Responsible Documentation
Overview
When functions have assumptions, limitations or flaws, it is vital that the documentation makes those clear. Without documentation, developers don’t have the information they need to make good decisions when writing their programs. We added a documentation component to this C string assignment. Students write a manual page for the skan_token function they have implemented, learning responsible documentation practice as they go. The starter code is the full project provided to students.
Contributors
- Ethics materials by Kathleen Creel, Nick Troccoli, and Brynne Hurst
- Assignment by Julie Zelenski, with modifications by Nick Troccoli, Katie Creel, Brynne Hurst and Jonathan Kula
Assignment goals
- C-strings (both raw manipulation and using string library functions)
- viewing Unix utility programs from an internal perspective - as an implementer, not just a client
- exposure to programmatic access of the filesystem and shell environment variables
- thoroughly documenting your code, and learning about the importance of good documentation
Ethics goals
- Understanding documentation as part of the role of a responsible computer scientist and engineer