Process documentation is an important part of almost every organization which relies on IT systems. It is not a secret that process documentation is the best way to keep track of the whole process, and make sure it runs smoothly. However, process documentation can be challenging to set up, and many times companies are not aware of good process documentation tools, or what is important in them. I’ll try to help you with that today!
One of the hardest parts of writing software is documenting it. In order to write good software documentation, you need to use the right software documentation tools. Trying to open a gate with a chainsaw instead of using a key would be painful and time-consuming. Especially if you don’t really enjoy the process of doing it.
You are an analytical, inquisitive and problem-solving person. You want to change your company’s processes, streamline them and optimize them so you can see the benefits right before your eyes. Your ideas can’t be implemented soon enough because it is essential to make process documentation better for your company. Right now, you are searching for the best software documentation tools there are.
Most software engineers write the documentation for a project at the end of a sprint or they dedicate a separate sprint at the end of the development phase. At that point, they probably have already memorized most of the functions and writing software documentation can seem very cumbersome and useless. To make this process easier, there are several software documentation tools available.
Types of Software Documentation Tools
There are different formats and editors that can be used to write a well-structured documentation. The most common one is documentation written in markdown format. Documentation written in Markdown format can be done either through a Markdown Desktop Text Editor (installed on your local machine), a Markdown In-Browser Online Editor, or Automatic Generation Software Documentation Tools, such as LaTex (generally used by academia and scientific documentation).
Jump to any section [show]
Markdown Desktop Editors
Markdown is probably the most widespread form of writing software documentation. It is a lightweight markup language that can easily be converted into HTML or other formats. What makes markdown one of the top choices is the fact that you can use almost any plain text editor to create markdown files.
Different text editors and extensions have been created to make the process of writing markdown even easier. We analyze the most prominent ones below.
Texts
Texts is supported both on Windows and Mac OS. It provides a visual representation of the markdown text, thus making it an easy to use software documentation tool for beginners. You don’t need to remember the markdown syntax and images are visualized directly within the text. Additionally, it provides portability and allows for conversion between different formats such as PDF, Word, ePub etc.
Another great feature that Texts provides is the integration with reference management applications and the bibliography support in standard BibTex format.
The text editor is customizable and you can choose from a set of themes. The only drawback is that it is not free. It costs $19 per user regardless of whether you are purchasing it as a team or as an individual.
A great drawback, however, is that in order to work with Texts, you must first install Pandoc, which is a universal document text converter.
Typora
This text editor is supported on all three main operating systems, Windows, Mac OS and Linux. Unlike Texts, Typora offers a file management system which can connect directly to any cloud service such as Google Drive or Dropbox. The outline panel on the side of the editor makes navigating through documentation much easier.
A noteworthy feature that Typora provides is its seamless live preview. The editor shows the modifiable markdown code only when the cursor is pointing at that specific position. When the cursor leaves the text, the markdown is hidden.
Additionally, Typora provides a range of built-in themes while also allowing users to create their own themes using CSS. The main drawback is that the text editor is currently in beta version and several features might change until the final release version. Many users don’t enjoy getting used to a text editor and then finding out that the new release is completely different from what they have been using all the time.
Since the editor is provided for free only while it is in Beta version, the final release will also result in users having to pay for using the editor.
Haroopad
Haroopad provides cross-platform support just like most of the other editors analyzed so far (Windows, Linux, and Mac OS). Its primary statement is that the experience of using the editor should be the same regardless of the operating system in which it runs.
This editor stands out because it provides some advanced features that most developers would appreciate. It supports vim key binding and more than 100 different programming languages with syntax highlighting.
Haroopad has four different display modes. The default mode features a split screen (Editor:Viewer). Then there are the Reverse (Viewer:Editor), Viewer only and Editor only modes.
A distinguishing feature as a software documentation tool is that it allows developers to draw flowcharts or sequence diagrams in order to visually represent workflows.
This markdown editor is provided for free. However, it seems that work on the GitHub repository has halted for the past two or three years. Haroopad will likely remain in Beta version unless some casual developer decides to complete it.
MarkdownPad
MarkdownPad is probably one of the most popular markdown editors for Windows. Its greatest drawback is that it runs only on Windows. Apart from that, it offers a wide variety of features.
The split screen with a live preview makes it very easy to edit documentation. However, it does not provide a seamless live preview like Typora does. Moreover, just like most of the other software documentation tools, MarkdownPad offers CSS customizability supporting multiple stylesheets.
The UI is very easy to learn, understand and use. It’s a very simple window with two toolbars, however, offering great customizability and efficiency. The latest version of MarkdownPad is MarkdownPad2.
Another important Markdown editor that I personally like to use and visually resembles MarkdownPad, is Visual Studio Code. Unfortunately, since the release of markdown extensions for VS Code, MarkdownPad has not been maintained and there is almost no activity on GitHub for it.
Visual Studio Code
The primary drawback of Visual Studio Code is that it does not support markdown editing by default. This means you need to install an extension. However, this is done directly from the application and requires no more than two mouse clicks.
What I like about using Visual Studio Code for markdown is that it offers a wide range of extensions for Markdown editing. For example, one extension can have a seamless live preview and also offer a bunch of other useful features. Another extension can offer different themes, whereas another extension provides live document preview on your browser so that you can preview the documentation you are creating as it would be treated as an HTML file.
Finally, VS Code looks very similar to Visual Studio, an application used by most programmers that deal with Microsoft technologies.
SimpleMDE
SimpleMDE is a simple and embeddable javascript markdown editor. The primary advantage is that this software documentation tool is open source and thus its repository can be forked from GitHub. Using it is free and the project can serve as a learning experience for other people to experiment and create their own markdown editor.
The project can be seen on Github or downloaded as a .zip or .tar.gz file. After playing around with it for a bit, we came to the conclusion that this markdown editor might not be as straightforward to use as the other editors and it requires some small technical knowledge from the user’s side.
Its biggest advantage is probably the extensive set of features it has to offer while not having to pay for it.
Sublime Text 3
Sublime Text is one of the most well-known text editors for programmers. It runs on Windows, Linux and Mac OS. Moreover, it comes with a plethora of cool features, but it does not support markdown editing by default.
Out of all the software documentation tools we have compared, Sublime Text is probably the most difficult one to set up. Installation is not straightforward since it first requires the installation of the Sublime Package Control and then the installation of the Markdown Editing Package.
Additionally, this editor comes at a price of $70 per user. If you only need a text editor to write markdown format software documentation, then Sublime Text is probably an overkill. It provides so many features that can be useful to programmers and developers but not as much to web writers.
The price, installation requirements and the set of offered features make this documentation tool a good fit for advanced users that can make the most out of the provided toolset. Inexperienced users who are looking for a simple markdown editor are probably better off with a different one.
Notepad++
Notepad++ is probably one of our favorite text editors. It runs on all three top operating systems and resembles very closely the default Windows Notepad application. However, it comes with a set of more advanced features. It’s a Notepad on steroids.
Asides from supporting different programming languages, Notepad++ allows us to create markdown files and thus use it as a software documentation tool. Certainly, it is not a dedicated application for writing documentation, but if you are already using Notepad++ in your daily work and feel comfortable using it, then why not.
At Tallyfy we also enjoy Notepad++ due to their frequent updates and because it is free.
Inkdrop
Inkdrop is a note taking app for markdown lovers. We were quite hyped when I discovered it, to be honest. The app has a very slick UI and runs on all three main operating systems plus IOS and Android.
Our hype started fading away when we saw that you need to pay $4.99/month or $49.90 yearly. If we compare this note taking app to similar competitors like Evernote, we would say that the price of Inkdrop is quite convenient. However, since most users don’t want to think in terms of markdown when taking notes, people still prefer Evernote to Inkdrop.
Funnily enough, even the design of Inkdrop’s interface is very similar to Evernote’s interface. Furthermore, since most of the data is stored in the cloud, Inkdrop offers a good layer of security through an encryption with a 256-bit AES common key.
In terms of features, it provides a distraction-free setup, with a side-by-side live preview. Additionally, it offers code and syntax highlighting as well as key customizations.
What’s the Best Software Documentation Tool for Your Team?
As you can probably tell, there really is no “best” software documentation tool out there.
The best one for your team, though, is the one that:
- Allows developers and SMEs to build software documents with ease
- Enables end-users to find the information they need to stay productive
- Delivers the most value to all stakeholders at a price your team can afford
Conclusion
Documentation is an absolute necessity of all software projects, be they large or small. Not only is it a legal requirement in some cases, but just consider what happens when a team member leaves – do you want to be held up because there’s no documentation? Or worse, are you trying to figure out how code works within a project without any documentation?
The software industry is now past the development phase where software engineers make whatever they want using code, and it’s up to engineers and product professionals to understand what developers are creating. Instead, teams are focusing on creating a process that allows them to adhere to priorities, coordinate their efforts, and make sure they’re working as efficiently as possible. And in order for them to do that, they need a way to document that process. That’s where process documentation comes in.