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+# \RDoc Documents
+
+The term _\RDoc_ _document_ refers to one of these:
+
+- Content of comments in Ruby or C code files
+  containing \RDoc markup.
+- Content of an entire free-standing documentation file.
+
+Only \RDoc documents are processed by \RDoc;
+other comments and files are not processed.
+
+## Document in Comments
+
+An \RDoc document may reside in one or more comments
+in Ruby or C code files.
+
+Such a comment is all or part of an \RDoc document
+only if it immediately precedes the code that defines
+a class, module, method, alias, attribute, or constant.
+
+In Ruby code, if there is more than one declaration of a class or module,
+each declaration may have a preceding comment;
+in that case, each such comment becomes part of the documentation
+for the class or module.
+
+Output:
+
+- The documentation for a class or module
+  is included in the documentation for that class or module.
+- The documentation for a method, alias, attribute, or constant
+  is included in the documentation for the parent class or module.
+
+Example:
+
+```
+# This is documentation for class MyClass.
+#
+# The documentation may contain blank lines
+# within the multi-line comment.
+class MyClass; end
+
+# This is more documentation for class MyClass.
+# This and the comment above are both included in the documentation.
+class MyClass
+
+  # This is documentation for attribute my_attribute.
+  attr_accessor :my_attribute
+
+  # This is documetation for constant MY_CONSTANT.
+  MY_CONSTANT = 'My constant'
+
+  # This is documentation for method :my_method.
+  def my_method; end
+
+  # This is documentation for alias :my_alias
+  alias my_alias my_method
+
+end
+
+# This is not documentation for anything;
+# it does not immediately precede a code definition.
+
+# This is documentation for module MyModule.
+module MyModule; end
+```
+
+In Ruby code, the comment may be a single-line comment
+or a multi-line comment;
+both usages appear in the example above.
+
+In C code, the comment may be a single-line comment
+or a multi-line comment:
+
+```
+/* Single-line comment. */
+/*
+ * Multi-line
+ * comment.
+ */
+```
+
+In C code, the comment must precede the actual definition,
+not its declaration.
+
+```
+/* This is not part of the documentation. */
+void myFunction();
+
+/* This is part of the documentation. */
+void myFunction() {
+  printf("I just got executed!");
+}
+```
+
+## Document in File
+
+An \RDoc document may reside in a stand-alone text file.
+\RDoc reads the entire file,
+and writes its documentation into a stand-alone HTML file.
+
+The assumed \RDoc format depends on the file extension:
+
+- `.md`: `markdown`; see RDoc::Markdown.
+- `.rd`: `rd`; see {RD Working Draft}[https://github.com/uwabami/rdtool/blob/master/doc/rd-draft.rd].
+- `.rdoc` or anything else: `rdoc`: see RDoc::MarkupReference.
+
+The output filename also depends on the file extension:
+
+- Input file `foo.md` becomes output file `foo_md.html`.
+- Input file `foo.rd` becomes output file `foo_rd.html`.
+- Input file `foo.rdoc` becomes output file `foo_foo.html`.
+- For any other extension _ext_,
+  input file <tt>foo.<i>ext</i></tt> becomes output file <tt>foo_<i>ext</i>.html</tt>.
+