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Software Documentation Tools

Tools for Documenting Application Source Code

Application source code may be documented by hand. Alternatively it may be documented using a number of automatic code documentor tools available. Due to the speed at which these applications can document an application's source code, they usually pay for themselves in no time at all!

Modern object orientated programming languages such as C#, Java and Visual Basic.NET all have standard syntax for documenting application source code developed in these languages. This allows code documentation to be created in a standard way which will assist other developers to understand an application's source code.

Code documentors exist for ASP.NET, ASP, PHP and Visual Basic. A wide range of code documentors are also available for many other programming languages.

It is also possible to get application documentors that will document relational databases associated with an application. Tools like the SQL Documentation Tool will quickly document all of the tables, views, stored procedures, functions and other entities in a database. Similar database documentor tools are available for Oracle and other relational databases.

Tools for Creating End User Documentation

End user documentation helps your application's users use that application. Documentation can typically in printed, Adobe Acrobat (PDF), Windows HelpFile or online HTML/interactive HTML formats.

There are a large number of applications that help you to create end user documentation. Many of these packages will allow you to simultaneously create multiple styles of documentation that can be deployed in both online and offline versions of the same documentation.

If you want to outsource the creation of your end user documentation then there are many technical authors/technical writers who will be able to create your application's documentation for you. Outsourcing end user documentation writing allows you to concentrate on application development and support. Getting a third-party to write your documentation may also improve the quality of the documentation as the technical author will no doubt ask the same questions about your application that a new end user would ask.

Useful Development Tools

ASP Documentation Tool™

Automatically creates developer documentation for ASP 2.0 and 3.0 web applications written in VBScript and JScript. Documentation for Microsoft Access, SQL Server 7/2000 databases and Visual Basic 6.0 components associated with the web application can also be incorporated into the reports. Documentation is created in HTML, HTML Help and plain text formats.

View Sample Output (HTML Help format).     View Sample Output (HTML Format).     Download Trial Version (5.2Mb ZIP file).

.NET Documentation Tool

Automatically creates technical documentation for .NET Framework Windows and ASP.NET applications written in C# or VB.NET and SQL Server 7/2000/2005 or Microsoft Access databases associated with the application. Documentation is created in HTML, HTML Help and plain text formats.

View Sample Output (HTML Help format).     View Sample Output (HTML Format).     Download Trial Version (5Mb ZIP file).

SQL Documentation Tool

The SQL Documentation Tool creates technical documentation for Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 and 2000 databases. Technical documentation is created in HTML and HTML Help formats. The HTML Help format documentation is fully searchable and cross referenced. The SQL Documentation Tool documents SQL Server Tables, Views, Stored Procedures, Triggers and Table Relationships.

View Sample Output (HTML Help format).     View Sample Output (HTML Format).     Download Trial Version (10.3Mb ZIP file).

VB Documentation Tool

The VB Documentation Tool creates technical documentation for Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0 projects. Technical documentation is created in HTML and HTML Help formats. The HTML Help format documentation is fully searchable and cross referenced.

View Sample Output (HTML Help format).     View Sample Output (HTML Format).     Download Trial Version (1Mb ZIP file).

Indexing Service Companion

The Indexing Service Companion is a Windows application that extends the functionality of the Microsoft Windows Indexing Service so that it is able to index content from remote websites and also from ODBC databases. As such it can be used as a low cost alternative to Sharepoint Portal Search Services.

Try Sample Search Facility.     Download Trial Version (1.7Mb ZIP file).

The Website Utility

The Website Utility examines websites for errors and areas that need to be optimised for search engines by using a built in web crawling engine. Errors checked for include broken or moved hyperlinks, missing page titles and missing meta tags. It also generates HTML for use in creating website site maps (table of contents pages - like this one), and is able to create both client-side JavaScript Search Engines and server-side ASP Search Engines for a website.

View Sample Output (HTML Format).     Download Trial Version (3Mb ZIP file).

PHP Documentation Tool™

Automatically creates developer documentation for PHP web applications. Documentation is created in HTML, HTML Help and plain text formats.

View Sample Output (HTML Help format).     View Sample Output (HTML Format).     Download Trial Version (1.0Mb ZIP file).