Beginning Your Development

This guide will help you set up your first API call to Docling for IBM watsonx and convert your first document.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, you'll need:

1. A Docling for IBM watsonx account
2. Your Service URL and API Key

Obtaining Your Credentials

1. Sign up at ibm.com/products/docling
2. Complete the onboarding process
3. Receive and store the following from the Docling for IBM watsonx client:
   • Service URL - Your unique instance endpoint
   • API Key - Your authentication token

Using the Python SDK

For a more convenient experience, use the official Docling Python SDK. To install:

pip install docling

The Python SDK handles the async workflow automatically, polling for completion and returning the final result. Try some examples of the SDK in action in the Examples section.

For more complex use cases of Docling, refer to the official Docling documentation.

Your First Conversion

Docling for IBM watsonx uses an asynchronous workflow for converting documents:

1. Submit a document for conversion
2. Poll the status endpoint to check progress
3. Retrieve the converted result

Start at the Basic Conversion guide for a simple example on using the API endpoints and the Python SDK.

Next Steps

Visit these pages to continue exploring how to use Docling for IBM watsonx.