> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://nelson-9.gitbook.io/nelson/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://nelson-9.gitbook.io/nelson/readme.md).

# Nelson GitBook 📚

Welcome to the Nelson GitBook repository! This project hosts the official documentation for the [Nelson](https://nelson-lang.github.io/) array programming language.

## Overview 🌟

This repository contains:

* **HTML documentation** — built by Nelson's `buildhelpweb` and published to [nelson-lang.github.io/nelson-gitbook](https://nelson-lang.github.io/nelson-gitbook/).
* **Markdown sources** — generated under `markdown/` for use with GitBook or offline reading.
* **PDF builder** — a Rust tool (`nelson-pdf-builder`) that uses [Pandoc](https://pandoc.org/) to produce printable manuals.

Supported languages: **English** (`en`) and **French** (`fr`).

## Prerequisites 🛠️

| Tool                                                              | Purpose                               |
| ----------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| [Nelson](https://nelson-lang.github.io/)                          | Generate HTML and Markdown help files |
| [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/)                                    | Run Prettier for Markdown formatting  |
| [Rust / Cargo](https://www.rust-lang.org/)                        | Build the PDF builder tool            |
| [Pandoc](https://pandoc.org/) + a PDF engine (e.g. `wkhtmltopdf`) | Render PDF manuals                    |

Install Node.js dependencies:

```bash
nvm use .
npm install
```

## Updating the Documentation ⚙️

Run the following script from inside Nelson to regenerate all HTML and Markdown files:

```matlab
% From the nelson-gitbook root directory
run('./scripts/update_help.m');
```

This script:

1. Calls `buildhelpweb` to produce versioned and `latest` HTML output under `docs/releases/`.
2. Calls `buildhelpmd` to regenerate the Markdown sources under `markdown/`.
3. Runs Prettier to normalise formatting.

After running, review and commit the modified files.

## Building PDF Manuals 📄

### Linux / macOS

```bash
./pandoc-build-pdf.sh              # builds both en and fr
./pandoc-build-pdf.sh en           # English only
./pandoc-build-pdf.sh fr           # French only
```

### Windows

```bat
pandoc-build-pdf.bat               :: builds both en and fr
pandoc-build-pdf.bat en            :: English only
pandoc-build-pdf.bat fr            :: French only
```

The scripts compile the Rust PDF builder (`cargo build --release`) and then invoke it. Pandoc and the PDF engine must be available in `PATH`.

## Published Documentation 🌐

The latest documentation is available at: <https://nelson-lang.github.io/nelson-gitbook/>

## Contributing 🤝

Contributions are welcome! Please open issues or submit pull requests for improvements, corrections, or new content.

## License 📜

This project is licensed under the same license as Nelson. See the [LICENSE](https://github.com/Nelson-numerical-software/nelson-gitbook/blob/master/LICENSE/README.md) file for details.

## Contact 📧

Maintainer: Allan CORNET\
Email: <nelson.numerical.computation@gmail.com>


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://nelson-9.gitbook.io/nelson/readme.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.