Documentation Tool: phpDocumentor

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Introduction

1.What is phpDocumentor?

phpDocumentor is an open source documentation generator written in php, it automatically parses PHP source code and produces relatable API and source code documentation, based on PHPDoc-formatted comments(that starts with /** and ends with */) and blocks containing tags like @param @return and the structure of the source code itself. phpDocumentor runs the command line to create documentation in HTML format.

2.Documentation

Click here.

Installation & Usage

1.How to install phpDocumentor?

Click here.

2.How to make phpDocumentor documentation?

Click here.

3.Source code:

Here are the source codes of three php files that we’ve created, Hello, Substract and Sum.

Hello.php

<?php
/**
 * Print Hello World.
 *
 * @return void
 */
function Hello() {
    echo "Hello World!";
}
Hello();
?>

Substraction.php

<?php
/**
 * Subtract second number from first number.
 *
 * @param int $a First number
 * @param int $b Second number
 * @return int Difference of a and b
 */
function subtract($a, $b) {
    return $a - $b;
}

// Example usage
echo "Subtract 5 from 10: " . subtract(10, 5);
?>

Sum.php

<?php
/**
 * Sum two numbers.
 *
 * @param int $a First number
 * @param int $b Second number
 * @return int Sum of a and b
 */
function sum($a, $b) {
    return $a + $b;
}

// Example usage
echo "Sum of 3 and 5 is: " . sum(3, 5);
?>

4. Produced Documentation

Here are the documentation file created for those php files.

Pros and Cons of phpDocumentor

Advantages:

• Improves Code Readability: PHPDoc comments make it easier to understand what each function or class does, what parameters it expects, and what it returns.
• Supports IDE Autocompletion: Modern IDEs like VS Code use PHPDoc comments to provide hints, autocomplete suggestions, and type checking while coding.
• Standardized Documentation Format: PHPDoc follows a consistent, widely recognized format. Also it can automatically generate full documentation websites (like phpDocumentor).
• Helps in Team Collaboration: When multiple developers work on the same project, PHPDoc helps them quickly understand each other's functions, reducing confusion and errors.
• Debugging and Maintenance: Properly documented code helps trace the logic of the program faster when fixing bugs or adding new features.
• Modern support: It supports modern PHP features such as namespaces, closures, generics and PHP 7.0+

Disadvantages:

• Time-Consuming to Write: Adding detailed PHPDoc blocks for every function and variable can take significant extra time, especially for large projects.
• Can Become Outdated: If the code changes but the PHPDoc comments are not updated, the documentation can become misleading or incorrect.
• May Be Redundant for Simple Code: For small or self-explanatory functions, PHPDoc comments can feel unnecessary and make the file unnecessarily long.
• No Automatic Verification: PHP doesn’t enforce the accuracy of PHPDoc tags, so developers must manually ensure the comments match the actual function behavior.

Despite these limitations, phpDocumentor remains a powerful and widely used documentation tool in the software development community.

PHP Documentation.docx