The ones listed are _final_ output formats. However the parsed unit is stored in xml as _intermediate_ format.

fpdoc works, but was mainly developed for internal use. Therefore the project is a bit badly polished. However it understands quite a lot of the TP and Delphi _and_ fpc extensions, so it is worthy of more study

Yes, there is a documentation tool that creates XML structs from this.

It is called fpdoc and is in FPC cvs. If you have recent FPC sources, check the utils/ directory.

I think you misunderstand the concept. What you suggest here, is the INPUT of the fpdoc help tool. the XML it needs is similar to what you ask for here.

You can create an empty XML skeleton/template with 'makeskel', it will create the XML for you, based on the pascal sources. Then you can fill the XML up with actual help text.

After this is done, the fpdoc tool then creates a number of output formats from this XML: HTML,TeX, PDF, PS etc. It has functionality for linking between different XML file etc etc etc.

To help in editing the XML, there is a GUI tool called 'fpde', which should work on Windows and Linux. It too can create the Xml skeleton.

Of course should be possible to have a viewer for the XML without the need for fpdoc, but no-one has written that yet. It would be almost like writing an HTML viewer, so one would be better off creating HTML and using a standard viewer.

Clearer ?

Michael.

yep, was clear about two messages after starting this discussion.

problem is that, I still need that XML help files for my bussines. 4 devels and multiple connected projects (server services filters etc). All 4 of us, well we're mostly unavailable and being able to have help in cvs like structure with internal notices possibility means really great deal to us.

so if the question meaning of clearer?

1.was if I need html, pdf, ps >> nope, too hard to maintain, we need a fast and flexible maintained help for our internal purposes, most of everything is derived from base without even using classes unit

2.help files aka. Delphi is usable >> nope too limited for us

thanks for your help, I'll definitely try fpdoc, but what's your middle is the end for me wth different direction

Says that output is only (don't take this only in offense),

HTML
Plain HTML. Javascript is used to be able to show a small window with class properties or class methods, but the generated HTML will work without JavaScript as well. Style sheets are used to do the markup, so the output can be customised.
XHTML
As HTML, but using a more strict syntax.
LaTeX
LaTeX files, which can be used with the fpc.sty file which comes with the Free Pascal documentation. From this output, PDF documents can be generated, and with the use of latex2rtf, RTF or Winhelp files. Text files can also be generated.

Plans exist to create direct text output and RTF output as well.

is there any way to create simple XML aka. I was having something like this in my mind

<UNIT>
name.....
<VARIABLES>
<declarations>
<help text>
<example>
<user created examples, notes etc.>
</declarations>
</VARIABLES>
<OBJECTS>
<declarations>
</OBJECTS>
</UNIT>

Basically viewer should support subbranches as help options to that type. System help files in fpc help files, and user editable copies in $HOME/.fpchelp, and viewer should display both as one. some rebuild_help_index for newly copied files in helpdir. with such tool anybody could help writing and updating help files and mainainer could simply join them in one original system help file.

That's at least help type as I would need

I can even make some mockup how do I think it should be if there's any interests in this.

M.

XML is the intermediate data fpdoc uses :) and it looks basically as described below.

For the windows version of fpde, fpdoc and the fpdoc.pdf documentation, gtk dlls etc.

http://www.stack.nl/~marcov/fpde.zip

Note that this is slightly old. A few fixes from the author might not have made it into these binaries.

John The Ripper wrote

Says that output is only (don't take this only in offense),

Yeah. That's the *output*.
What your're actually talking about is the *input* to fpDoc. fpDoc takes two files, your source and an XML with the description. It then creates a help file for your source in any one of the given formats. (actually, the above is a bit simplified as fpDoc works on packages, not on single files, but that's just a matter of scale...)

To create a skeleton XML, use the makeskel tool:
http://snurl.com/359s

Note that this states:
The output of makeskel is a valid, empty description file. It will contain a module tag for each unit
specified, and each module will have element tags
for each identifier in the unit. Each element tag
will by default contain short, descr, errors and
seealso tags, but this can be customised.

I suggest we go off-list now and instead post a short how-to for documentation. Reply-to set (but I'm unsure what the list program does with that...)

I'm writing mostly with my own components (console only), but still find lack of missing help files. Ok, there is a "Write it yourself" which is quite in order. Everybody should do some work in OOS projects.

Question:
I just wonder if there already is some parsing code done for me to use in my help viewer, I would like to make a simple helpmake [unitname] and possibility of editing help files on the fly, with multiple examples etc., a help structure that allows evolving in OOS nature

Everything else I've got, I was just hoping that there is some code like parsing headers from unit, and getting class structures, functions and list of global constants and variables. Ok, I'm a bit lazy and a bit overloaded with other work, I admit, but last time I checked that was not a crime, more like a human feature

If it is, where it is?

Documentation for the documentation tool...
http://lazarus-ccr.sourceforge.net/fpcdoc/fpdoc/fpdoc.html

John, I'm looking into this now, you can contact me off-list if you want. Though I'm just starting, so I might not be of much ... help ... :*)

M.

So, you can use the xml files without the need for the fpdoc tool. The fpde editor is enough for you. All you need to do is write some tool to quickly browse the XML.

so if the question meaning of clearer?

No :/

Michael.