Comments are missing in source code

[stuvel.eu]

The source code for Navit is very under-commented. As an example, SVN revision 1734 adds a new feature to Navit, without a single comment being written in the source code, without updating the Wiki, and without adding the new feature to the Navit DTD. This means that hardly anybody will use the new feature, and the programmer's time is worth much less than it could be.

I'm a fairly decent programmer, and seen my fair share of closed and open source software. I wanted to join in on the Navit development, but couldn't find my way around the source due to a complete lack of documentation.

If you want more people to join in, make sure that every time you commit something, it is documented. Only then can we ensure that in the end we have a well documented project that will survive even if the core developers move to greener pastures.

[stuvel.eu]

As another example, I had to read in #242 that there is such a thing as <navit drag_bitmap="yes" />. It is in no documentation, and not in the Navit DTD. As a matter of fact, I ​wrote about this in the navit-users mailing list as a proposed enhancement, and nobody told me that it was actually already implemented.

How are people going to use a feature if there is only the original developer who knows the feature exists? Documentation is very important for any piece of software, and Open Source even more so.

[kazer]

I agree. Feel free to kick our asses when it will happen again (because i know it will happen again ;) )