= Documentation - Practical Practices & Ideas =

This document aims to give some practical ideas and advice for Internet startups and Internet development shops as to what they should consider documenting when they're writing 'documentation'. There's probably a lot of things on here that you don't need to document in your particular case, and there's probably a lot of things that //aren't// on here that you **do** need to document.

Generally speaking, I like to keep written documentation simple. Most documentation should be inline in your code or configuration files... for example, instead of documenting every apache configuration setting you have used, just say somewhere "we use apache; more documentation is in the config file at ''/etc/httpd.conf'' ".

I find it easiest to keep all of this documentation on a wiki accessible to everyone.

== Web App Development - Specific App ==

 * Statement of Work / [[:templates:software-vision-document-template|Vision Doc]]
 * [[:templates:software-requirements-document-template|Requirements Document]] / [[:templates:user-interface-design-tool-powerpoint|Requirements Wireframes]]
 * [[:templates:user-interface-design-tool-powerpoint|UI Wireframes]]
 * Database Schema (may just be SQL, or may be a visual model)

== Website Development - Specific Site == 

 * Statement of Work
 * Creative Brief
 * Site Design Wireframes
 * Competitive Sites Brief

== Infrastructure ==

 * Code/Website Deployment Process
 * Network Infrastructure Map - Physical & Virtual (if appropriate)
 * [[:server-tech:freebsd:freebsd-server-setup|Server Setup Procedure]]
 * [[:server-tech:setting-up-the-first-server|Application Software Configuration]]
 * Naming Conventions

== Web App Development - General ==

 * [[:processes:web-qa-testing|QA Process]]/To Do List
 * Naming Conventions

== Technical How-To ==

 * Step-By-Step for any common procedures

== Customers ==

 * Standardized Customer Service Procedures

== Development ==

 * [[:processes:code-documentation-standards|Coding Standards]]
 * [[:server-tech:subversion:setting-up-svn|Source Checkout Setup & How-To]]

== APIs / External Data Sources ==

 * Data Formats
 * API Calls

== Operations ==

 * Key Contacts - All Vendors + Internal Contact Person
 * Disaster Mitigation Plans - Specific How Tos & To Do Lists for Disaster Scenarios

== Fun ==

 * [[:people:motivation:fun-things-to-do|Local watering holes]]; places to go