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  3. Developer facing API documentation tool?

Developer facing API documentation tool?

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  • R Ravi Bhavnani

    In the old days, I used to use Sandcastle to create dev facing browsable documentation (e.g. for an SDK). What would you recommend today? Thanks, /ravi

    My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

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    trønderen
    wrote on last edited by
    #12

    Consider ChatGPT.

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    • R RickZeeland

      I'm using Sandcastle Help File Builder: GitHub - EWSoftware/SHFB: Sandcastle Help File Builder (SHFB)[^] Another option might be: DocFX[^] or Doxygen[^]

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      trønderen
      wrote on last edited by
      #13

      Sandcastle? Is that the system I remember from the days I was maintaining a toolbox installation wizard: The users wanted Sandbox included in a toolbox. It took ages to install the 115,000 files. It turned out that those asking for it only needed the core functionality, so the installation was reduced to no more than 60,000 files. I may be mixing it up with another tool in the same toolbox, but I believe it was Sandbox going completely bananas in number of files installed.

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      • T trønderen

        Consider ChatGPT.

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        Peter_in_2780
        wrote on last edited by
        #14

        In light of your post above... So he doesn't have to write the non-existent references that ChatGPT will create?

        Software rusts. Simon Stephenson, ca 1994. So does this signature. me, 2012

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        • T trønderen

          Sandcastle? Is that the system I remember from the days I was maintaining a toolbox installation wizard: The users wanted Sandbox included in a toolbox. It took ages to install the 115,000 files. It turned out that those asking for it only needed the core functionality, so the installation was reduced to no more than 60,000 files. I may be mixing it up with another tool in the same toolbox, but I believe it was Sandbox going completely bananas in number of files installed.

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          R Offline
          RickZeeland
          wrote on last edited by
          #15

          SandCastle is not the easiest tool, I agree, but the free alternatives that I tried were disappointing, most could not generate .chm help files. Sandcastle Help File Builder (SHFB) makes using SandCastle a lot simpler: GitHub - EWSoftware/SHFB: Sandcastle Help File Builder (SHFB)[^]

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          • R Ravi Bhavnani

            In the old days, I used to use Sandcastle to create dev facing browsable documentation (e.g. for an SDK). What would you recommend today? Thanks, /ravi

            My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

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            M Offline
            Member 10952144
            wrote on last edited by
            #16

            I would say Swagger/Swashbuckle for OpenAPI-style REST API's. You can add quite some additional info on top of an already developer-oriented API description, and it can be used to generate clients that will 'just work' based on the spec. For an SDK in the form of a nuget file, since you said you were doing C#, package a markdown readme file in the nuget, this way the documentation comes with the library. I prefer having version-bound and 'incorporated' documentation rather than having to go look for it on some site, that 9 out of 10 times is not updated to match your version. And eventually, depending on your requirements, a generated and organic documentation site using something like docfx might be useful to give some additional info, which again, can/should be linked to from within the nuget or Swagger.

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            • R Ravi Bhavnani

              In the old days, I used to use Sandcastle to create dev facing browsable documentation (e.g. for an SDK). What would you recommend today? Thanks, /ravi

              My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

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              M Offline
              maze3
              wrote on last edited by
              #17

              Ill just recap what another said, and might not be useful as sounds like a program API, instead of web API. but yeah, OpenAPI Specification, formally Swagger, with Swashbuckle being the C# .net implementation, is a JSON formatted specification. Which has been levelled up to standard that other web api ingesting services have incorporated so no some automated level of point and click, and your program knows how all the details needed to use that web api service. Mention only, that maybe specification been branched out to cover other types of API

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              • R Ravi Bhavnani

                In the old days, I used to use Sandcastle to create dev facing browsable documentation (e.g. for an SDK). What would you recommend today? Thanks, /ravi

                My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

                S Offline
                S Offline
                Steve Naidamast
                wrote on last edited by
                #18

                I have always used HelpSmith for all of documentation. It can produce CHM files along with printed output, online\HTML output, PDFs and Word documents. See... https://www.helpsmith.com/

                Steve Naidamast Sr. Software Engineer Black Falcon Software, Inc. blackfalconsoftware@outlook.com

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                • R Ravi Bhavnani

                  In the old days, I used to use Sandcastle to create dev facing browsable documentation (e.g. for an SDK). What would you recommend today? Thanks, /ravi

                  My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

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                  B Offline
                  BobElward
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #19

                  I had a requirement to produce documentation for a graduate class in Advanced Data Structures. The professor let us choose the language WA wanted to use, within reason. I choose C# and documented all the classes, methods, etc. using C#'s triple slash (///) syntax. I then used DocFX to produce the first pass at the doc web site. Spent some time understanding how to add additional content and spruce up the final product. Did all three projects with this technique. Was very satisfied with the result. Got a great grade, maybe because my programs were good, but I like to think the quality of the documentation site helped.

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                  • J Jeremy Falcon

                    You could always write one in [this](https://github.com/Folds/osmosian). Ducks and runs.

                    Jeremy Falcon

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                    terence-johnT Offline
                    terence-john
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #20

                    oooooh! that is a thing of beauty :)

                    Je veux qu'on rie
                    Je veux qu'on danse
                    Je veux qu'on s'amuse comme des fous

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                    • D Dave Kreskowiak

                      You just had to bring that guy back up... X|

                      Asking questions is a skill CodeProject Forum Guidelines Google: C# How to debug code Seriously, go read these articles.
                      Dave Kreskowiak

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                      Gary Wheeler
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #21

                      Cue Vincent Price's soliloquy in Michael Jackson's Thriller: "Darkness falls across the land, the midnight hour is close at hand. Creatures crawl in search of blood to terrorize y'all's neighborhood."

                      Software Zen: delete this;

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