Setting up Sphinx with Celbridge

The documentation for Celbridge is generated from .rst (ReStructured Text rst_guide) files using sphinx_guide.

The steps below show how to setup a Sphinx project in Celbridge.

  1. Create a new Celbridge project

    • ensure you wrap double-quotes around the package name.

  2. Open the .celbridge project settings file to add the sphinx and sphinx_rtd_theme PIP packages:

    [python]
version = "3.13.6"
packages = ["sphinx", "sphinx_rtd_theme"]
  3. Reload the project:

    • navigate to the hambuger menu in the top left and click Reload project.

  4. The console window will show Sphyinx being installed.

  5. Run the quickstart, by typing !sphinx-quickstart in the Console:
    • you’ll need to enter some details such as:
      • separate source and build directories

        • I always say yes to this

      • project name

        • e.g. sphinx demo

      • author name

        • e.g. Matt Smith

      • project release

        • you can jut hit return,

        • or give a verison number like 1.0

      • project language

        • default is English, so you can hit return,

        • or enter 2-character language code)

    • you’ll then see some files and folders created for your project

Here’s the output I got when runnning this quickstart: .. code:

>>> !sphinx-quickstart
Welcome to the Sphinx 8.2.3 quickstart utility.

Please enter values for the following settings (just press Enter to
accept a default value, if one is given in brackets).

Selected root path: .

You have two options for placing the build directory for Sphinx output.
Either, you use a directory "_build" within the root path, or you separate
"source" and "build" directories within the root path.
> Separate source and build directories (y/n) [n]: y

The project name will occur in several places in the built documentation.
> Project name: sphinx demo
> Author name(s): Matt Smith
> Project release []:

If the documents are to be written in a language other than English,
you can select a language here by its language code. Sphinx will then
translate text that it generates into that language.

For a list of supported codes, see
https://www.sphinx-doc.org/en/master/usage/configuration.html#confval-language.
> Project language [en]:

Creating file X:\Downloads\celbirdge-files\sphinx-demo2\source\conf.py.
Creating file X:\Downloads\celbirdge-files\sphinx-demo2\source\index.rst.
Creating file X:\Downloads\celbirdge-files\sphinx-demo2\Makefile.
Creating file X:\Downloads\celbirdge-files\sphinx-demo2\make.bat.

Finished: An initial directory structure has been created.

You should now populate your master file X:\Downloads\celbirdge-files\sphinx-demo2\source\index.rst and create other documentation
source files. Use the Makefile to build the docs, like so:
make builder
where "builder" is one of the supported builders, e.g. html, latex or linkcheck.

  1. Note the new files and directories created:

    |____/build
|____/source
| |____/static
| |____/templates
| |____index.rst
| |____conf.py
|____make.bat
|____Makefile

    • build is empty - this is where your generated HTML page go

    • /source/index.rst - this is your index page and also navigation page list

      • you’ll add new pages to be linked in this file

  2. Add a new .rst file saying hello world:

    • in /source create new file hello.rst containing the following:

    Hello world
===========

I am some RST text in a new file
  3. Add a reference to this file in /source/index.rst:

    • Add hello, indexed with 3 spaces, after a new blank line, at the end of this file:

    .. toctree::
:maxdepth: 2
:caption: Contents:

   hello

  1. The Sphinx Read-The-Docs theme is great. To configure Sphinx to use this theme edit the last few lines of /source/conf.py file, by addingt the “sphinx_rtd_theme” into the list of extensions, and specifying that variable html_theme has the value “sphinx_rtd_theme”:

    extensions = [
    "sphinx_rtd_theme",
]

templates_path = ['_templates']
exclude_patterns = []



# -- Options for HTML output -------------------------------------------------
# https://www.sphinx-doc.org/en/master/usage/configuration.html#options-for-html-output

#html_theme = 'alabaster'
html_theme = "sphinx_rtd_theme"

  1. Run the Sphinx website builder, by typing !make html in the Console:

  2. Once you server the HTML files one the home page should see a link Hello world, linking to your simple Hello World generated HTML page:

Screenshot showing Hello World page now part of website and nav list

Note

If links, not just page content, have changed, you should do a clean before the build, to clear out older files.

To clean then build run these 2 commands in the Console:

>>> !make clean
>>> !make html

Acknowledgements

This sphinx_guide was useful in creating this documenqation page.