I've noticed that I rarely read full documentation anymore. Instead, when I need to use a new library or framework, I just Google the specific thing I'm trying to accomplish, find answers on sites like Stack Overflow, or check out blog posts and adapt the code from there. I used to feel guilty about this approach, but honestly, it's way faster and helps me learn only the parts I need. However, I worry I might be missing the bigger picture. Sometimes when I'm deep into a library, I find out that there's a whole feature I didn't even know about that could have saved me hours of work or I end up doing something more complicated because I lack understanding of the concepts that the documentation explains. Conversely, sitting down to read through an entire documentation feels inefficient, especially when much of it doesn't apply to my current needs. How do you all manage this? Do you read documentation thoroughly, or do you mainly resolve issues through Google? If you do read the docs, do you go through them completely or just skim for relevant material?
2 Answers
I usually read the docs but with a twist. I focus on how to use the tools in the context of my project. Relying too much on snippets from others can often lead to messy code that just doesn't fit the problem. It's better to understand what you're working with.
If I use a tech regularly at work and it has documentation, I think it's worth my time to read it. For one-off issues, I just tackle it head-on and move on once I find a solution.

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