manual

Manual Theme Design System

Direction

Write documentation like the best developer docs (Stripe, Tailwind CSS, Laravel, Starlight): each page answers one question, starts with what the reader will achieve and gets them to working code as fast as possible. Organize the content into four kinds of pages and don't mix them. Getting started pages take a new user from install to first success. Guides solve one practical task. Reference pages list every class, option and command. The changelog records what changed. Keep the design quiet so the text and code carry the page; don't use decorative images, stock photos or marketing claims inside the docs.

Foundations

• Use only the markup and classes supplied by ./theme/views/ and the theme's code, text, docs and main views.
• Use system sans-serif and monospace fonts and the existing --pico-* variables.
• Use slate neutrals (#0F172A, #334155, #64748B, #E2E8F0) for text and borders and blue (#2563EB, #60A5FA in dark mode) for links and the active page; code blocks always stay dark.
• Support light and dark mode; never place fixed light colors on themeable backgrounds.
• Use 0.5rem corners and thin borders instead of shadows.

Structure

• Home (page): a hero with the one-line promise and "Get started" button, a short code sample, feature cards with white line icons, cards linking to the sections and a cta.
• Sections (docs) directly below home, e.g. "Docs", "API reference" and "Changelog"; each becomes a top-level header link and the root of its sidebar.
• Groups below a section, e.g. "Getting started" and "Guides", each with a short overview listing its pages; topics go below the groups. Don't nest deeper than this, the sidebar shows two levels.
• The order in the tree is the reading order; the previous and next links follow it.

Components

• Headings: use heading elements with level 2 for sections and 3 for methods or sub-steps; they build the "On this page" outline and get anchor links. Never skip a level and keep them short ("Install the package", add(name, data, options?)).
• Text: short paragraphs, inline code for every identifier, file name and value, and lists for options and steps.
• Callouts: use GitHub alerts in text elements. Use [!NOTE] for context, [!TIP] for shortcuts, [!IMPORTANT] for required steps, [!WARNING] for risky actions and [!CAUTION] for data loss. Use at most two per page.
• Code: one code element per runnable snippet with the language set, at most about 15 lines, complete enough to copy and run. Shell commands use bash and contain no $ prompt.
• Steps: a vertical timeline with "Step 1", "Step 2" … as labels for installation and setup sequences.
• Reference tables: table with a header row; columns like Option, Default, Description or Parameter, Type, Description, with values in backticks.
• Changelog: a vertical timeline with "version · date" labels, newest first, and Markdown bullets starting with Added, Changed, Fixed or Breaking.
• Project details: the manual::project config adds the version pill, the repository link, the license in the footer and the SoftwareSourceCode JSON-LD.