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Technical Documentation Search Examples

Learn how to effectively search through technical documentation, API references, code documentation, and development resources using Oboyu.

Scenario: Software Development Team​

Your team maintains multiple projects with extensive documentation spread across README files, API docs, architectural decision records (ADRs), and code comments.

Setting Up Your Technical Docs Index​

# Index all technical documentation
oboyu index ~/dev/projects --db-path ~/indexes/tech-docs.db \
    --include "*.md" \
    --include "*.rst" \
    --include "*.txt" \
    --include "**/docs/**" \
    --include "**/README*"

# Add API documentation
oboyu index ~/dev/api-docs --db-path ~/indexes/api-docs.db --update

Daily Developer Workflows​

Finding API Endpoints​

# Search for specific endpoint
oboyu query --query "POST /api/users" --db-path ~/indexes/api-docs.db

# Find all authentication endpoints
oboyu query --query "endpoint auth OR authentication" --mode vector

# Find rate limiting documentation
oboyu query --query "rate limit quota throttle" --mode hybrid

Searching Code Examples​

# Find usage examples
oboyu query --query "example:"

# Find code snippets for specific language
oboyu query --query "```python"

# Find configuration examples
oboyu query --query "config: OR configuration:"

Scenario: DevOps Documentation​

Managing infrastructure documentation, runbooks, and deployment guides.

Infrastructure Documentation​

# Find deployment procedures
oboyu query --query "deploy production steps" --mode vector

# Search for specific service configs
oboyu query --query "nginx.conf server_name" 

# Find troubleshooting guides
oboyu query --query "troubleshooting error 502" --mode hybrid

Runbook Searches​

# Find emergency procedures
oboyu query --query "incident response critical"

# Search for rollback procedures
oboyu query --query "rollback procedure version" --mode vector

# Find monitoring setup
oboyu query --query "prometheus alert rules"

Scenario: API Documentation Portal​

You maintain a large API documentation portal with multiple versions and services.

Version-Specific Searches​

# Search in specific version
oboyu query --query "authentication"

# Find deprecated features
oboyu query --query "deprecated will be removed" --mode vector

# Compare versions
oboyu query --query "breaking changes v2 v3" --mode hybrid

Finding Integration Guides​

# OAuth integration
oboyu query --query "OAuth2 flow example" --mode vector

# Webhook documentation
oboyu query --query "webhook payload signature" 

# SDK examples
oboyu query --query "SDK installation npm yarn"

Scenario: Open Source Project​

Maintaining documentation for an open source project with contributors worldwide.

Contributor Documentation​

# Find contribution guidelines
oboyu query --query "contributing pull request" --db-path ~/indexes/example.db

# Search for setup instructions
oboyu query --query "development setup environment" --mode vector

# Find coding standards
oboyu query --query "code style lint format"

Issue Resolution​

# Find similar issues
oboyu query --query "error: unable to resolve dependency" --mode vector

# Search FAQ
oboyu query --query "frequently asked common questions"

# Find migration guides
oboyu query --query "migration upgrade guide" --mode hybrid

Advanced Technical Search Patterns​

Architecture Documentation​

# Find architectural decisions
oboyu query --query "ADR decision record"

# Search for design patterns
oboyu query --query "pattern singleton factory observer" --mode vector

# Find system diagrams
oboyu query --query "diagram architecture flow"

Security Documentation​

# Find security guidelines
oboyu query --query "security best practices" --mode vector

# Search for vulnerability info
oboyu query --query "CVE vulnerability patch" 

# Find authentication docs
oboyu query --query "JWT token authentication" --mode hybrid

Real-World Example: Debugging Production Issue​

When a production issue occurs, quickly find relevant documentation:

# 1. Search error messages
oboyu query --query "ConnectionTimeout redis cluster" 

# 2. Find configuration docs
oboyu query --query "redis.conf cluster-timeout"

# 3. Search troubleshooting guides
oboyu query --query "redis connection issues troubleshooting" --mode vector

# 4. Find similar incidents
oboyu query --query "incident redis timeout resolved"

# 5. Export findings for team
oboyu query --query "redis timeout"

Documentation Quality Searches​

Finding Outdated Documentation​

# Find TODOs in docs
oboyu query --query "TODO update outdated"

# Find references to old versions
oboyu query --query "v1.0 deprecated legacy" --mode vector

# Find broken links
oboyu query --query "404 broken link"

Documentation Coverage​

# Find undocumented features
oboyu query --query "undocumented TODO document" 

# Search for missing examples
oboyu query --query "example needed TBD"

# Find incomplete sections
oboyu query --query "coming soon under construction" --mode vector

Team Collaboration Patterns​

Knowledge Sharing​

# Find expert documentation
oboyu query --query "author:senior-dev security" --mode vector

# Search meeting notes about architecture
oboyu query --query "architecture meeting decision"

# Find code review comments
oboyu query --query "review: consider alternative"

Onboarding New Developers​

# Create onboarding search set
# (Note: save/run functionality not available in current implementation)
oboyu query --query "getting started setup development" --db-path ~/indexes/onboarding.db
oboyu query --query "architecture overview system design" --db-path ~/indexes/architecture.db
oboyu query --query "coding standards best practices" --db-path ~/indexes/standards.db

# Run for new team members
# Use the individual queries above

Integration with Development Tools​

IDE Integration​

# Search from terminal in IDE
alias docsearch="oboyu query --query --db-path ~/indexes/tech-docs.db"

# Quick API search
docsearch "UserService.create"

# Find implementations
docsearch "implements UserInterface"

CI/CD Documentation​

# Find build configurations
oboyu query --query "github actions workflow"

# Search deployment scripts
oboyu query --query "deploy.sh production"

# Find test documentation
oboyu query --query "test suite integration unit" --mode vector

Best Practices for Technical Documentation​

  1. Consistent Formatting: Use consistent headers and structure
  2. Code Fence Labels: Always label code blocks with language
  3. Metadata Headers: Include front matter in markdown files
  4. Regular Updates: Keep documentation in sync with code
  5. Clear Examples: Provide runnable code examples

Metrics and Analysis​

Documentation Usage​

# Most searched topics
# (Note: history functionality not available in current implementation)

# Documentation gaps (searches with no results)
# (Note: history functionality not available in current implementation)

# Popular documentation
# (Note: history functionality not available in current implementation)

Next Steps​