Undocumented features are frequently found in computer software releases. Sometimes the documentation is omitted through simple oversight, but undocumented features are often elements of the software not intended for use by everyday end users, but left available for use by help desk and knowledgeable end users who have learned of them through user groups or mailing lists.

Since the suppliers of the software usually consider the software documentation to constitute a contract for the behavior of the software, undocumented features are generally left unsupported, and may be removed or changed at will and without notice to the users. This makes using undocumented features a double-edged sword.

In other cases, software bugs are referred to jokingly as undocumented features. ( It s not a bug, it s an undocumented feature. )

Oddly, the undocumented feature itself has become a major feature of computer games. Developers often include various cheats and other special features that are not explained in the packaged material, but have become part of the buzz about the game on the Internet and among gamers. In Console/handheld games, Undocumented features are usually found in foreign games when the translation crew could not be bothered to localize such a feature.

Closed source application programming interfaces can also have undocumented functions that are not generally known.

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