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Product Overview: pdoc
What is pdoc?
pdoc is a tool designed to auto-generate API documentation for Python projects. It focuses on simplicity and ease of use, making it an ideal choice for developers looking to document their Python modules efficiently.
Key Features
- Easy Setup and Simple Usage: pdoc requires no special configuration to get started. It can generate sensible API documentation directly from your Python module files, package directories, or import paths.
- Support for Common Docstring Formats: pdoc supports popular docstring formats such as Markdown, numpydoc, and Google-style docstrings. This flexibility ensures that your documentation is consistent and easy to read.
- Type Annotations and Modern Python Features: pdoc has first-class support for type annotations and other modern Python 3 features, ensuring that your documentation reflects the latest coding practices.
- Automatic Cross-Linking: pdoc automatically links identifiers in your docstrings to their corresponding documentation. This feature enhances navigation within the documentation, making it easier for users to find related information.
- Customizable HTML Templates: Users can customize the HTML templates to match their project’s branding and style. This flexibility allows for a tailored documentation experience.
- Built-in Web Server with Live Reloading: pdoc includes a built-in web server that provides near-instant preview of rendered docstrings with live reloading. This feature is particularly useful during the development phase, allowing for quick feedback and adjustments.
- Respect for `__all__` Variable: pdoc respects the `__all__` variable when present, ensuring that only the intended parts of your module are documented.
- Inheritance and AST Traversal: pdoc uses inheritance to resolve type annotations and docstrings for class members and traverses the abstract syntax tree (AST) to extract type annotations and docstrings from constructors.
- Search Functionality: pdoc includes a client-side search feature that allows users to quickly find relevant parts in the documentation. This search functionality covers all documented elements and their docstrings, and it works without any third-party services, ensuring privacy and static hosting compatibility.
Additional Functionality
- Deployment Flexibility: pdoc generates standalone HTML output without additional dependencies, making it easy to deploy the documentation to various platforms, including GitHub Pages.
- Advanced Customization: For more advanced customization needs, users can modify the `__pdoc__` dictionary to override docstrings and adjust the HTML templates according to their requirements.
In summary, pdoc is a powerful yet simple tool for generating API documentation for Python projects. Its focus on ease of use, support for modern Python features, and customizable output make it an excellent choice for developers seeking to maintain high-quality documentation with minimal effort.
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