Automated user documentation generation based on the Eclipse application model

TL;DR

This paper presents a method for automatically generating user documentation for Eclipse-based applications by leveraging the application's semantic model, filling a gap in existing documentation tools for modern graphical applications.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach that uses the Eclipse application model to produce structured user documentation, aligning with ISO standards, which was previously unfeasible with traditional code-based tools.

Findings

Effective semantic descriptions enable structured documentation

The approach aligns with ISO/IEC 26514 standards

Potential and limitations of the method are discussed

Abstract

An application's user documentation, also referred to as the user manual, is one of the core elements required in application distribution. While there exist many tools to aid an application's developer in creating and maintaining documentation on and for the code itself, there are no tools that complement code development with user documentation for modern graphical applications. Approaches like literate programming are not applicable to this scenario, as not a library, but a full application is to be documented to an end-user. Documentation generation on applications up to now was only partially feasible due to the gap between the code and its semantics. The new generation of Eclipse rich client platform developed applications is based on an application model, closing a broad semantic gap between code and visible interface. We use this application model to provide a semantic description for the contained elements. Combined with the internal relationships of the application model, these semantic descriptions are aggregated to well-structured user documentations that comply to the ISO/IEC 26514. This paper delivers a report on the Ecrit research project, where the potentials and limitations of user documentation generation based on the Eclipse application model were investigated.