Are "Why is X code snippet done this way?" questions on-topic?

Question

There was a bit of a tussle earlier about a specific question related to why a specific line of JavaScript code was crafted the way that it was:

What's the point of initializing a variable with the same value twice?

The details are documented elsewhere, but suffice it to say there's obviously some confusion about whether these questions are on-topic here.

Our FAQ states the following:

Programmers — Stack Exchange is a site for professional programmers who are interested in getting expert answers on conceptual questions about software development. If you have a question about…

• design patterns
• development methodologies
• software architecture

... then you're in the right place to ask your question!

Additionally, the blog post that introduces Programmers defines the distinction between Programmers and Stack Overflow as such:

In a nutshell, Stack Overflow is for when you’re front of your compiler or editor working through code issues. Programmers is for when you’re in front of a whiteboard working through higher level conceptual programming issues. Hence the (awesome) whiteboard inspired design!

Stated another way, Stack Overflow questions almost all have actual source code in the questions or answers. It’s much rarer (though certainly OK) for a Programmers question to contain source code.

In this specific question, the asker isn't working through issues with their code, they're asking a higher-level conceptual question about why the code was designed that way.

Finally, after speaking with the Stack Overflow moderators, they believed it was only just barely on-topic on Stack Overflow, but on the subjective side.

Given this background, are these questions on-topic here? If so, why? If not, why not?

Answer 1

I personally think that these kinds of questions, and this question in particular, is a better fit for Stack Overflow, as it deals specifically with code syntax and usage. Had it been a more "conceptual" question (in the vein of "How is this technique useful in my software design?"), I would consider it a better fit here.

That said, questions should be migrated, not because they are a better fit on some other site, but because they are clearly off-topic on the originating site.

Answer 2

JoeMo asked:

What's happening here and how are these two declarations different?

I see this as asking :

"What does this code do?"

NOT

Why the code was designed that way?

That is why i voted for the migration... Just my 2 cents.

Answer 3

I think part of the problem with this particular question is that the title didn't match the body. The title asked a conceptual design question, but the body asked a syntax question. An edit to make them match one way or the other would make things much more clear.

The reason I voted to migrate was because without the basic syntax understanding he didn't have the background knowledge necessary to debate the merits of the conceptual design. Hence, I let the body text take precedence.

Also, I know not everyone subscribes to this philosophy, but one way I judge a question is by the answers it receives. In this case, the answer was directed toward the syntax end of the spectrum, rather than the conceptual design side, which means the answerer saw it as more of a syntax question as well.

Answer 4

I think they are off-topic here. They aren't about the whiteboard-level design questions. Once you move from system architecture and design to having your IDE open, you move from Programmers to Stack Overflow.

I also don't see which category of on-topic question the JavaScript snippit question falls under. In your quote of the FAQ, you left design patterns, development methodologies, and software architecture. It's none of those. I could be mistaken, but if it doesn't fall into a category of question that is called out in the FAQ, then it's off-topic and should be closed/migrated.

Honestly, Stack Overflow is the best place for this question as it stands now. I would rather honestly see it on Code Review, but their FAQ explicit disallows questions about "trouble-shooting, debugging, or understanding code snippets".