Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Doxygen VS Docma

Compare Doxygen VS Docma and see what are their differences

Doxygen logo Doxygen

Generate documentation from source code

Docma logo Docma

Docma is a powerful tool to easily generate beautiful HTML documentation from Javascript (JSDoc)...
  • Doxygen Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-30
  • Docma Landing page
    Landing page //
    2019-11-05

Doxygen features and specs

  • Comprehensive Documentation
    Doxygen supports a wide range of languages and can generate detailed, organized documentation for various types of codebases, including class hierarchies, collaboration diagrams, and more.
  • Automatic Code Parsing
    Doxygen automatically parses the code and extracts relevant comments, which helps in creating accurate and up-to-date documentation without much manual intervention.
  • Customizable Output
    Doxygen allows customization of the output format with several templates, enabling developers to generate documentation in HTML, LaTeX, RTF, and other formats.
  • Integration with Other Tools
    Doxygen integrates well with other tools such as Graphviz for generating diagrams, and it can be incorporated into continuous integration pipelines to ensure documentation is always current.
  • Open Source
    Doxygen is open-source software, meaning it is free to use and has a community of contributors that may add features or fix issues over time.

Possible disadvantages of Doxygen

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Due to its extensive features and customization options, Doxygen can be quite complex to set up and use effectively, especially for beginners.
  • Performance Issues
    For very large codebases, Doxygen can be slow in processing and generating the documentation, which might be a limitation for some projects.
  • Limited Support for Non-Standard Code Constructs
    Doxygen may have difficulties interpreting non-standard code constructs or highly complex code, which could lead to incomplete or inaccurate documentation.
  • Dependency on Code Comments
    The quality and usefulness of the generated documentation heavily depend on the thoroughness and clarity of the comments within the code, requiring disciplined commenting practices.
  • Outdated Documentation
    If not regularly maintained and regenerated, the produced documentation can become outdated as the codebase evolves, leading to potential misinformation.

Docma features and specs

  • Customizability
    Docma allows customization of the documentation layout and theme, enabling users to tailor the output to fit their brand or desired appearance.
  • Easy Setup
    Docma provides a straightforward setup process with minimal configuration, making it accessible for users without extensive technical knowledge.
  • Markdown Support
    Docma supports markdown files, allowing users to write documentation using simple and widely-adopted syntax.
  • Client-Side Performance
    Docma generates static documentation, which can be hosted on any web server, leading to faster client-side performance compared to dynamic document servers.
  • Search Functionality
    Built-in search functionality allows users to quickly find information within the generated documentation.

Possible disadvantages of Docma

  • Limited Flexibility
    While Docma offers customization options, the overall flexibility might be limited compared to more robust documentation generators, particularly for very specific or complex requirements.
  • Dependency on JavaScript
    Docma is based on Node.js, which means users need to have a Node.js environment set up, potentially complicating the process for those unfamiliar with JavaScript frameworks.
  • Learning Curve
    For users not familiar with JavaScript documentation generation tools, there might be a learning curve associated with understanding and effectively using Docma.
  • Limited Plugins
    Docma may have fewer plugins and third-party integrations compared to larger documentation platforms, limiting its extensibility.
  • Community Size
    As a less popular tool, Docma may have a smaller community for support, reducing the availability of community-made extensions or troubleshooting help.

Analysis of Doxygen

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Doxygen is considered a good tool, especially for projects where maintaining documentation is crucial. Its ability to integrate with various development environments and version control systems, along with its configurability and range of output formats, makes it a robust choice for automatically generating up-to-date project documentation.

Why this product is good

  • Doxygen is a widely used tool for generating documentation from annotated C++ sources, and it supports other programming languages including C, Objective-C, C#, PHP, Java, Python, IDL (Corba and Microsoft flavors), Fortran, VHDL, and D. It is valuable for its ability to extract code structure and comments to produce comprehensive documentation in various formats like HTML, LaTeX, and RTF. It also has support for generating diagrams and cross-references, which improves documentation readability and navigation.

Recommended for

  • Developers working in medium to large codebases that need robust documentation.
  • Teams using C++ or any of the supported languages who want to ensure their code documentation is consistently updated and accessible.
  • Projects where it is crucial to have an easily navigable documentation site with features like search, diagrams, and cross-references.
  • Open source projects that want to maintain high-quality, automatically generated documentation.

Doxygen videos

Doxygen

Docma videos

No Docma videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Doxygen and Docma)
Documentation
90 90%
10% 10
Documentation As A Service & Tools
Knowledge Base
90 90%
10% 10
Development
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using Doxygen and Docma. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Doxygen and Docma

Doxygen Reviews

Best 25 Software Documentation Tools 2023
Doxygen is a popular documentation generator tool that is commonly used in software development projects to automatically generate documentation from source code comments.
Source: www.uphint.com
Introduction to Doxygen Alternatives In 2021
Doxygen is the software application for developing paperwork from illustrated C++ sources, but other programming languages like C, C#, Objective-C, UNO/OpenOffice, PHP, Java, IDL of Corba, Python, and Microsoft, VHDL, Fortran are also supported. From a collection of recorded source files, user can develop an HTML online documents web browser and an offline referral manual....
Source: www.webku.net
Doxygen Alternatives
Doxygen is the software for creating documentation from illustrated C++ sources, but other programming languages like C, C#, Objective-C, UNO/OpenOffice, PHP, Java, IDL of Corba, Python, and Microsoft, VHDL, Fortran are also supported. From a collection of documented source files, user can create an HTML online documentation browser and an offline reference manual. It also...
Source: www.educba.com
Doxygen Alternatives
Since the documentation is directly extracted from the sources, it is a lot less difficult to maintain the compatibility between the source code and the documentation. Having said that, this tax has a few problems with it. Therefore, I have compiled a list of some of the other options available to you besides Doxygen.

Docma Reviews

We have no reviews of Docma yet.
Be the first one to post

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Doxygen and Docma, you can also consider the following products

GitBook - Modern Publishing, Simply taking your books from ideas to finished, polished books.

Documentation Agency - We write your product or library documentation.

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

swagger.io - Swagger is an open source RESTapi Documentation Tool.

Docusaurus - Easy to maintain open source documentation websites

MkDocs - Project documentation with Markdown.