Reading Documentation
Documentation is where programming languages and libraries explain themselves. While AI can summarize and explain, docs provide complete, accurate, authoritative information. Learning to read documentation is a skill that pays off throughout your career.
Why Documentation Matters
Accuracy: Official docs are maintained by the people who built the software. AI can occasionally hallucinate or provide outdated information.
Completeness: Docs show all options, not just common ones. That obscure parameter you need? It's in the docs.
Edge cases: Documentation includes warnings, limitations, and gotchas that AI might miss.
Common Documentation Structures
Most documentation follows similar patterns:
Getting Started / Quickstart: A minimal example to get you running quickly.
Tutorials: Step-by-step guides for common tasks.
API Reference: Detailed descriptions of every function, class, and method.
Examples / Cookbook: Real-world code samples you can adapt.
How to Read Function Documentation
Function docs typically show a signature – the function name, parameters, and return value:
str.split(sep=None, maxsplit=-1)
Breaking this down:
str.split– the method name (called on strings)sep=None– optional parameter with a default valuemaxsplit=-1– another optional parameter- Returns: a list of strings (described in the text)
Don't try to memorize everything. Understand the structure so you can find what you need.
Effective Documentation Reading
Start with examples. Most people learn better from examples than explanations. Find the code samples first, then read the surrounding text.
Use search. Don't read linearly. Search for what you need.
Check "See Also" links. Related functions and concepts are often linked.
Read the return value. Knowing what a function gives back is as important as knowing what it accepts.
Where to Find Documentation
- Python: docs.python.org
- Web technologies: MDN Web Docs
- Libraries: Usually linked from the package page (PyPI, npm)
- GitHub README: Often contains quickstart information
Docs and AI Together
Use both tools strategically:
- AI: Quick explanations, specific questions, code examples
- Docs: Complete parameter lists, edge cases, authoritative answers
When AI gives you code, check the docs to understand all your options. When docs feel overwhelming, ask AI to summarize the key points.