How to create XML documentation for C# code in monodevelop?

Unity Engine
1

I intended to create the documentation for my code but honestly i dont have any idea of how to do that.
I was looking for an option in monodevelop to create XML documentation but i coudnt find anything.
Can you help me with that or at least tell me where can i found information about that? I was doing some research but I couldnt find anything.

PD: sorry for my english, it isnt my first language

2

It should be turned on by default, just use three forward slashes to make XML documentation. After that you can use something like Doxygen to create more readable formats.

3

The only autogenerator I found that works with unity code is Microsofts SandCastle documenter. All you need is to have proper namespaces in for the ‘hierarchie’ cause it generates the hierarchie of the documentation basing on that.

anything else on the documenter front failed misserably on my tests against unity, back then on 3.0 I think

4

hmm…i heard something about sandcastle while i was looking for a way to create a XML documentation but it appeared only with topics related with visual studio, nothing about monodevelop.
Can you give me some guidelines about how to use it or any link where a i can found proper information?

5

SandCastle is no plugin, its a standalone application that you actually let process the folder.
You can download it from the Microsoft page at http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=10526

6

ah ok, i will take a look.
Thanks

7

This works in Visual Studio and MonoDevelop both, but in Visual Studio I sometimes get a warning that I am not on an XML object if I put this summary code at the very top of the file. If I put it below the Using statements it does not give that warning. Kinda strange… but it does work :slight_smile:

8

The /// are meant to be started right over the element to which they are related. not some freeform place.

so the summary for the class is right above the class declaration etc

thats the difference to C/C++ and doxygen where you can put it whereever you want basically, in C# its an ‘inbuilt aspect’ basically that was well thought out on how to do it to get consistent documentations independent on which hacker messed it together :wink:

9

Doxygen actually takes the standard DocFood/GhostDoc documentation for C#. So you can use /// and get the Intellisense commenting as well as the Doxygen larger documentation. We made an automated tool with relative paths so we can generate Doxygen C# Documentation from within UnityEditor.

10

That sounds cool :slight_smile:
I tried to get something on that end running but for some reason it failed but I’ve also never used it for C# before I’ve to say, only for C / C++ on *nix

11

well, I installed sandcastle with sandcastle help file builder and I already usee it. So far so good but i tried it using the compiler which comes in the .NET framework and with simples examples, however I dont have any idea of how to do the same with unity3d. Which files should i select in the documuntation sources? Is ther any tutorial that explain this? or documentation or something, I´m newbie and I´m totally lost in the matter.

is Doxygen more user friendly and easier? I never heard about it before but if its easy to use I would like to give it a shot, the problem is i cant find any info at all related with how to use it with unity3d. I found people who said they use it but not how to use it, and that´s what i need :\