Monday, January 16, 2006

Automatic JavaScript documentation generation

I'm looking for some recommendations for auto-generating API docs for JS libraries. There doesn't seem to be a lot of info out there on Google, so let's build a list here.

I'm interested in everything from mods to existing packages like DocBook, JavaDocs, etc. to Perl scripts you've stitched together back in 1999. Have at it!

Non-Blogger members can email me and I'll post your link.

10 Comments:

At 1:49 PM, Blogger wpbasti said...

In qooxdoo we have a python script which parses a javascript (also understand javadoc/doxygen like meta informations) and generate a set of html files for it (also a class tree). Not so bad for a beginning.

 
At 2:49 AM, Blogger Stuart Langridge said...

JSDoc is designed for this sort of thing, no?

 
At 8:34 AM, Blogger scottandrew said...

Dean Edwards forwarded a link to http://www.naturaldocs.org/ as a potential solution as well.

 
At 9:59 AM, Blogger scottandrew said...

Oops, let's try again: NaturalDocs

 
At 10:14 AM, Blogger Daniel Vandersluis said...

In my experience, neither of those programs are as good as I've needed, which JSDoc is the better of the two. Especially when using var x = {...} style objects, or "inner objects" (objects within objects), I've found that JSDoc fails to create documentation, even when given the explicit tags.

I've started writing my own, but it's on the backburner for now.

 
At 12:02 AM, Blogger Tom Trenka said...

There is a doc system in the works with the Dojo project (being written by Neil Roberts); we expect to be using it fairly soon, so stay tuned.

I don't know that much about it as of yet but it looks like it could be everything you ever wanted out of a Javascript documentation system--because he's designing it for Javascript, and not adapting a system from somewhere else.

 
At 2:48 PM, Blogger Foosy said...

I have been checking for a good documentation tool for Javascript and was surprised I could not find one...
Neither of the ones mentioned above support function overloading or properly understand prototyping and superclassing. These are parts really needed in order to document serious programming.
I have even tested a commercial package (doc-o-matic) that could not handle these necessary features.

So, if any one has already witten the 'full package' please let us know!

 
At 3:18 AM, Blogger Kala Menon said...

whenever i`m republishing my blog it`s showing error -"005 Unable to connect to SFTP server: java.net.ConnectException: Connection refused "

 
At 9:29 AM, Blogger Broofa said...

Check out jGrouseDoc - It takes a bit more work to create documentation, since the tool doesn't parse logical structure from code (this is by intent, btw). But it provides a rich in-comment syntax for documenting your design and API, and allows you to document concepts such as inheritance and mixins, classes, structures, and modules. And the next release will have support for modifiers (abstract, static, public, private, protected), which allows you to document design nuances that can't be parsed from code.

The lack of code-parsing may seem to be a detriment at first, but you'll soon discover that the control this affords is well worth the price.

As an added bonus, Denis, the developer, has been very responsive to suggestions and bug reports. (The project is currently hosted on Google Code, with discussion on Google Groups).

 
At 9:30 AM, Blogger Broofa said...

Check out jGrouseDoc - It takes a bit more work to create documentation, since the tool doesn't parse logical structure from code (this is by intent, btw). But it provides a rich in-comment syntax for documenting your design and API, and allows you to document concepts such as inheritance and mixins, classes, structures, and modules. And the next release will have support for modifiers (abstract, static, public, private, protected), which allows you to document design nuances that can't be parsed from code.

The lack of code-parsing may seem to be a detriment at first, but you'll soon discover that the control this affords is well worth the price.

As an added bonus, Denis, the developer, has been very responsive to suggestions and bug reports. (The project is currently hosted on Google Code, with discussion on Google Groups).

 

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