How can I add Java documentation to a .JAR file so that when people are using my JAR file and type '.' Eclipse will display the documentation for the available API's (intellisense).
MORE INFO
I have java doc created but when I export the jar file it does not contain intellisense when used in other projects. This is what I am having trouble with.
UPDATE The intellisense only shows up if the export the source. However I want to hide the source code. How can I get around this?
If you don't want to include the entire source code with your .jar, you can zip/jar up just the javadocs (however you generate them.. I do it using the Project->Generate Javadoc menu option in Eclipse). An end user can then "attach" them to the referenced library in the project build path settings.
The javadoc location attribute of a project library can be a URL, a local directory or a local archive file.
After noticing your edits, I might want to mention that Ant has a javadoc task that can generate your javadocs during a build.
Maven has a very elegant way of handling this.
Step 1: The Maven way to generate javadocs: http://maven.apache.org/plugins/maven-javadoc-plugin/
Step 2: To ensure Eclipse always attaches these docs, use the maven-eclipse-plugin
<plugin>
<groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
<artifactId>maven-eclipse-plugin</artifactId>
<configuration>
<downloadJavadocs>true</downloadJavadocs>
</configuration>
</plugin>
Once these two steps are done, the consumers of your API jars will always have your latest javadocs with no further intervention
In Eclipse, export the project with sources.
Do File -> Export... -> Java -> JAR File -> Next
Then select the checkbox Export java source files and resources.
Then go on until the JAR is created.
Edit: after the edits in the question, this answer is no longer valid, but it is still useful.
