Documentation Templates

Templates and structure guidelines for common documentation types.

1. README Structure Essential Sections (Priority Order) Section Purpose Title + One-liner What is this? Quick Start Running in <5 min Features What can I do? Configuration How to customize API Reference Link to detailed docs Contributing How to help License Legal README Template

Project Name

Brief one-line description.

Quick Start

[Minimum steps to run]

Features

• Feature 1
• Feature 2

Configuration

| Variable | Description | Default |

|----------|-------------|---------|

| PORT | Server port | 3000 |

Documentation

• API Reference
• Architecture

License

MIT

1. API Documentation Structure Per-Endpoint Template

GET /users/:id

Get a user by ID.

Parameters:

| Name | Type | Required | Description |

|------|------|----------|-------------|

| id | string | Yes | User ID |

Response: - 200: User object - 404: User not found

Example: [Request and response example]

1. Code Comment Guidelines JSDoc/TSDoc Template /**
2. Brief description of what the function does.
4. @param paramName - Description of parameter
5. @returns Description of return value
6. @throws ErrorType - When this error occurs
8. @example
9. const result = functionName(input); */

When to Comment ✅ Comment ❌ Don't Comment Why (business logic) What (obvious) Complex algorithms Every line Non-obvious behavior Self-explanatory code API contracts Implementation details 4. Changelog Template (Keep a Changelog)

Changelog

[Unreleased]

Added

• New feature

[1.0.0] - 2025-01-01

Added

• Initial release

Changed

• Updated dependency

Fixed

• Bug fix

• Architecture Decision Record (ADR)

ADR-001: [Title]

Status

Accepted / Deprecated / Superseded

Context

Why are we making this decision?

Decision

What did we decide?

Consequences

What are the trade-offs?

1. AI-Friendly Documentation (2025) llms.txt Template

For AI crawlers and agents:

Project Name

One-line objective.

Core Files

• [src/index.ts]: Main entry
• [src/api/]: API routes

Key Concepts

• Concept 1: Brief explanation
• Concept 2: Brief explanation

MCP-Ready Documentation

For RAG indexing:

Clear H1-H3 hierarchy JSON/YAML examples for data structures Mermaid diagrams for flows Self-contained sections 7. Structure Principles Principle Why Scannable Headers, lists, tables Examples first Show, don't just tell Progressive detail Simple → Complex Up to date Outdated = misleading

Remember: Templates are starting points. Adapt to your project's needs.