# Zeal Documentation Browser - Installation & Configuration Report

**Date:** 2026-05-14  
**Topic:** Installing and configuring Zeal on Debian Linux

---

## 1. Installation Methods

### A. APT (Recommended for Debian/Ubuntu)
Zeal is available in the default Debian/Ubuntu repositories:

```bash
sudo apt update
sudo apt install zeal
```

This installs the version packaged for your distribution (may be slightly outdated).

### B. Snap
Available as a snap package:

```bash
sudo apt install snapd
sudo snap install zeal
```

Link: https://snapcraft.io/zeal

### C. Flatpak
Flatpak support is available through Flathub.

### D. Manual/Source Build
Clone and build from source:

```bash
git clone https://github.com/zealdocs/zeal.git
cd zeal
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
make
sudo make install
```

GitHub: https://github.com/zealdocs/zeal

---

## 2. Available Docsets

Zeal uses **Dash docsets** (same format as macOS Dash).

### How to Install Docsets

1. Open Zeal
2. Go to **Tools → Options → Docsets**
3. Search for desired docsets in the available list
4. Check the docsets you want to download
5. Click **Download**

### Popular Docsets

- **C++** - Standard C++ documentation
- **Python** - Python 2 and 3
- **JavaScript** - MDN, jQuery, Node.js
- **Qt** - Qt framework documentation
- **Linux** - man pages, POSIX
- **Go** - Go language docs
- **Rust** - Rust standard library
- **Java** - Java API docs
- **Docker** - Docker documentation
- **Git** - Git documentation

### Custom Docsets

You can add custom docset feeds:
1. **Tools → Options → Docsets**
2. Click **Add Feed**
3. Enter feed URL (e.g., from https://github.com/Zeal-Docs/docset-feeds)

---

## 3. Configuration Options

### Hotkey Configuration
- Default: **Alt+Space** to open Zeal quickly
- Change in: **Tools → Options → General → Hotkey**

### Proxy Settings
- Configure in: **Tools → Options → Network**
- Useful for corporate environments

### Download Location
- Docsets stored in `~/.local/share/zeal/docsets`
- Change in: **Tools → Options → Paths**

### Other Options
- **General**: Startup behavior, hotkey settings
- **Network**: Proxy configuration
- **Paths**: Custom docset storage locations

---

## 4. Alternatives

### Dash (macOS only)
- Original inspiration for Zeal
- macOS only, paid app
- https://dash.dev

### Velocity (macOS)
- Alternative macOS documentation browser
- macOS only

### DevDocs.io (Web-based)
- Browser-based, works offline with PWA
- https://devdocs.io
- No installation required

### Dashing (Self-hosted)
- Self-hosted Dash docset server
- https://github.com/technosophos/dashing

---

## Quick Start Summary

```bash
# Install Zeal
sudo apt update && sudo apt install zeal

# Launch Zeal
zeal

# Configure: Tools → Options → Docsets
# 1. Search for docsets
# 2. Check desired ones
# 3. Click Download

# Access docsets:
# ~/.local/share/zeal/docsets/
```

---

## Useful Links

- Official Website: https://zealdocs.org
- Download Page: https://zealdocs.org/download.html
- GitHub Repository: https://github.com/zealdocs/zeal
- Snap Store: https://snapcraft.io/zeal
- Docset Feeds (community): https://github.com/Zeal-Docs/docset-feeds