Chapter 4: OpenAPI spec and generated reference docs
The OpenAPI specification provides a standard way to describe REST APIs, and includes elements such as paths, operations, parameters, and schemas. Tools like Stoplight, Swagger UI, SwaggerHub, and Redocly can generate interactive API reference documentation from the OpenAPI spec. In this chapter, you follow a tutorial for using Stoplight, a visual editor, to create an OpenAPI specification file and publish the documentation. As you work with the OpenAPI spec, you learn about “spec-first development,” a philosophy of creating the spec before developers write API code, as well as other challenges, such as integrating the reference output and conceptual documentation in a seamless experience.
About Tom Johnson
I'm an API technical writer based in the Seattle area. On this blog, I write about topics related to technical writing and communication — such as software documentation, API documentation, AI, information architecture, content strategy, writing processes, plain language, tech comm careers, and more. Check out my API documentation course if you're looking for more info about documenting APIs. Or see my posts on AI and AI course section for more on the latest in AI and tech comm.
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