Document Your Vue.js Components with Propdoc

Every developer wants to read good documentation. Every developer wants to write good documentation. Few developers actually do. Let’s take a look at a really simple way to both generate documentation for your Vue.js components and render it as well with propdoc.

Installation

Install propdoc like any other Vue plugin: via Yarn or NPM.

# Yarn
$ yarn add propdoc

# NPM
$ npm install propdoc --save

Documenting Components

The biggest feature of propdoc is the ability to write your documentation as properties on components. These are only used if you use propdoc to render the documentation. Otherwise they have no effect. It’s a genius idea that I’m surprised doesn’t seem to have been done before.

<template>
  <div class="my-button" :class="{
    flat: isFlat,
    raised: isRaised,
    primary: isPrimary
  }">
    <slot></slot>
  </div>
</template>

<script>

export default {
  name: "my-button",
  introduction: "A basic example button.",
  description: "A basic button with the ability to be flat, raised, or be a primary button. Nothing super special. (I stink at writing documentation.)",
  token: `<my-button isFlat isPrimary>Button Text</my-button>`,

  props: {
    isFlat: {
      type: Boolean,
      default: false,
      note: 'Whether or not to use the flat version of the button. (No gradient or outline.)'
    },

    isRaised: {
      type: Boolean,
      default: true,
      note: 'Whether or not to use the raised version of the button. (Has a drop shadow.)'
    },

    isPrimary: {
      type: Boolean,
      default: false,
      note: 'Whether or not to use the primary coloring.'
    }
  }
}

</script>

Along with the usual built-in keys like name and required on the component and props, propdoc adds a few more:

• note: Tells what a prop does.
• introduction: A quick introduction to a component.
• description: A detailed description of the component. Supports Markdown.
• token: A bit of code demonstrating how to use the component.

Rendering Documentation

It’s nice and easy to render out the documentation for your component too. Just add the propDoc component and pass your documented component to it in the component prop.

<template>
  <div>
    <!-- Render the documentation for MyButton -->
    <prop-doc :component="MyButton"></prop-doc>
  </div>
</template>

<script>
import propDoc from 'propdoc';
import MyButton from './MyButton.vue';

export default {
  components: {
    propDoc
  },

  data() {
    return {
      MyButton
    }
  }
}
</script>