Documentation is not one thing. What you need from a page when you are learning a feature for the first time is different from what you need when you are looking up an exact parameter or trying to understand why something works the way it does. The CloudBees Unify documentation is organized using the Diataxis framework, which separates content into four types, each serving a different need. Knowing which type you are reading tells you what to expect from a page, and the colored banner at the top of every page identifies its type at a glance.
Tutorials
Tutorials are learning-oriented. They are for when you are new to something and want to learn by doing.
A tutorial is a guided lesson that takes you through a project from start to finish. Every step produces a visible result, so you can see your progress as you go. You are not expected to understand everything along the way. The goal is to build confidence and familiarity through hands-on practice. Tutorials answer the question, "Can you teach me?"
How-to guides
How-to guides are task-oriented. They are for when you already know what you want to accomplish and need directions to get there.
A how-to guide assumes you understand the basics and focuses on achieving a specific, real-world goal. It is concise and practical, concerned with the task at hand rather than with teaching or explaining. How-to guides answer the question, "How do I do this?"
Reference
Reference is information-oriented. It is for when you need to look up precise, factual details such as syntax, parameters, permissions, or requirements.
Reference material is neutral and structured for lookup rather than for reading start to finish. It describes the machinery accurately and completely, without offering opinion or guidance on how to use it. Reference answers the question, "What are the exact details?"
Explanation
Explanation is understanding-oriented. It is for when you want to understand why something works the way it does.
Explanation discusses concepts, provides context, and covers the design decisions and trade-offs behind a feature. Because it is concerned with understanding rather than action, you can read it away from the product, without needing to follow along. This page is itself an example of explanation. Explanation answers the questions, "Why?" and "How does this fit together?"
How the types work together
The four types are complementary, not competing. Each one is strongest when it stays focused on its own purpose, which is why the documentation keeps them separate.
You move between the types as your needs change. You might learn a new feature through a tutorial, accomplish specific tasks with how-to guides, look up exact details in reference, and deepen your understanding with explanation. Because every page displays a colored banner identifying its type, you always know which kind of content you are reading and whether it matches what you need right now.