About me
 Started doing API/SDK documentation a little more
than a year ago at a Silicon Valley startup
 Am still learning a ton, but enjoy
this type of documentation a lot.
 English major, writing background
 First time presenting on this topic
 Question format
1. What are code samples?
 Usually supplementary material that accompanies API
or SDK reference documentation (particularly SDK).
 Can be short or lengthy, full of comments and
explanation or without any explanation at all.
 Great example on jquery's documentation here:
http://api.jquery.com/each/
 Another good example:
http://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/java/javaOO/
classes.html
Head First Java, 2nd Edition
2. Why add code samples?
 Code samples are in another language. If audience
speaks the language, the code communicates more
clearly.
 Examples are much more efficient than trying to
describe syntax and methods in a narrative way.
 Programmers often skip right to the examples to see
how something is to be done.
 Examples illustrate how your product works in an
immediate and clear way.
3. Which language should
the code samples be in?
"I would say at least half of web APIs do not have sample
code available because once you provide it in one
language, developers will want sample code in Java, C#,
Ruby, Python, Objective-C, PHP, etc. which is often not
practical to provide. (The beauty of web APIs is that they
can be called from almost any language; this is also a huge
problem when it comes to sample code.) Instead of sample
code, web API documentation often just shows sample
requests and responses." – Peter Gruenbaum, SDK Bridge,
Linkedin thread.
4. Do I need to be a programmer
to write code samples?
"… a writer must know enough programming to both read
(and understand) code samples AND create their own code
samples for the documentation. As others have mentioned,
that doesn't require being a full-fledged programmer, but you
need some solid programming knowledge. It is just like any
other documentation project in my mind -- when I document
software products, I use the product as an end user would to
ensure that I understand what they need to know. For an
API, if I'm writing the doc myself (as opposed to editing doc
someone else wrote), I want to use the API as a developer
would, for the same reason." -- Sara Schertz, Tech Writer /
Bus. Analyst, Linkedin thread
5. If I could write code,
wouldn't I be a developer?
"We don’t need to be code ninjas. The code in an
illustrative sample is not the same thing as the productionready code in an application. … A code sample is a piece
of syntactically correct and semantically useful code,
written to illustrate the functionality and usage of an API
or a developer tool. The code sample provides a stepping
stone between the conceptual overviews in the developer’s
guide, and the complex implementation required for a
production-ready application." – Sarah Maddox, API
technical writer at Google
6. How do you know what's
obvious without a dev bckgrnd?
flickr
7. Can I just get all code
samples from engineers?
flickr
8. How can I learn
programming?
 safariflow.com
 safaribooksonline.com
 lynda.com
 teamtreehouse.com
 codeschool.com
 udemy.com
9. How can I keep my brain
from exploding?
10. Are code samples hard
to write?
11. How do I add
comments in code?
Head First Java, 2nd Edition
Head First Java, 2nd Edition
12. How do I provide
instructions for lengthy samples?
 Build it up as a story
 Or describe it section by
section after providing
the full code.
13. How do you explain
code that is non-linear?
14. Shouldn't I show our
product's full capabilities?
flickr
15. Where do you put code
samples?
 Option 1: Separate from the reference material? Keeps
reference material clean and minimal, but not as
integrated.
 Option 2: Integrated within each method or class?
Makes sense from an organizational point of view, but
makes doc bulky.
 Option 3: Brief examples in reference material, with
lengthier examples in a separate area.
16. Can I adopt a playful,
irreverent tone with dev doc?
"Code can always be a little more stressful than we would
like, so don't be afraid to inject some humor into your
comments. As far as brightening up someone's day when
they're eyeballs deep in code, it doesn't get much better
than reading a funny comment someone left. I've even
caught myself laughing at comments I've written in the
past. It's always a nice surprise and lightens the mood."
-- Chapter 9, Code Design, Learning JavaScript, by Tim
Wright.
17. What's the best way to
review code with engineers?
flickr
18. If I can get code to run
myself, why review it?
 Performance
 Memory
 Inefficiency
 Best practices
19. How can I make my
code samples readable?
20. How do I avoid tedious
updates with new releases?
References/Attributions
The following are references to images and quotes used in this presentation. The numbers (e.g., "Question 4")
correspond to the numbers on the slide titles, not necessarily the slide position in the slidedeck.
Question 1. (3rd screenshot) Head First Java, 2nd Edition, by Bert Bates; Kathy Sierra. Published by O'Reilly Media,
Inc., 2005
Question 3. "Do you need to know how to program to document web APIs?". Peter Peter Gruenbaum. Linkedin
thread. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/Do-you-need-know-how-4219315.S.5872831609228509188
Question 4. "Do you need to know how to program to document web APIs?" Sara Schertz, Tech Writer / Bus.
Analyst, Linkedin thread. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/Do-you-need-know-how4219315.S.5872831609228509188
Question 5. – "How to write helpful code samples." Sarah Maddox. STC Intercom September 2014 (forthcoming)
Question 6. “Industrious engineering students (undated)” by pellethepoet Licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution 2.0 Generic. Accessed 28 May 2014. https://www.flickr.com/photos/pellethepoet/12097798504/
Question 7. “Industrious engineering students (undated)” by pellethepoet. Licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution 2.0 Generic. Accessed 28 May 2014. https://www.flickr.com/photos/hackny/5685399451/
Question 10. "How to Solve Sudoku Puzzles Quickly and Reliably" by Conor Murphy, Accessed 28 May 2014.
http://www.bigfishgames.com/blog/how-to-solve-sudoku-puzzles-quickly-and-reliably/
Question 11. Head First Java, 2nd Edition, by Bert Bates; Kathy Sierra. Published by O'Reilly Media, Inc., 2005.
Question 12. “Storyteller” by Kate. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic. Accessed 28 May
2014. https://www.flickr.com/photos/tylluan/7579135/
Question 13. “Christmas #30” by Kevin Dooley. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic.
Accessed 28 May 2014. https://www.flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/5208532605/
Question 14. “Fireworks” by sj liew. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic. Accessed 28 May
2014. https://www.flickr.com/photos/sjliew/1286426141/
Question 16. "Code Design" (Chapter 9). Learning JavaScript, by Tim Wright.
Question 17. “Engineering” by Saint Louis University. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic.
Accessed 28 May 2014. https://www.flickr.com/photos/slumadridcampus/6263551146/
Question 20. “what people throw away” by scorpions and centaurs. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution
2.0 Generic. Accessed 28 May 2014. https://www.flickr.com/photos/sshb/3138725794/