Quickstart: Help System

Scan your project, build a feature manifest, and render your first help template in one session.

from help.bootstrap import scan_project, proposals_to_manifest
from help.generator import generate_feature_templates
from help.templates import populate

proposals = scan_project(".")
manifest = proposals_to_manifest(proposals)
feature = manifest.features[proposals[0].name]
result = generate_feature_templates(feature, help_dir=".help", project_root=".")
template = populate(result.templates[0].feature)
print(template.body)

Prerequisites

• The project is cloned and installed locally.
• The .help directory is writable.

Steps

1. Scan your project for features.

from help.bootstrap import scan_project, proposals_to_manifest

proposals = scan_project(".")
manifest = proposals_to_manifest(proposals)
print(list(manifest.features.keys()))

Expected output — a list of feature names discovered in your source tree:

['auth', 'billing', 'notifications']

2. Generate templates for one feature.

from help.generator import generate_feature_templates

feature = manifest.features["auth"]
result = generate_feature_templates(
    feature, help_dir=".help", project_root="."
)
print(f"Generated {len(result.templates)} templates")

Expected output:

Generated 3 templates

The three files correspond to the concept, task, and reference depths.

3. Render and read a template.

from help.templates import populate, AudienceProfile

template = populate(
    result.templates[0].feature,
    audience=AudienceProfile(),
    generated_dir=".help",
)
print(template.body)

You should see formatted help text for your feature. If populate returns None, confirm the template ID matches a file under .help.

4. Check for stale templates.

from help.maintenance import run_maintenance

report = run_maintenance(help_dir=".help", project_root=".")
print(f"Stale: {report.stale_count}  Regenerated: {report.regenerated_count}")

Expected output when everything is current:

Stale: 0  Regenerated: 0

Next: read the task guide for generate_feature_templates to learn how to control which depth levels are generated and how to automate regeneration with run_hook.

Unresolved references

Auto-generated by attune-author fact-check. Review and either fix the source code, fix this doc, or add an override.