RE: integrating authored content with generated API docs

["Mark Baker" <mbaker -at- analecta -dot- com>]

> Importing javadoc or Doxygen XML output into Confluence would take
> more than just a bit of XSLT.

Well, I haven't actually done it, but from what I can see from the
Confluence docs, using XSLT to convert to Confluence wiki markup and then
calling the Confluence REST API to add the content seems straightforward. 

> Integrating it with a structured FrameMaker or Oxygen project might be
> simpler.

I've also done it with unstructured FrameMaker by generating MIF from XML
and importing it. 

> There are a lot of XML development tools you don't have to pay for up
> front, but total cost of ownership for an open-ended custom
> development project can be several orders of magnitude higher than
> customizing an off-the-shelf tool that already does 90% of what's
> required.

Can be, sure. Can also be far less. It depends on the value added of the
custom development and how well you design and manage the project. Don't
build what you don't have to build. Don't live with limitations you can
resolve with a simple piece of code.

But all we are talking about here is building a small bridge between two
existing tools that does not modify the behavior of either one. Nothing
expensive or scary about that if you know what you are doing and document
what you have done.

Mark


> On Sat, May 28, 2016 at 6:42 AM,  <mbaker -at- analecta -dot- com> wrote:
> > Actually, it can be trivial depending on the tools you are using for the
> > rest of your documentation.
> >
> > Both JavaDoc and Doxygen can output to XML rather than HTML. So if you
> are
> > using an XML based tool chain, or any tool that can import XML, or any
tool
> > that has a text-based input format you can create from XML, or can
import
> > content from any application that itself has an XML-based or text-based
> > input format that you can create from XML, then it is simply a matter of
> > writing a bit of XSLT to do the necessary transformation.
> >
> > More interesting is the next level up the integration ladder, which is
to
> > merge content written outside of the codebase with the material
extracted
> > from the code base at the topic level (in other words, compose a topic
from
> > a combination of extracted and externally authored content) and to do
> > automatic linking between the API docs and the rest of the doc set.
> >
> > Basic XML transformation is the key that unlocks a thousand doors. The
> tools
> > are free, reasonably high level, and well documented. So many docs
> problems
> > become so much simpler with these simple tools in hand.
> >
> > Mark
> >
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: techwr-l-bounces+mbaker=analecta -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> > [mailto:techwr-l-bounces+mbaker=analecta -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On
> Behalf
> > Of Tom Johnson
> > Sent: Friday, May 27, 2016 3:38 PM
> > To: Robert Fekete
> > Cc: TECHWR-L Writing
> > Subject: Re: integrating authored content with generated API docs
> >
> > This site is a jekyll-swagger hybrid that incorporates generated API
docs:
> > https://developer.epages.com/apps/
> >
> > I'm not sure how it was built, though.
> >
> > As far as integrating Javadoc or Doxygen outputs into another output,
I'd
> > say give up this effort now. It's pretty much impossible beyond adding
> some
> > pages in Doxygen.
> >
> > Tom
> >
> > ---------------------
> > blog: idratherbewriting.com
> > twitter: tomjohnson
> > email: tomjohnson1492 -at- gmail -dot- com
> > cell: 408-540-8562
> >
> > On Fri, May 27, 2016 at 11:24 AM, Robert Fekete
> <fekete77 -dot- robert -at- gmail -dot- com>
> > wrote:
> >
> >> Hi,
> >>
> >> depending on what programming language your API is, you might try to
> >> look for something similar to Sphinx for Python (
> >> http://www.sphinx-doc.org/en/stable/)
> >> It can autogenerate docs from code comments, and you can also add
> >> static pages (and IIRC, also some structure).
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