Pygments

Pygments is refreshingly straightforward to use. The basic API is just `highlight(code, lexer, formatter)` and you're done - I had syntax highlighting working in production within 15 minutes of first reading the docs. The built-in lexers cover virtually every language imaginable, and the formatters handle HTML, LaTeX, terminal output, and more without configuration headaches.

The documentation is excellent with clear examples for common scenarios. When I needed custom styling, the CSS class system made sense immediately. Error messages are helpful - if you mistype a lexer name, it suggests close matches. The `guess_lexer()` function works surprisingly well for auto-detection when you don't know the input language.

Debugging is painless because the library does one thing well and doesn't try to be clever. When styling wasn't quite right, I could inspect the token stream directly using `lex()` to understand what was happening. The command-line tool (`pygmentize`) is also fantastic for quick testing before integrating into code.

Pygments has been my go-to for syntax highlighting in documentation generators, code review tools, and web applications. The API is refreshingly simple - `highlight(code, lexer, formatter)` covers 90% of use cases. Getting started takes minutes, not hours. The documentation provides clear examples for common scenarios like highlighting to HTML, terminal output, or LaTeX, and I've rarely needed to dig deeper.

What really stands out is the lexer detection system. You can specify languages explicitly or let Pygments guess from content or filename, which works surprisingly well. The error messages are helpful when you reference a non-existent lexer, suggesting alternatives. The package supports 500+ languages out of the box, and creating custom lexers is well-documented with regex-based patterns.

Debugging is straightforward - the formatters produce predictable output, and CSS class names are sensible. Community support on Stack Overflow is solid with many answered questions. My only minor gripes are that style customization requires understanding the token system initially, and performance can be a consideration for very large files (though streaming is supported).

Pygments has been my go-to for syntax highlighting across multiple projects, from documentation generators to code review tools. The API is straightforward: import a lexer, a formatter, and call `highlight()`. The library supports an impressive range of languages out of the box, and adding custom lexers is well-documented with regex-based patterns.

The main pain point is the lack of comprehensive type hints. While basic usage works fine, IDE autocomplete struggles with discovering available lexers and formatters. You'll find yourself referencing the documentation frequently to remember exact class names like `PythonLexer` vs `Python3Lexer`. The `get_lexer_by_name()` function helps but returns untyped results.

Error handling is reasonable but not exceptional. Invalid language names fail gracefully with `ClassNotFound` exceptions, though the error messages could suggest similar alternatives. The HTML formatter's CSS class generation is predictable and well-structured, making it easy to theme output. Overall, it's a mature, stable library that just works, even if the developer experience could be modernized with better typing support.