The official Rules of Dixonary were posted on CompuServe on 4 January 1990 by Anders Sterner. In the intervening thirty years a body of precedent has been built up which players are expected—somehow—to know. Much of this precedent is old; most of it refines on the rules; some of it downright contradicts them.
This does not bother long-standing players, who play by an internalized set of rules, some of which approximate the written ones, and some of which are based on the precedent, that—officially, anyway—goes unrecorded.
Which is why some long-standing players regard close attention to the written rules as an annoying distraction from the real game.
But whatever those players think, most players, even seasoned ones, need to refer to the rules occasionally. Though some just ask in the group for pointers. They invariably get at least one response that quotes the rule in question.
Finally, there are points of custom in the game that have little or no foundation in the rules. Their purpose and correct application can be obscure, even to seasoned players. The commentaries make proposals for the abolition of these customs, and are not addressed to new players.