[onk]

The question was deliberately broad and honestly inquisitive. But born of the narrow observation that while there are standardized, published formats that separate style from content (HTML/CSS) and similarly, say, LaTeX, much human "work" is put into formats where the style /is/ the content. Say, a pretty resume in Word or a PowerPoint presentation.

We have conversations where we say things in passing. Maybe we don't care to preserve those words. But when we bother to document things presumably they are worth something. So I wondered how much "worth" was being lost or later mis-read.

Perhaps some or much documentation is simply a means to an end and its longevity is immaterial.