life –economically, culturally, creatively, politically– in manners both obvious and nearly invisible." ( Fuller, Manovich and Wardrip-Fruin, 2009), and not just as technical tool existing in a vacuum.
An object that, in turn, can be used to probe its surroundings. Who is developing? Who is gonna use it? Who is paying for it and why? How is it structured? It is a big and centralized system or a loose collection of small and interchangeable tools? How long is it supposed to last? How can be fixed if it breaks?
An object that, in turn, can be used to probe its surroundings. Who is developing? Who is going to use it? Who is paying for it and why? How is it structured? It is a big and centralized system or a loose collection of small and interchangeable tools? How long is it supposed to last? How can be fixed if it breaks?
The main focus of this research is to explore software documentation as a surface where these kind of questions can be addressed. A place where the complexity of code doesn't blackbox ideas, and choices behind development can really be open source.
A way to situate programming in specific contexts.
The concepts of worlding, political aesthetic, and critical thinking can be applied to all sorts of technical manuals. However, the approaches and methods explored in this thesis are mostly informed by practices related to code documentation. While reading, please bind the terms software, application, program, etc. to code. Software documentation? Code documentation. The perspective of this thesis is more aligned to the docs for [ImageMagick](https://imagemagick.org/script/command-line-processing.php), than to the ones for [GIMP](https://www.gimp.org/docs/).
The concepts of worlding, political aesthetic, and critical thinking can be applied to all sorts of technical manuals. However, the approaches and methods explored in this thesis are mostly informed by practices related to code documentation. While reading, please bind the terms software, application, program, etc. to code. Software documentation? Code documentation.
```placeholder
Some examples of documentation, different types and intensieties
```
Another term to democratize (_dismantle?_) here is _developer_.
Another term to contextualize (and dismantle?) here is _developer_.
By stripping down every trace of professionalism and formal education, let's agree that a developer is someone who tinkers with code. No matter at which level, nor distance, nor experience. No matter if for work, for fun, for study. No matter if one is actively involved in the development of a tool, or comes from the user perspective. Ellen Ulman writes that programming is a disease, but the situation is even worse: code is contagious material, touch it once and you are a developer.
```note
These three paragraphs are to readjust a bit after the new intro addition
Next three paragraphs are to readjust a bit after the new structure: chapters 1 and 2 are merged and are a first part about entry points.
```
The first chapter focuses on documentation as publishing surface. Who is reading, who is addressed, and who is left out.
Documentation brings an understanding on software by disclosing its magic. It reveals what can be done with it, and where are the limits. By lowering barriers and creating entry points, documentation broadens participation. By reaching not just beginners, but experienced programmers as well, it affects thinking about software continuously, and from different perspectives.
This thesis explores code documentation as a publishing surface.
The second part frames documentation as a crossroads, where different knowledges meet in the making of software.
Documentation is a space that interfaces between the code, the user, the developer, and the world. A space where to welcome different voices: not just engineers, not just experts, not just dudes. A space to acknowledge the massive labor of care besides technicalities, often marginalized by coding culture.
The first part focuses on who is reading, who is addressed, and who is left out. Documentation brings an understanding on software by disclosing its magic. It reveals what can be done with it, and where are the limits. By lowering barriers and creating entry points, documentation broadens participation. By reaching not just beginners, but experienced programmers as well, it affects thinking about software continuously, and from different perspectives. Documentation is a crossroads, where different knowledges meet in the making of software. Documentation is a space that interfaces between the code, the user, the developer, and the world. A space where to welcome different voices: not just engineers, not just experts, not just dudes. A space to acknowledge the massive labor of care besides technicalities, often marginalized by coding culture.
The third section is focused on worlding, and the relation between code, documentation practices and political aesthetic.
Here documentation is seen as a surface that could host principles in close contact with algorithms, letting them entangle and shape each other. A way to orientate our instruments towards "non-extractive relationships, but in the meantime, being accountable for the ones they are complicit with." (A Wishlist for Trans\*feminist Servers, 2022)
The second section is focused on worlding, and the relation between code, documentation practices and political aesthetic. Here documentation is seen as a surface that could host principles in close contact with algorithms, letting them entangle and shape each other. A way to orientate our instruments towards "non-extractive relationships, but in the meantime, being accountable for the ones they are complicit with." (A Wishlist for Trans\*feminist Servers, 2022)
it's often first thing one reads when approaching software - see getting started
@ -41,6 +41,12 @@ This system organizes knowledge around code in a way that tries to meet every us
A text that fails to address who's reading can result inaccessible and frustrating. Although the Diataxis framework doesn't encompass every particular situation, its structure offers good aid to situate documentation within different perspectives. This turns out to be really helpful in the process of writing, as a way to fine tune tones and modulate the nature of shared info.
```note
think about:
- move next paragraph in worlding chapter?
- unpack political aesthetic
```
The same is true for the additional layers of meaning necessary for a process of world building. To enchant software with political aesthetic (Ranciérre through Soon and Cox, 2020) is required to operate at different scales. Within both public and private dimensions, with technical and social frameworks. During a workshop for example, people meet face to face. Here togetherness can glue technicalities as a paratext, questioning reproduction of knowledge and its power dynamics. (See for example _Feminists Federating_, mara karagianni, ooooo, nate wessalowski, vo ezn in Toward a Minor Tech - A peer reviewed Newspaper vol 12, 2023) (Note that the opposite effect is also true, with technicalities as paratext conditioning how people are together)
### Welcoming writing
@ -49,9 +55,13 @@ The potential of documentation to orientate software in the world clashes agains
Writing documentation is demanding. It's more delicate than programming, and require a whole set of skills usually not treasured by the dev community. A kind of emotional intelligence and sensitivity far to be found in the competitive wastelands of the IT industry. Here no one wants to write documentation, nor hire someone to do it (Gabriel, 1996). As a result, in a world where software thrives, documentation still seems to be a scarce resource.
```note
unpack Gabriel
```
It's ok, someone could argue, every question that can be asked on Stack Overflow, will eventually be asked in Stack Overflow (versioning Atwood, 2007). The popular Q&A website for developers is just an example of digital knowledge as a shared effort, together with the endless mailing lists, forums, discord servers and dedicated sources for whatever topic. It's astonishing how online communities can tackle on any problem in no time.
It's ok, someone could argue, every question that can be asked on Stack Overflow, will eventually be asked in Stack Overflow (versioning Atwood, 2007). The popular Q&A website for developers is just an example of digital knowledge as a shared effort, together with the endless mailing lists, forums, discord servers and dedicated sources for whatever topic. It's astonishing how online communities can tackle any problem in no time.
But it's not rare for these places to feel unwelcoming, or even hostile. In 2018, Stack Overflow publicly admitted that there was a problem concerning their userbase. The space felt unfriendly for _outsiders_, such as newer coders, women, people of color, and others in marginalized groups (Hanlon, 2018).
@ -59,7 +69,7 @@ For years there have been discussions on the platform about tone. At the questio
Far from being just an isolated problem, this crudity is deeply embedded in the IT discourse, soaking through technical writings as well. The denigrating expressions of superiority in matters concerning programming that Marino calls _encoded chauvinism_ (Marino, 2020) constitute the main ingredient in the brew of toxic geek masculinity. _Real programmers_ don't use this code editor. _Real programmers_ don't use this programming language. _Real programmers_ don't care about others feelings. Etc.
Ellen Ullman accounts on the emotional dumbness of her _real programmers_ colleagues give an insight of a problematic behavior, first intercepted and then capitalized by the IT industry. _"In meetings, they behave like children. They tell each other to shut up. The call each other idiots. They throw balled-up paper. One day, a team member screams at his Korean colleague, 'Speak English!' (A moment of silence follow this outburst, at least.)"_ (Ullman, 2017)
Ellen Ullman's accounts of the emotional dumbness of her _real programmers_ colleagues give an insight of a problematic behavior, first intercepted and then capitalized by the IT industry. _"In meetings, they behave like children. They tell each other to shut up. The call each other idiots. They throw balled-up paper. One day, a team member screams at his Korean colleague, 'Speak English!' (A moment of silence follow this outburst, at least.)"_ (Ullman, 2017)
Programming means to deal with picky stubborn machines that don't overlook a single typo. It requires a high tolerance for failure. It is frustrating. But to project this frustration onto other users, as in the `Read The Fucking Manual` response to a request for help, it's a form of negative solidarity (Fisher, 2013) that poses serious barriers to the participation in the making of software.
