Multi-line strings in meta, parameter_meta

If we want to put rich information in there, we should allow >1 line of text. We could maybe re-use the triple-angle brackets style, eg:

workflow foo {
  meta {
    description: <<<
      # Foo.wdl
      ---
      This could be a looo...
      ...
      ...
      ...oong Markdown description of the workflow, for example
    >>>
  }
}

[aednichols]

👍 to the idea of adding the multi-line string literal and thereby gaining the ability to use it in meta

Longer term, it seems like we could go in a Javadoc-like direction where documentation is in comments adjacent to the thing it describes.

This would let us generate documentation from the workflow with a documenting tool, but would exclude the documentation strings from appearing anywhere at runtime. (Engine-specific hints would still live in *meta.)

[ambrosejcarr]

We in Mint need some kind of abstraction that allows us to add documentation to WDL files. We’re currently using meta and parameter_meta to do this, as there doesn’t appear to be a better alternative.

Without multi-line strings, they make our files pretty hideous, so big 👍 on this issue.