diff --git a/DOCUMENTATION_GUIDELINES.md b/DOCUMENTATION_GUIDELINES.md index 7c1d81d..f7a0d4a 100644 --- a/DOCUMENTATION_GUIDELINES.md +++ b/DOCUMENTATION_GUIDELINES.md @@ -112,6 +112,50 @@ For a how-to guide, completeness means reaching its named goal from its declared starting state. It need not recreate a new user's entire setup. For a tutorial, verify the complete chosen learning journey. +## Make examples and navigation usable + +Label code with its language and, when placement matters, its filename or where +it runs. Include imports, required inputs, and the call that produces the result. +Keep shell prompts and illustrative output outside copyable commands. A copy +control must copy the complete authored source, not a truncated preview or only +the visible lines. Offer language or package-manager choices only for supported +paths; do not add tabs that imply untested compatibility. + +In configuration reference, pair each option with its default and effect. State +what omitting it does, what changes when it is set, and whether it reads, writes, +sends data, incurs cost, or requires a restart. Link an error or observed symptom +to its cause, a safe corrective action, and a recovery check. + +Choose callouts by consequence: a note supplies context, a tip offers an optional +shortcut, and a warning precedes possible data loss, paid work, credential exposure, +or code execution. Give the warning a concrete title and keep it beside the step. +Do not turn ordinary instructions into a wall of alerts. + +Use descriptive task links, stable heading anchors, and a short next action. +On websites, use semantic navigation and a main landmark; name separate navigation +regions and expose the current page. A visual card or tab must retain an ordinary +link or accessible control. Keep breadcrumbs, page headings, and navigation labels +consistent without requiring identical wording everywhere. + +## Match discovery to the reader's intent + +Use exact technology names in useful titles and descriptions when the page actually +covers them. A title about an integration must lead to that integration's supported +transport, setup, permissions, and verification, not a generic capability list. +Distinguish source-checked configuration from a live client or provider test. + +A migration guide names the source and destination versions, prerequisites, data +mapping and losses, non-destructive trial, verification, and recovery. A comparison +states decision criteria, where the alternative fits, and dated primary sources; +separate measured results from vendor claims. Prefer repairing an existing guide +to creating overlapping query-targeted pages. Follow the repository's independent +editorial review rules for new indexable content. + +Markdown, HTML, help, and agent-facing copies must preserve the same instructions, +limits, links, and disclosures. Generate repeated content from its owning source +where practical and test parity. Maintain Markdown and `llms.txt` for readers and +agents that use them, not as promises of ranking, indexing, or AI citations. + ## Describe the product that exists Bind instructions and claims to the applicable release, interface, platform, @@ -221,6 +265,14 @@ Use this compact rule, adapted to the local guide's format: > For every documentation surface, follow the [Hraness documentation guidelines](https://github.com/hraness/.github/blob/main/DOCUMENTATION_GUIDELINES.md): distinguish guided learning, task completion, factual reference, and explanation; keep each page or section focused on its reader's need, and link between forms. Verify prerequisites, capabilities, effects, and a complete path to the stated result. +Examples worth consulting include Stripe's [first payment guide](https://docs.stripe.com/payments/accept-a-payment), +[SDK configuration reference](https://github.com/stripe/stripe-node#configuration), +and [MCP setup](https://docs.stripe.com/mcp), plus Vercel's +[documentation navigation](https://vercel.com/docs) and +[environment-variable reference](https://vercel.com/docs/environment-variables). +Borrow the useful reader path, code placement, and explicit configuration effects, +not their product-specific interfaces, full site structure, or visual templates. + This guide adapts Daniele Procida's [Diátaxis framework](https://diataxis.fr/). The product evidence, cross-surface ownership, and adoption rules above are Hraness requirements. Improve them through concrete reader and maintenance diff --git a/README_GUIDELINES.md b/README_GUIDELINES.md index b58269c..3aa967b 100644 --- a/README_GUIDELINES.md +++ b/README_GUIDELINES.md @@ -87,6 +87,20 @@ Do not make the reader assemble a first task from a command reference. Move provider matrices, migration history, configuration catalogs, and exhaustive examples below the first successful journey or into focused documentation. +For a library, name the file that receives the example, include its imports, and +show the returned value or rendered result. For a CLI, distinguish commands from +output and identify files it creates. Put the first useful task before release +history. If several supported routes exist, state a default with its reason and +link to the conditions for choosing another; do not manufacture an integration +matrix for a package with one path. + +A compact documentation map can route directly to setup, task guides, option and +error reference, and design tradeoffs. Label links by what the reader gets, not +“click here” or repository filenames alone. Keep configuration defaults and +side effects in linked reference instead of making the first example exhaustive. +See [examples, navigation, and discovery](DOCUMENTATION_GUIDELINES.md#make-examples-and-navigation-usable) +for copy controls, callouts, source parity, and truthful integration intent. + ## Explain behavior through evidence Use concrete verbs and named objects. Say what the command reads, validates,