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Reference content type

Reference content provides detailed information that people need while they are actively using a feature.

In this article

Reference content is consulted for specific pieces of information. It’s information you can quickly check, meaning there’s less emphasis on sentences and paragraphs.

Reference includes information that may be best represented in tables, lists, or other structured formats. We might think of reference as including our autogenerated pipeline content and other content that could potentially be automated.

Reference content appears in reference articles and reference sections within other articles.

  • Some major subjects may require their own reference article, especially if there is a large amount of reference content, such as for search syntax or YAML syntax in GitHub Actions.
  • For smaller amounts of content or more specific information, like a list of a feature’s supported languages or hardware requirements, use reference sections in context within procedural or conceptual articles.

How to write reference content

For the reference content template, see Templates.

  • Write a sentence or an entire conceptual section to introduce the reference content.
  • Present the actual reference content clearly and consistently.
  • For subjects with a single element to explain, use a list.
  • For subjects with multiple elements to explain, use a table.
    • Example: