Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Asciidoctor VS Natural Docs

Compare Asciidoctor VS Natural Docs and see what are their differences

Asciidoctor logo Asciidoctor

In the spirit of free software, everyone is encouraged to help improve this project.

Natural Docs logo Natural Docs

Natural Docs is an open-source documentation generator for multiple programming languages.
  • Asciidoctor Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-20
  • Natural Docs Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-02-02

Asciidoctor features and specs

  • Human-Readable Syntax
    Asciidoctor uses the AsciiDoc syntax, which is designed to be easy to read and write by humans. This makes it accessible for both technical and non-technical users, easing the learning curve.
  • Output Formats
    It supports a wide range of output formats including HTML, PDF, DocBook, EPUB, and more, providing flexibility in how documents are presented and shared.
  • Customizable and Extensible
    Asciidoctor is highly customizable and can be extended with custom extensions and plugins. This allows users to tailor the tool to their specific documentation needs and workflows.
  • Open Source
    Asciidoctor is an open-source project, fostering a community-driven development environment. This ensures transparency and continuous improvements driven by a diverse set of contributors.
  • Integration with Tooling
    It integrates well with various build tools and editors such as Maven, Gradle, and AsciiDoc plugins for IDEs, aiding in seamless documentation processes and version control.

Possible disadvantages of Asciidoctor

  • Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While basic documentation is easy to produce, mastering advanced features and custom extensions may require a deeper understanding of the system, which can be challenging for new users.
  • Limited Native PDF Support
    Asciidoctor's native support for generating PDFs is less robust compared to its HTML output, often requiring additional tools like Asciidoctor PDF or DocBook for high-quality results.
  • Dependency Management
    External dependencies are sometimes needed for specific outputs or extensions (like PDF generation), which might complicate project setups and increase build times.
  • Less Widespread Adoption
    Compared to markdown, Asciidoctor has less widespread adoption, which might result in fewer community resources, tutorials, and third-party integrations available for support.
  • Compatibility Issues
    Integration with certain tools and workflows can present compatibility issues, especially when dealing with continuously updated software ecosystems.

Natural Docs features and specs

  • Readable Comments
    Natural Docs is designed to create natural language documentation from comments, making it easy for developers to write and maintain them.
  • Automatic Linking
    It automatically links documentation elements, like functions and classes, helping users navigate the documentation effortlessly.
  • Wide Language Support
    Natural Docs supports a wide range of programming languages, making it versatile for different projects.
  • Ease of Use
    The tool is relatively easy to set up and use, even for developers who are new to documentation generation.
  • Customization Options
    There are options for customizing the output, allowing developers to tailor the documentation to suit their project's style and needs.

Possible disadvantages of Natural Docs

  • Limited Output Formats
    Natural Docs mainly generates HTML documentation, which might not be suitable for all use cases or integrated documentation setups.
  • Markdown Support
    As of the latest information, it lacks extensive support for Markdown, which is a commonly used format for writing documentation.
  • Initial Learning Curve
    While easy to use, there is an initial learning curve to understand how to properly write comments to generate the desired documentation.
  • Active Maintenance
    The frequency of updates and active maintenance might not be as robust as other more popular documentation tools, potentially leading to slower adoption of new features.
  • Specificity
    While versatile, it might not cater to highly specific documentation needs out of the box without significant customization or workarounds.

Asciidoctor videos

Code your documentation with AsciiDoctor - open source is for everyone

More videos:

  • Review - [VDM19] Asciidoctor: because writing docs does not have to suck by Adres Almiray
  • Review - 10 Useful Asciidoctor Tips

Natural Docs videos

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Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Asciidoctor and Natural Docs)
Documentation
62 62%
38% 38
Documentation As A Service & Tools
Development
0 0%
100% 100
Knowledge Base
56 56%
44% 44

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Asciidoctor and Natural Docs

Asciidoctor Reviews

  1. Elisa
    · Technical Writer at Self ·
    Professional output from open source

    If you are looking for an open documentation solution ny which you can implement single sourcing while integrating with a complex build process then this is a great solution.

    👍 Pros:    Easy integration|Easy to use

Natural Docs Reviews

We have no reviews of Natural Docs yet.
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Asciidoctor seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 24 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Asciidoctor mentions (24)

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Natural Docs mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Natural Docs yet. Tracking of Natural Docs recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Asciidoctor and Natural Docs, you can also consider the following products

Markdown by DaringFireball - Text-to-HTML conversion tool/syntax for web writers, by John Gruber

Doxygen - Generate documentation from source code

pandoc - Pandoc is a Haskell library for converting from one markup format to another, and a command-line...

DocFX - A documentation generation tool for API reference and Markdown files!

reStructuredText - Invented for Python documentation.

NDoc - NDoc generates class library documentation from .