Guide Authoring

Microlink Guide Authoring

Goal

Create guides like the current screenshot guide: practical, workflow-first, easy to scan, and strictly aligned with the API docs.

When to Use

• The user wants to add a new guide for a Microlink utility under src/content/docs/guides.
• The user wants to turn API parameter docs into a guide set.
• The user wants feedback on guide structure, coverage, or sequencing before writing.
• The user wants an existing Microlink guide rewritten from parameter-by-parameter reference style into workflow-first documentation.

Read first

When asked to create or revise a guide, read:

1. src/content/docs/guides/index.md
2. The target utility guide folder, if it exists.
3. src/content/docs/guides/screenshot/*.md as the house-style baseline.
4. All relevant src/content/docs/api/parameters/** pages for the utility.
5. Related shared docs when applicable:
   • basics: authentication, cache, endpoint, error-codes, rate-limit
   • shared params: embed, filter, filename, force, headers, meta, proxy, retry, staleTtl, timeout, ttl
6. Common pattern pages under src/content/docs/guides/common/:
   • caching.md — shared caching patterns (ttl, staleTtl, force)
   • private-pages.md — shared auth patterns (headers, x-api-header-*, endpoint, proxy)
   • troubleshooting.md — shared debug patterns (timeouts, blocked sites, error codes, debug headers)
   • production-patterns.md — best practices for production integrations
7. src/components/patterns/Aside/constants.js if the guide set changes.

The screenshot guide is the current benchmark for tone, depth, and cross-linking. Match its quality, not necessarily its exact file count.

Core principles

• Guides explain user jobs, not parameter catalogs.
• The main index.md is a quickstart and hub, not a thin landing page.
• Explain the key mental model once early:
  • response shape
  • canonical syntax
  • important choice points such as JSON vs embed, viewport vs element, fresh vs cached
• Use one canonical syntax consistently across guide pages. For utility-specific options, prefer the nested object form in interactive examples when the API supports it.
• Compare related options directly with tables, checklists, or "choose X vs Y" sections.
• Use live MultiCodeEditorInteractive examples. If metadata is not the point, add meta: false.
• Prefer stable demo URLs and selectors. Default to microlink.io, github.com/microlinkhq, or other durable targets. Avoid deprecated third-party services (e.g., source.unsplash.com is deprecated).
• End each subguide with ## Next step.
• Add a ## See also section at the bottom of the index.md linking to related guides that solve adjacent problems.
• Mark Pro features with ProBadge only when the authoritative parameter page has isPro: true or the user explicitly confirms the plan gating.
• Do not document undocumented parameter shapes. If the type/examples do not show a boolean, object, string, array form, do not invent it.

Shared content architecture

Caching, private pages, and troubleshooting contain patterns that are identical across all workflows. To avoid duplication and maintenance drift:

1. Shared pattern pages live under src/content/docs/guides/common/. They contain the universal advice: how ttl/staleTtl/force work, how headers/x-api-header-*/proxy work, and how to read debug headers.
2. Per-guide pages for caching, private pages, and troubleshooting are slim — they contain only the guide-specific advice (e.g., "set meta: false for screenshot-only requests") and link to the shared pattern page for the universal parts.
3. When creating a new guide, do NOT duplicate the shared content. Write the guide-specific tips and link to common/.

The pattern is:

• Guide-specific intro ("The biggest speedup for screenshot requests is…")
• Guide-specific checklist or examples
• Link to shared pattern page ("For cache controls that apply to all workflows, see caching patterns.")
• Next step link

Pick the page set

Start with the smallest useful set. Do not copy the screenshot page list blindly.

Rename pages when the utility needs different language (e.g., the markdown guide uses choosing-scope.md instead of defining-rules.md), but keep the workflow-first grouping.

Authoring workflow

1. Audit the utility surface.

   • Gather all utility-specific parameters.
   • Gather cross-cutting parameters that materially change user success.
   • Note response fields, defaults, plan gating, and common failure modes.

2. Design the information architecture.

   • Group by user decisions and workflows.
   • Separate output, delivery, auth/private pages, and troubleshooting when those are meaningful.
   • Avoid one giant page unless the utility surface is genuinely small.

3. Write the hub page.

   • First runnable example.
   • Response model.
   • Canonical syntax.
   • One or two decision sections or tables.
   • "What's next" list linking to every subguide.
   • "See also" section linking to related guides.

4. Write subguides.

   • Start with the user problem the page solves.
   • Show a runnable example early.
   • Explain when to use the option or pattern.
   • Compare it with adjacent options.
   • Keep reference-style detail out unless it helps a decision.
   • For caching, private pages, and troubleshooting: keep guide-specific, link to common/.

5. Update shared navigation.

   • Update src/content/docs/guides/index.md (including the "Which guide do I need?" table).
   • Update src/components/patterns/Aside/constants.js.

6. Cross-check before finishing.

   • Verify every claim against the API docs.
   • Align syntax, defaults, response fields, and plan gating.
   • If the guide exposes a clear reference inconsistency, fix it.
   • If the inconsistency is ambiguous, ask the user instead of inventing behavior.
   • Use an ask-questions step when the utility surface, page set, or plan gating is unclear.
   • Verify all example URLs are stable and not deprecated.

MDX conventions

Common imports:

import { Link } from 'components/elements/Link'
import { Figcaption } from 'components/markdown/Figcaption'
import { MultiCodeEditorInteractive } from 'components/markdown/MultiCodeEditorInteractive'
import ProBadge from 'components/patterns/ProBadge/ProBadge'

• Import only what you use.
• Use Link for internal docs links.
• Use Figcaption to explain the takeaway of the example, not restate the code.
• Frontmatter descriptions should explain the page's user value, not list every parameter.
• Keep titles short and consistent with existing guide naming.
• Prefer markdown tables for comparisons and decision points.

Guardrails

• Do not mirror the API reference page-for-page.
• Do not add pages just for symmetry.
• Do not duplicate universal patterns that belong in common/. Link instead.
• Do not bury critical workflows like private pages or troubleshooting if the utility needs them.
• Do not rely on fragile selectors or gated third-party pages for core examples.
• Do not ship inconsistent syntax between guide and reference.
• Do not use deprecated third-party services (verify URLs are still live).
• When docs conflict, prefer:
  1. parameter page type, frontmatter, and examples
  2. directly related basics/getting-started docs
  3. explicit user confirmation
• Do not infer behavior from pricing blurbs, isolated prose mentions, or error codes alone.

Definition of done

• The page set matches the real utility surface.
• index.md works as both quickstart and hub.
• index.md has a "See also" section linking to related guides.
• The guide focuses on workflows and decision points.
• Examples are runnable and use stable URLs.
• Plan gating matches the authoritative docs.
• Syntax, defaults, and response fields match the reference.
• Caching, private pages, and troubleshooting pages link to common/ for shared patterns.
• src/content/docs/guides/index.md is updated (including "Which guide do I need?" table).
• src/components/patterns/Aside/constants.js is updated if needed.
• Each subguide has ## Next step.
• The guide reads like one cohesive system, not separate parameter notes.

Templates

For copyable outlines, see references/templates.md.