vocabulary:
  name: Scalar Vocabulary
  description: >-
    Domain vocabulary for the Scalar API platform, covering OpenAPI tooling,
    API documentation, API clients, registries, SDK generation, and the
    concepts used by API developers working with OpenAPI-first workflows.
  created: '2026-05-02'
  modified: '2026-05-02'
  terms:
    - term: API Reference
      definition: >-
        Interactive documentation for an API generated from an OpenAPI or
        Swagger specification. Scalar API References render modern, styled
        API docs with an embedded API client, code samples, and support for
        multiple themes. The documentation is live and allows users to make
        real API calls directly from the browser.
      tags:
        - Documentation
        - OpenAPI
    - term: API Registry
      definition: >-
        A centralized repository for storing and versioning API specifications
        (OpenAPI documents, JSON Schemas, Spectral rules). The Scalar Registry
        serves as the single source of truth for API definitions across a team
        or organization, with Git integration and CI/CD support.
      tags:
        - Governance
        - Registry
        - Versioning
    - term: Collection
      definition: >-
        A group of related API requests organized together in an API client.
        In the Scalar API Client, collections can be generated automatically
        from an OpenAPI document, with authentication, parameters, and
        request bodies pre-configured.
      tags:
        - API Client
        - Testing
    - term: Environment Variable
      definition: >-
        A named value (e.g., base URL, API key) that can be referenced in
        API requests using double curly brace syntax (`{{variable}}`).
        In Scalar API Client, environments allow switching between
        development, staging, and production configurations.
      tags:
        - API Client
        - Configuration
    - term: Mock Server
      definition: >-
        A server that simulates an API by returning example responses defined
        in an OpenAPI document. The Scalar CLI can run a mock server from
        an OpenAPI spec, enabling frontend development and testing without
        a live backend.
      tags:
        - Development
        - Testing
    - term: Namespace
      definition: >-
        A unique identifier for a project or API in the Scalar Registry.
        Used when publishing API specifications: `scalar registry publish
        --namespace my-org/my-api`. Namespaces can be private or public.
      tags:
        - Registry
        - Organization
    - term: OpenAPI
      definition: >-
        The OpenAPI Specification (OAS) is a vendor-neutral, language-agnostic
        interface description for HTTP APIs. Scalar is built entirely around
        OpenAPI, rendering documentation, powering the API client, and
        generating SDKs from OpenAPI 3.0 and 3.1 documents.
      tags:
        - API Design
        - Standards
    - term: Post-Response Script
      definition: >-
        A JavaScript script that runs after an API response is received in
        the Scalar API Client. Used for extracting values from responses
        (e.g., auth tokens), asserting response properties, and chaining
        requests together in collection runners.
      tags:
        - API Client
        - Testing
    - term: SDK Generation
      definition: >-
        The automated process of creating type-safe client libraries from
        an OpenAPI specification. Scalar SDKs generates libraries for
        TypeScript, Python, Go, PHP, Java, and Ruby at $100/month per language,
        with automated GitHub workflows for keeping SDKs in sync with API changes.
      tags:
        - Code Generation
        - SDKs
    - term: Spectral
      definition: >-
        An open-source JSON/YAML linter for OpenAPI and AsyncAPI documents.
        Spectral rules enforce API design standards and naming conventions.
        The Scalar Registry stores Spectral rulesets alongside OpenAPI documents.
      tags:
        - Governance
        - Linting
        - OpenAPI
    - term: $ref Resolution
      definition: >-
        The process of resolving JSON Reference (`$ref`) pointers in an
        OpenAPI document, replacing references with the content of the
        referenced schema or component. Scalar handles $ref resolution
        automatically when rendering API documentation.
      tags:
        - OpenAPI
        - Technical
    - term: WYSIWYG Editor
      definition: >-
        What You See Is What You Get — a document editor that shows content
        as it will appear in the final rendered form. Scalar Docs provides
        a WYSIWYG editor for writing developer documentation that generates
        publication-ready documentation without requiring Markdown syntax.
      tags:
        - Documentation
        - Editor