List available library user space functions with descriptions. 2048

Because the very notion of open source is that there is no condition put on releasing the source code (with some licenses limiting how the source code can be reused). "I have no idea what other people might use this for, but since it costs me nothing, I'll let it loose". Under those conditions, someone is doing it because it costs them nothing (or close to it). Once more work is required, then their cost goes up. If they have to make things easy for you, then they may think twice about letting the program loose. I once wrote a program, decades ago, and I couldn't be bothered to clean it up. But, it might have been useful to others had it been easy for me to release it, and for those people, anything would have been better than not having the program available.

But the documentation is there. You grab some program that has a separate library, separated out for whatever reasons, and the source code for the program will be the documentation. As I said, there are multiple reasons for making something a library rather than an integral part of a program. But the library component will only exist as part of that package, it won't be released as a separate package.

It simply means you don't have to carve out the routines you do want from the main program, if for some reason you need those routines.

But for instance, if you needed some bit of code, you'd be looking at that sort of program to see what's offered. And if the code is part of a library, it will be far easier for you to use. Note that this is helpful to you, because if it's not set up as a library, you'd have to find a program that might do what you need, and then dig through the source code to find the specific bits you want to use.

YOu can bloat the program code, or you can bloat the library directory. I'm not sure it makes much difference which gets bigger; it's simply a neutral thing. But, separating out some of the code in a library does mean someone could use it, if they had some use for it. But that's the point. Some large percentage of needs are taken care of in a small percentage of the libraries. You don't need an SSL library if you aren't doing anything that requires SSL. But just about any program needs an ability to get input and send output. The less used are in esoteric libraries.

And like I said, if you need to do something, you likely would be looking at what other people are doing. Want to write your own text-only browser? Then you look at the source code of what's already been done, and then you may find libraries that are related to their needs and only their needs, and you'd find them because you were looking at what already exists.

Michael