mirror of
https://github.com/documentationjs/documentation.git
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63 lines
3.0 KiB
Markdown
63 lines
3.0 KiB
Markdown
## What is `documentation`?
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This is a documentation generation system targeting JavaScript code and implemented
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in JavaScript. It exposes multiple interfaces for users:
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* with `npm i -g documentation`, it provides a binary for command-line usage
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* install `documentation` with `npm` to use the node-facing interace
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`documentation` runs in [node.js](https://nodejs.org/) but supports JavaScript
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that runs in _any environment_: you can use it to document browser libraries,
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server libraries, or even things that use RequireJS or other module systems.
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## How do I use `documentation`?
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There are two main ways:
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* You use the `documentation` command on your command-line to generate docs
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from your source code
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* You use one of the integrations with a build system like Gulp to generate
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docs from source code.
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## How does `documentation` differ from JSDoc?
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JSDoc is both a **standard syntax for documentating code** as well as a
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application, also called `jsdoc`, that processes that syntax into documentation.
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`documentation` uses the JSDoc syntax and provides an alternative to the `jsdoc`
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application.
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## Why use `documentation` instead of JSDoc?
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`documentation` aims to modernize and simplify the process of generating JavaScript
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documentation.
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* Beatiful defaults for HTML & Markdown output
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* Supports CommonJS `require()` syntax so that node modules can be documented
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by giving their `main` file
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* Expresses source transformations as chainable transform streams
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* Heavily documented internally: all public and private functions in `documentation`
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are documented. [JSDoc is not well documented internally](https://github.com/jsdoc3/jsdoc/issues/839).
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* Robust ES6 support
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* [No Rhino cruft](https://github.com/jsdoc3/jsdoc/issues/942)
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* Uses JSON literal objects for data representation instead of the [abandoned](https://github.com/typicaljoe/taffydb/graphs/contributors)
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and [untagged](https://github.com/jsdoc3/jsdoc/blob/master/package.json#L25) [TaffyDB](http://www.taffydb.com/) project.
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* Uses high-quality node modules for syntax parsing, argument parsing, and other
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tasks: separates concerns so that we can focus on a robust solution
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* Customization points like plugins & templates are heavily documented and
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made to be flexible
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* Uses streams & [vinyl](https://github.com/wearefractal/vinyl) to make
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output configurable and stdout-friendly.
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## Why use `documentation` instead of writing a Markdown file by hand?
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* `documentation` can generate multiple formats: when you create a project
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website, it can take the structure of your documentation and generate
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beautiful HTML output
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* The JSDoc syntax exposes a powerful, standardized type syntax to make it
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simple and clear to express parameter types like 'an array of strings'
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as `Array<String>`, and to support custom object types with inter-linking
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* The [eslint valid-jsdoc rule](http://eslint.org/docs/rules/valid-jsdoc.html)
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makes it possible to require documentation as part of your linting step,
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ensuring that new code doesn't lower documentation coverage.
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