Merge pull request #1879 from tonykipkemboi/main

docs: enhance decorator documentation with use cases and examples

docs/concepts/planning.mdx

@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ From this point on, your crew will have planning enabled, and the tasks will be
 
 #### Planning LLM
 
-Now you can define the LLM that will be used to plan the tasks. You can use any ChatOpenAI LLM model available.
+Now you can define the LLM that will be used to plan the tasks. 
 
 When running the base case example, you will see something like the output below, which represents the output of the `AgentPlanner` 
 responsible for creating the step-by-step logic to add to the Agents' tasks.
@@ -39,7 +39,6 @@ responsible for creating the step-by-step logic to add to the Agents' tasks.
 <CodeGroup>
 ```python Code
 from crewai import Crew, Agent, Task, Process
-from langchain_openai import ChatOpenAI
 
 # Assemble your crew with planning capabilities and custom LLM
 my_crew = Crew(
@@ -47,7 +46,7 @@ my_crew = Crew(
     tasks=self.tasks,
     process=Process.sequential,
     planning=True,
-    planning_llm=ChatOpenAI(model="gpt-4o")
+    planning_llm="gpt-4o"
 )
 
 # Run the crew

docs/concepts/processes.mdx

@@ -23,9 +23,7 @@ Processes enable individual agents to operate as a cohesive unit, streamlining t
 To assign a process to a crew, specify the process type upon crew creation to set the execution strategy. For a hierarchical process, ensure to define `manager_llm` or `manager_agent` for the manager agent.
 
 ```python
-from crewai import Crew
+from crewai import Crew, Process
-from crewai.process import Process
-from langchain_openai import ChatOpenAI
 
 # Example: Creating a crew with a sequential process
 crew = Crew(
@@ -40,7 +38,7 @@ crew = Crew(
     agents=my_agents,
     tasks=my_tasks,
     process=Process.hierarchical,
-    manager_llm=ChatOpenAI(model="gpt-4")
+    manager_llm="gpt-4o"
     # or
     # manager_agent=my_manager_agent
 )

docs/how-to/custom-manager-agent.mdx

@@ -73,9 +73,9 @@ result = crew.kickoff()
 If you're using the hierarchical process and don't want to set a custom manager agent, you can specify the language model for the manager:
 
 ```python Code
-from langchain_openai import ChatOpenAI
+from crewai import LLM
 
-manager_llm = ChatOpenAI(model_name="gpt-4")
+manager_llm = LLM(model="gpt-4o")
 
 crew = Crew(
     agents=[researcher, writer],

docs/quickstart.mdx

@@ -301,38 +301,166 @@ Use the annotations to properly reference the agent and task in the `crew.py` fi
 
 ### Annotations include:
 
-* `@agent`
+Here are examples of how to use each annotation in your CrewAI project, and when you should use them:
-* `@task`
-* `@crew`
-* `@tool`
-* `@before_kickoff`
-* `@after_kickoff`
-* `@callback`
-* `@output_json`
-* `@output_pydantic`
-* `@cache_handler`
 
-```python crew.py
+#### @agent
-# ...
+Used to define an agent in your crew. Use this when:
+- You need to create a specialized AI agent with a specific role
+- You want the agent to be automatically collected and managed by the crew
+- You need to reuse the same agent configuration across multiple tasks
+
+```python
 @agent
-def email_summarizer(self) -> Agent:
+def research_agent(self) -> Agent:
     return Agent(
-        config=self.agents_config["email_summarizer"],
+        role="Research Analyst",
+        goal="Conduct thorough research on given topics",
+        backstory="Expert researcher with years of experience in data analysis",
+        tools=[SerperDevTool()],
+        verbose=True
     )
-
-@task
-def email_summarizer_task(self) -> Task:
-    return Task(
-        config=self.tasks_config["email_summarizer_task"],
-    )
-# ...
 ```
 
-<Tip>
+#### @task
-In addition to the [sequential process](../how-to/sequential-process), you can use the [hierarchical process](../how-to/hierarchical-process),
+Used to define a task that can be executed by agents. Use this when:
-which automatically assigns a manager to the defined crew to properly coordinate the planning and execution of tasks through delegation and validation of results.
+- You need to define a specific piece of work for an agent
-You can learn more about the core concepts [here](/concepts).
+- You want tasks to be automatically sequenced and managed
-</Tip>
+- You need to establish dependencies between different tasks
+
+```python
+@task
+def research_task(self) -> Task:
+    return Task(
+        description="Research the latest developments in AI technology",
+        expected_output="A comprehensive report on AI advancements",
+        agent=self.research_agent(),
+        output_file="output/research.md"
+    )
+```
+
+#### @crew
+Used to define your crew configuration. Use this when:
+- You want to automatically collect all @agent and @task definitions
+- You need to specify how tasks should be processed (sequential or hierarchical)
+- You want to set up crew-wide configurations
+
+```python
+@crew
+def research_crew(self) -> Crew:
+    return Crew(
+        agents=self.agents,  # Automatically collected from @agent methods
+        tasks=self.tasks,    # Automatically collected from @task methods
+        process=Process.sequential,
+        verbose=True
+    )
+```
+
+#### @tool
+Used to create custom tools for your agents. Use this when:
+- You need to give agents specific capabilities (like web search, data analysis)
+- You want to encapsulate external API calls or complex operations
+- You need to share functionality across multiple agents
+
+```python
+@tool
+def web_search_tool(query: str, max_results: int = 5) -> list[str]:
+    """
+    Search the web for information.
+
+    Args:
+        query: The search query
+        max_results: Maximum number of results to return
+
+    Returns:
+        List of search results
+    """
+    # Implement your search logic here
+    return [f"Result {i} for: {query}" for i in range(max_results)]
+```
+
+#### @before_kickoff
+Used to execute logic before the crew starts. Use this when:
+- You need to validate or preprocess input data
+- You want to set up resources or configurations before execution
+- You need to perform any initialization logic
+
+```python
+@before_kickoff
+def validate_inputs(self, inputs: Optional[Dict[str, Any]]) -> Optional[Dict[str, Any]]:
+    """Validate and preprocess inputs before the crew starts."""
+    if inputs is None:
+        return None
+        
+    if 'topic' not in inputs:
+        raise ValueError("Topic is required")
+    
+    # Add additional context
+    inputs['timestamp'] = datetime.now().isoformat()
+    inputs['topic'] = inputs['topic'].strip().lower()
+    return inputs
+```
+
+#### @after_kickoff
+Used to process results after the crew completes. Use this when:
+- You need to format or transform the final output
+- You want to perform cleanup operations
+- You need to save or log the results in a specific way
+
+```python
+@after_kickoff
+def process_results(self, result: CrewOutput) -> CrewOutput:
+    """Process and format the results after the crew completes."""
+    result.raw = result.raw.strip()
+    result.raw = f"""
+    # Research Results
+    Generated on: {datetime.now().isoformat()}
+    
+    {result.raw}
+    """
+    return result
+```
+
+#### @callback
+Used to handle events during crew execution. Use this when:
+- You need to monitor task progress
+- You want to log intermediate results
+- You need to implement custom progress tracking or metrics
+
+```python
+@callback
+def log_task_completion(self, task: Task, output: str):
+    """Log task completion details for monitoring."""
+    print(f"Task '{task.description}' completed")
+    print(f"Output length: {len(output)} characters")
+    print(f"Agent used: {task.agent.role}")
+    print("-" * 50)
+```
+
+#### @cache_handler
+Used to implement custom caching for task results. Use this when:
+- You want to avoid redundant expensive operations
+- You need to implement custom cache storage or expiration logic
+- You want to persist results between runs
+
+```python
+@cache_handler
+def custom_cache(self, key: str) -> Optional[str]:
+    """Custom cache implementation for storing task results."""
+    cache_file = f"cache/{key}.json"
+    
+    if os.path.exists(cache_file):
+        with open(cache_file, 'r') as f:
+            data = json.load(f)
+            # Check if cache is still valid (e.g., not expired)
+            if datetime.fromisoformat(data['timestamp']) > datetime.now() - timedelta(days=1):
+                return data['result']
+    return None
+```
+
+<Note>
+These decorators are part of the CrewAI framework and help organize your crew's structure by automatically collecting agents, tasks, and handling various lifecycle events. 
+They should be used within a class decorated with `@CrewBase`.
+</Note>
 
 ### Replay Tasks from Latest Crew Kickoff