Android docs search

Android Docs Search

Overview

Search the local Android/Kotlin documentation. The documentation must be installed separately (see plugin README).

Default location: ~/StudioProjects/android-docs-claude-plugin/docs/

Two search methods available:

• SQLite index - Fast API name lookups (189,506+ indexed entries)
• Grep/Read - Full-text search in HTML documentation content

When to Use Each Method

Method	Use For
SQLite	Finding classes, functions, properties by name
Grep	Searching documentation content, deprecation notices, examples

SQLite Index Search

Database location: ~/StudioProjects/android-docs-claude-plugin/docs/android_api_index.db

Table Schema

CREATE TABLE api_index(id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, name TEXT, type TEXT, path TEXT);

Entry Types

Class, Constructor, Property, Package, Annotation, Function, Enum, Constant, Object, Interface, Method

Search Examples

# Find by exact name
sqlite3 ~/StudioProjects/android-docs-claude-plugin/docs/android_api_index.db \
  "SELECT name, type, path FROM api_index WHERE name LIKE '%LazyColumn%';"

# Filter by type
sqlite3 ~/StudioProjects/android-docs-claude-plugin/docs/android_api_index.db \
  "SELECT name, type FROM api_index WHERE name LIKE '%Modifier%' AND type='Class';"

# Find all entries in a package
sqlite3 ~/StudioProjects/android-docs-claude-plugin/docs/android_api_index.db \
  "SELECT name, type FROM api_index WHERE name LIKE 'androidx.compose.material3%';"

Content Search (Grep)

Documentation location: ~/StudioProjects/android-docs-claude-plugin/docs/Documents/developer.android.com/

Search Examples

Use the Grep tool to search HTML files:

pattern: "deprecated"
path: ~/StudioProjects/android-docs-claude-plugin/docs/Documents/
glob: "*.html"

Or get context around a match:

pattern: "LocalAutofillTree"
path: <file_path_from_sqlite>
output_mode: "content"
-A: 10
-B: 2

Recommended Workflow

1. Start with SQLite to find the API and its file path
2. Use Grep/Read to examine the actual documentation content

Example: Find deprecation info for an API

# Step 1: Find the file
sqlite3 ~/StudioProjects/android-docs-claude-plugin/docs/android_api_index.db \
  "SELECT name, path FROM api_index WHERE name LIKE '%LocalAutofillTree%';"

# Step 2: Read the deprecation notice from the file using Read or Grep tool

Documentation Structure

~/StudioProjects/android-docs-claude-plugin/
├── docs/
│   ├── android_api_index.db      # SQLite index (189,506+ entries)
│   └── Documents/
│       └── developer.android.com/
│           └── reference/
│               ├── android/      # Java Android APIs
│               └── kotlin/       # Kotlin Android APIs
│                   └── androidx/ # AndroidX libraries
├── scripts/
│   ├── bulk_updater.py           # Sync new pages from developer.android.com
│   ├── download_and_process.py   # Download single pages
│   └── update_index.py           # Manage SQLite index
└── skills/
    └── android-docs-search/
        └── SKILL.md

Keeping Docs Updated

Run from the docs/ directory:

# Check for new pages
python3 ../scripts/bulk_updater.py discover
python3 ../scripts/bulk_updater.py diff

# Download new pages
python3 ../scripts/bulk_updater.py sync

# Rebuild search index
python3 ../scripts/update_index.py rebuild