documentation-standards

# Documentation Standards

Templates, workflows, and checklists for creating documentation following Diataxis principles.

## When to Use This Skill

Use when:

- Creating any type of documentation
- Need template for specific doc type
- Want checklist to verify doc completeness
- documentation-writer agent needs HOW guidance

## Diataxis Framework Quick Reference

| Quadrant | Purpose | Audience | Focus |
|----------|---------|----------|-------|
| **Tutorial** | Learning | Beginners | Hand-holding, confidence building |
| **How-to** | Goal completion | Practitioners | Steps to achieve specific goal |
| **Reference** | Information | Any level | Exhaustive, accurate lookup |
| **Explanation** | Understanding | Curious users | WHY, context, decisions |

## Documentation Types Overview

| Type | Diataxis | When to Use | Guidelines | Template |
|------|----------|-------------|------------|----------|
| README (root) | How-to | Project entry point | `references/readme-guidelines.md` | `examples/readme-root-template.md` |
| README (module) | Reference + How-to | Module documentation | `references/readme-guidelines.md` | `examples/readme-module-template.md` |
| Quick Start | How-to | Fast path to working | `references/quickstart-guidelines.md` | `examples/quickstart-template.md` |
| CONTRIBUTING | How-to | Guide contributors | `references/contributing-guidelines.md` | `examples/contributing-template.md` |
| API docs | Reference | Endpoint documentation | `references/api-docs-guidelines.md` | `examples/api-docs-template.md` |
| Tutorial | Tutorial | Onboarding, learning | `references/tutorial-guidelines.md` | `examples/tutorial-template.md` |
| How-to guide | How-to | Specific task completion | `references/howto-guidelines.md` | `examples/howto-template.md` |
| Reference | Reference | Exhaustive information | `references/reference-guidelines.md` | `examples/reference-docs-template.md` |
| Explanation/ADR | Explanation | Architecture decisions | `references/adr-guidelines.