# API Documentation

Tools and resources for creating, testing, and maintaining API documentation.

## Documentation Generators

### Interactive Documentation
<ResourceGrid>
<EnhancedLink url="https://swagger.io/" title="Swagger" description="Industry standard tooling for API design and documentation." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://redocly.github.io/redoc/" title="ReDoc" description="Clean, readable API docs generated from OpenAPI." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://mrin9.github.io/RapiDoc/index.html" title="RapiDoc" description="Web component for interactive OpenAPI documentation." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://bump.sh/" title="Bump.sh" description="Hosted API documentation platform with automated updates." />
</ResourceGrid>

### API Design Tools
<ResourceGrid>
<EnhancedLink url="https://stoplight.io/studio/" title="Stoplight Studio" description="Visual API design and OpenAPI editing environment." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://www.getpostman.com/" title="Postman" description="API development, testing, and collaboration platform." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://github.com/hoppscotch/hoppscotch" title="Hoppscotch" description="Open source API development and request testing tool." />
</ResourceGrid>

## Testing & Validation

### Linting & Quality
<ResourceGrid>
<EnhancedLink url="https://stoplight.io/open-source/spectral/" title="Spectral" description="JSON and YAML linter with OpenAPI-focused rulesets." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://github.com/Redocly/openapi-cli" title="OpenAPI 3 CLI" description="CLI tooling for OpenAPI validation, linting, and bundling." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://github.com/wework/speccy" title="Speccy" description="OpenAPI specification linting and validation toolkit." />
</ResourceGrid>

### API Testing
<ResourceGrid>
<EnhancedLink url="https://dredd.org/en/latest/" title="Dredd" description="Validate API descriptions against real backend behavior." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://rest.sh/#/" title="Restish" description="Command-line client for exploring and testing REST APIs." />
</ResourceGrid>

## Best Practices

### Structure Your API Docs
1. **Overview** - What does your API do?
2. **Authentication** - How to authenticate requests
3. **Endpoints** - Available endpoints with examples
4. **Data Models** - Request/response schemas
5. **Error Handling** - Error codes and messages

### Tips for Better Documentation
- Use real examples in your API documentation
- Include interactive testing capabilities
- Document error scenarios thoroughly
- Provide code samples in multiple languages
- Keep documentation in sync with API changes

## Guidelines & Resources

<ResourceGrid>
<EnhancedLink url="https://dret.github.io/guidelines/" title="API Guidelines" description="Curated index of API design guideline resources." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://opensource.zalando.com/restful-api-guidelines/#" title="Zalando RESTful API Guidelines" description="Comprehensive REST and event-driven API conventions." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://apihandyman.io/" title="API Handyman" description="Practical writing and API design guidance for teams." />
<EnhancedLink url="https://lornajane.net/posts/2023/tips-for-better-documentation-with-openapi" title="Tips for Better Documentation with OpenAPI" description="Actionable guidance for writing stronger OpenAPI docs." />
</ResourceGrid>