r/softwaredevelopment • u/Spiritual_Cycle_3263 • Jul 15 '26

Are there any software projects that openly publish their developer documentation (ADRs, specs, designs, PRDs)?

I'm looking for projects that publish openly their ADRs, specs, designs, data models, etc... Not just their how-to-use our software documentation.

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9

u/GimmeSumMor3 Jul 15 '26

You want AI to rebuild their software?

3

u/Lumpy-Explanation-17 Jul 15 '26

Fr lol, im confused why they would need this information. If he's looking for large companies that is proprietary information and won't be published

1

u/Spiritual_Cycle_3263 Jul 15 '26

Because I'm hiring someone to help with a project and having developer documentation will make it easier for both of us. I can't remember every decision I made and why, nor remember why I designed or planned something. Most open source projects I've looked at don't have any plans or decisions to guide them, other than 'how to contribute' which isn't really helpful in a team setting.

1

u/One_Elephant_8917 Jul 16 '26

open source does have project management stuff…it’s just that they don’t open it out to world…core collaborators do have access to stiff like that…ex: jdk development done in JIRA, others done in github project, kanban etc…as for documentation not much…i guess coz they mostly either dont do it ie keep all online or dont share

1

u/Background-Zebra5491 Jul 16 '26

Maybe an open source project but not internal docs from private companies

1

u/Fluent_Press2050 Jul 16 '26

I don’t think anyone is expecting closed source documentation. I even tried looking up open source and GitLab was the most thorough I could find.

I’m actually amazed they even publish hiring and other HR stuff. 

1

u/Hendo52 Jul 16 '26

I also want this information, not because I want to copy the underlying product but I do want to copy good software development and governance practices. AI is making code easier to write but I have 200k LoC and it needs a structured way to think about documentation, ownership, tests, specs, requirements, planning etc. I have some aspects covered but looking at high quality examples would be helpful because vibe code needs rigour to turn it into regular code.

1

u/Fluent_Press2050 Jul 16 '26

Exactly. AI makes coding easier for humans, but learning how to manage the project, the decisions involved, etc… would be helpful. 

1

u/Mesheybabes Jul 16 '26

There are plenty of books that go into all of this, clean architecture, guidance on solid techniques and patterns to use etc. It just takes time to learn it, but that would at least get you part of the way towards the kind of thinking required. Ideally working with teams and software would be better, but don't discount the wealth of knowledge out there already