Mallard (documentation)
Encyclopedia
Mallard is a markup language
for the creation of help pages and user documentation for applications (technical documentation
).
The language is developed within the GNOME project
.
Mallard is in draft status, meaning, it is not completed yet.
Mallard is an XML
language.
Similar to DocBook
it defines the logical structure of a document.
The documents are then displayed in a help browser, which too creates links between the documents.
Concepts such as guides, and topics provide means for reaching help pages in different ways.
At the moment, GNOME applications such as Empathy
, Eye of GNOME
, Evince
and others use Mallard for documentation purposes.
Mallard pages can be shown in the GNOME
help browser yelp.
Further output formats are planned, they can be generated via command line using the tools that are provided via Gitorious
:
, OpenOffice
, LibreOffice
) or with wikis
and HTML
pages.
Special documentation formats are:
Markup language
A markup language is a modern system for annotating a text in a way that is syntactically distinguishable from that text. The idea and terminology evolved from the "marking up" of manuscripts, i.e. the revision instructions by editors, traditionally written with a blue pencil on authors' manuscripts...
for the creation of help pages and user documentation for applications (technical documentation
Documentation
Documentation is a term used in several different ways. Generally, documentation refers to the process of providing evidence.Modules of Documentation are Helpful...
).
The language is developed within the GNOME project
GNOME
GNOME is a desktop environment and graphical user interface that runs on top of a computer operating system. It is composed entirely of free and open source software...
.
Mallard is in draft status, meaning, it is not completed yet.
Mallard is an XML
XML
Extensible Markup Language is a set of rules for encoding documents in machine-readable form. It is defined in the XML 1.0 Specification produced by the W3C, and several other related specifications, all gratis open standards....
language.
Similar to DocBook
DocBook
DocBook is a semantic markup language for technical documentation. It was originally intended for writing technical documents related to computer hardware and software but it can be used for any other sort of documentation....
it defines the logical structure of a document.
The documents are then displayed in a help browser, which too creates links between the documents.
Concepts such as guides, and topics provide means for reaching help pages in different ways.
At the moment, GNOME applications such as Empathy
Empathy (software)
Empathy is an instant messaging client which supports text, voice, video, file transfers, and inter-application communication over various IM protocols....
, Eye of GNOME
Eye of GNOME
Eye of GNOME is the official image viewer for the GNOME desktop environment. Unlike some other image viewers, Eye of GNOME will only display images...
, Evince
Evince
Evince is a document viewer for PDF, PostScript, DjVu, TIFF and DVI designed for the GNOME desktop environment.The developers of Evince intended to replace the multiple GNOME document viewers with a single and simple application. The Evince motto sums up the project aim: "Simply a Document...
and others use Mallard for documentation purposes.
Mallard pages can be shown in the GNOME
GNOME
GNOME is a desktop environment and graphical user interface that runs on top of a computer operating system. It is composed entirely of free and open source software...
help browser yelp.
Further output formats are planned, they can be generated via command line using the tools that are provided via Gitorious
Gitorious
Gitorious is a Web site hosting collaborative open source projects using the Git distributed revision control system. The name also refers to the server software that the Web site is developed and hosted on...
:
- HTMLHTMLHyperText Markup Language is the predominant markup language for web pages. HTML elements are the basic building-blocks of webpages....
- LaTeXLaTeXLaTeX is a document markup language and document preparation system for the TeX typesetting program. Within the typesetting system, its name is styled as . The term LaTeX refers only to the language in which documents are written, not to the editor used to write those documents. In order to...
- DotDOT languageDOT is a plain text graph description language. It is a simple way of describing graphs that both humans and computer programs can use. DOT graphs are typically files that end with the .gv extension. The .gv extension is preferred, as .dot also is used by Microsoft Office 2003.Various programs...
Alternatives
User documentation can be written with normal document applications (e.g. LaTeXLaTeX
LaTeX is a document markup language and document preparation system for the TeX typesetting program. Within the typesetting system, its name is styled as . The term LaTeX refers only to the language in which documents are written, not to the editor used to write those documents. In order to...
, OpenOffice
OpenOffice.org
OpenOffice.org, commonly known as OOo or OpenOffice, is an open-source application suite whose main components are for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, and databases. OpenOffice is available for a number of different computer operating systems, is distributed as free software...
, LibreOffice
LibreOffice
LibreOffice is a free and open source office suite developed by The Document Foundation as a fork of OpenOffice.org. It is largely compatible with other major office suites, including Microsoft Office, and available on a variety of platforms...
) or with wikis
Wiki
A wiki is a website that allows the creation and editing of any number of interlinked web pages via a web browser using a simplified markup language or a WYSIWYG text editor. Wikis are typically powered by wiki software and are often used collaboratively by multiple users. Examples include...
and HTML
HTML
HyperText Markup Language is the predominant markup language for web pages. HTML elements are the basic building-blocks of webpages....
pages.
Special documentation formats are:
- DocBookDocBookDocBook is a semantic markup language for technical documentation. It was originally intended for writing technical documents related to computer hardware and software but it can be used for any other sort of documentation....
(platform independent) - reStructuredTextReStructuredTextreStructuredText is a lightweight markup language intended to be highly readable in source format. Its formal name indicates that it is a "revised, reworked, and reinterpreted StructuredText."...
lightweight markup language intended to be highly readable in source format - Microsoft Compiled HTML Help mainly windows systems
External links
- http://projectmallard.org/ project Mallard main page
- http://gitorious.org/projectmallard sources and tools at GitoriousGitoriousGitorious is a Web site hosting collaborative open source projects using the Git distributed revision control system. The name also refers to the server software that the Web site is developed and hosted on...