The Documentation Problem Nobody Wants to Admit

Last month, I did something that might seem crazy. I messaged local developers in Copenhagen and asked them one simple question:

"When was the last time your documentation actually helped you?"

The silence was deafening.

The Responses That Changed Everything

After some prodding, the floodgates opened. Here's what I heard:

Jakob (Senior Dev at a fintech): "Our README hasn't been updated since 2021. We just ask Sarah everything. What happens when Sarah leaves? Nobody wants to think about it."

Maria (Tech Lead): "We spent €50k on a documentation overhaul last year. It's already outdated. Complete waste."

Thomas (Startup CTO): "I literally pay a junior developer to be our 'human documentation.' He just answers questions all day."

The Pattern Everyone Misses

Here's what struck me: It's not that developers don't care about documentation. They've just given up.

Every team I talked to had the same cycle:

1. Big push to "fix documentation once and for all"
2. Looks great for 2-3 weeks
3. First urgent feature breaks the process
4. Slow decay back to chaos

Sound familiar?

The Real Problem

Documentation fails because we're trying to solve it with willpower instead of systems.

Think about it. We don't rely on developers to manually run tests - we automate it. We don't trust ourselves to format code consistently - we use linters.

But documentation? "Just remember to update it!"

Yeah, right.

What Would Actually Work

Through these conversations, a pattern emerged. Developers don't need:

• Another wiki
• More templates
• Better "documentation culture"

They need documentation that:

• Updates itself when code changes
• Answers questions in plain language
• Doesn't require a archaeology degree to navigate

Why This Matters Now

One developer told me something that stuck: "Bad documentation isn't just annoying - it's why I'm looking for a new job."

Think about that. We're literally driving away talent because we can't explain how our own code works.

The Path Forward

I don't have all the answers yet. But I know this: The status quo isn't working.

That's why I'm building CodeContext. Not another documentation tool. A complete rethinking of how documentation should work.

No more "we'll document it later." No more outdated wikis. No more tribal knowledge.

Just documentation that actually works.

What's Next?

I'm looking for developers who are tired of the current state of documentation. Who've felt the pain and want to be part of the solution.

If you've ever:

• Spent hours searching for answers in your own codebase
• Given up and just asked someone instead
• Wished documentation could just write itself

Then I want to hear from you.

What's your documentation horror story? I'm collecting more stories for my research - reach out on LinkedIn.