[Doc-SIG] Applications for Docutils/reStructuredText
David Goodger
goodger@users.sourceforge.net
Thu, 09 May 2002 00:09:53 -0400
Moore, Paul wrote:
> I'm not sure what target applications are key for ReST, other than
> Python docstrings, and doc-sig postings :-)
Currently, and until docstring processing has matured, standalone
document processing is the biggest "market". Here's how Docutils is
actually being applied now:
- HTML: http://docutils.sourceforge.net's HTML is completely
auto-generated (except for the quickref, which Tony Ibbs
hand-coded). I've seen other sites using it as well (in a Google
search).
- Presentations: Richard Jones did some initial work on PythonPoint
integration.
- General documentation: Engelbert Gruber is working on ReportLabs PDF
integration.
Contrary to the nay-sayers who have claimed that "all we need for
docstrings are paragraphs, bullet lists, and [add a random two or
three other constructs here]", I believe that a rich palette is key.
ReStructuredText is providing a rich palette for input syntax; we're
building a variety of context-aware readers, and writers for multiple
formats. With a rich, generic syntax and a modular, flexible system,
the range of applications is very wide: from tiny docstrings to huge
documents, and nearly everything in-between. As components are added,
the possibilities multiply.
--
David Goodger <goodger@users.sourceforge.net> Open-source projects:
- Python Docutils: http://docutils.sourceforge.net/
(includes reStructuredText: http://docutils.sf.net/rst.html)
- The Go Tools Project: http://gotools.sourceforge.net/