docletpath

The docletpath is an important option for the JavaDoc tool. It specifies the location of custom doclets or tag handlers that extend the functionality of JavaDoc. Doclets are programs written in Java that can alter the way JavaDoc generates documentation from source code. For example, a custom doclet might be used to produce documentation in a different format, such as XML or a custom HTML template, or to include additional information not normally captured by the standard JavaDoc process.

When you want to use a custom doclet, you need to tell JavaDoc where to find its compiled classes. This is where the docletpath option comes in. You provide the path to the directory or JAR file containing the doclet's classes using the -docletpath option followed by the path. If you have multiple doclets or custom tag handlers, you can specify multiple paths, separated by the platform-dependent path separator (e.g., a colon on Unix-like systems or a semicolon on Windows).

If you are using a standard JavaDoc doclet, you do not need to specify the docletpath. JavaDoc includes the standard doclet classes by default. However, for any custom doclet or tag handler, it is a mandatory parameter to ensure JavaDoc can locate and load the necessary components to perform its enhanced documentation generation.