elixir-docs-review

by anderskev

Reviews Elixir documentation for completeness, quality, and ExDoc best practices. Use when auditing @moduledoc, @doc, @spec coverage, doctest correctness, and cross-reference usage in .ex files.

View Chinese version with editor review

安装

claude skill add --url github.com/openclaw/skills/tree/main/skills/anderskev/elixir-docs-review

文档

Elixir Documentation Review

Quick Reference

Issue TypeReference
@moduledoc, @doc quality, anti-patternsreferences/doc-quality.md
@spec, @type, @typedoc coveragereferences/spec-coverage.md

Review Checklist

Module Documentation

  • All public modules have @moduledoc
  • First-line summary is concise (one line, used by tools as summary)
  • @moduledoc includes ## Examples where appropriate
  • @moduledoc false only on internal/implementation modules

Function Documentation

  • All public functions have @doc
  • All public functions have @spec
  • @doc describes return values clearly
  • Multi-clause functions documented before first clause
  • Function head declared when arg names need clarification

Doctests

  • Doctests present for pure, deterministic functions
  • No doctests for side-effectful operations (DB, HTTP, etc.)
  • Doctests actually run (module included in test file)

Cross-References

  • Module references use backtick auto-linking (MyModule)
  • Function refs use proper arity format (function/2)
  • Type refs use t: prefix (t:typename/0)
  • No plain-text references where auto-links are possible

Metadata

  • @since annotations on new public API additions
  • @deprecated with migration guidance where appropriate

Valid Patterns (Do NOT Flag)

  • @doc false on callback implementations - Documented at behaviour level
  • @doc false on protocol implementations - Protocol docs cover the intent
  • Missing @spec on private functions - @spec optional for internals
  • Short @moduledoc without ## Examples on simple utility modules - Not every module needs examples
  • Using @impl true without separate @doc - Inherits documentation from behaviour

Context-Sensitive Rules

IssueFlag ONLY IF
Missing @moduledocModule is public AND not a protocol impl
Missing @specFunction is public AND exported
Missing doctestsFunction is pure AND deterministic
Generic @docDoc restates function name without adding value

When to Load References

  • Reviewing @moduledoc or @doc quality, seeing anti-patterns -> doc-quality.md
  • Reviewing @spec, @type, or @typedoc coverage -> spec-coverage.md

Before Submitting Findings

Load and follow review-verification-protocol before reporting any issue.