diff --git a/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/configuration-common.nix b/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/configuration-common.nix
index fc39b62402a..8ab751166c5 100644
--- a/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/configuration-common.nix
+++ b/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/configuration-common.nix
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ self: super: {
   jailbreak-cabal = (disableSharedExecutables super.jailbreak-cabal).override { Cabal = self.Cabal_1_20_0_4; };
 
   # enable using a local hoogle with extra packagages in the database
-  # nix-shell -p "haskellPackages.hoogleLocal (with haskellPackages; [ mtl lens ])"
+  # nix-shell -p "haskellPackages.hoogleLocal { packages = with haskellPackages; [ mtl lens ]; }"
   # $ hoogle server
   hoogleLocal = { packages ? [] }: self.callPackage ./hoogle.nix { inherit packages; };
 
diff --git a/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/generic-builder.nix b/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/generic-builder.nix
index 9c1e75232d7..60cce56cca0 100644
--- a/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/generic-builder.nix
+++ b/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/generic-builder.nix
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 { stdenv, fetchurl, ghc, pkgconfig, glibcLocales, coreutils, gnugrep, gnused
 , jailbreak-cabal, hscolour, cpphs, nodejs, lib, removeReferencesTo
-}: let isCross = (ghc.cross or null) != null; in
+}:
+let isCross = (ghc.cross or null) != null; in
 
 { pname
 , dontStrip ? (ghc.isGhcjs or false)
@@ -78,6 +79,9 @@ let
                         then "package-db"
                         else "package-conf";
 
+  # the target dir for haddock documentation
+  docdir = docoutput: docoutput + "/share/doc";
+
   newCabalFileUrl = "http://hackage.haskell.org/package/${pname}-${version}/revision/${revision}.cabal";
   newCabalFile = fetchurl {
     url = newCabalFileUrl;
@@ -111,7 +115,7 @@ let
   defaultConfigureFlags = [
     "--verbose" "--prefix=$out" "--libdir=\\$prefix/lib/\\$compiler" "--libsubdir=\\$pkgid"
     (optionalString enableSeparateDataOutput "--datadir=$data/share/${ghc.name}")
-    (optionalString enableSeparateDocOutput "--docdir=$doc/share/doc")
+    (optionalString enableSeparateDocOutput "--docdir=${docdir "$doc"}")
     "--with-gcc=$CC" # Clang won't work without that extra information.
     "--package-db=$packageConfDir"
     (optionalString (enableSharedExecutables && stdenv.isLinux) "--ghc-option=-optl=-Wl,-rpath=$out/lib/${ghc.name}/${pname}-${version}")
@@ -331,7 +335,7 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation ({
     ''}
 
     ${optionalString enableSeparateDocOutput ''
-    for x in $doc/share/doc/html/src/*.html; do
+    for x in ${docdir "$doc"}/html/src/*.html; do
       remove-references-to -t $out $x
     done
     mkdir -p $doc
@@ -347,6 +351,14 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation ({
 
     isHaskellLibrary = hasActiveLibrary;
 
+    # TODO: ask why the split outputs are configurable at all?
+    # TODO: include tests for split if possible
+    # Given the haskell package, returns
+    # the directory containing the haddock documentation.
+    # `null' if no haddock documentation was built.
+    # TODO: fetch the self from the fixpoint instead
+    haddockDir = self: if doHaddock then "${docdir self.doc}/html" else null;
+
     env = stdenv.mkDerivation {
       name = "interactive-${pname}-${version}-environment";
       nativeBuildInputs = [ ghcEnv systemBuildInputs ]
@@ -356,6 +368,7 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation ({
       shellHook = ''
         export NIX_${ghcCommandCaps}="${ghcEnv}/bin/${ghcCommand}"
         export NIX_${ghcCommandCaps}PKG="${ghcEnv}/bin/${ghcCommand}-pkg"
+        # TODO: is this still valid?
         export NIX_${ghcCommandCaps}_DOCDIR="${ghcEnv}/share/doc/ghc/html"
         export LD_LIBRARY_PATH="''${LD_LIBRARY_PATH:+''${LD_LIBRARY_PATH}:}${
           makeLibraryPath (filter (x: !isNull x) systemBuildInputs)
diff --git a/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/hoogle.nix b/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/hoogle.nix
index b6063f6ef97..65124d4c700 100644
--- a/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/hoogle.nix
+++ b/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/hoogle.nix
@@ -52,7 +52,10 @@ let
       This index includes documentation for many Haskell modules.
     '';
 
-  docPackages = lib.closePropagation packages;
+  # TODO: closePropagation is deprecated; replace
+  docPackages = lib.closePropagation
+    # we grab the doc outputs
+    (map (lib.getOutput "doc") packages);
 
 in
 stdenv.mkDerivation {
@@ -64,6 +67,10 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation {
   inherit docPackages;
 
   buildPhase = ''
+    ${lib.optionalString (packages != [] -> docPackages == [])
+       ("echo WARNING: localHoogle package list empty, even though"
+       + " the following were specified: "
+       + lib.concatMapStringsSep ", " (p: p.name) packages)}
     mkdir -p $out/share/doc/hoogle
 
     echo importing builtin packages
@@ -76,17 +83,13 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation {
     done
 
     echo importing other packages
-    for i in $docPackages; do
-      if [[ ! $i == $out ]]; then
-        for docdir in $i/share/doc/*-${ghcName}-*/* $i/share/doc/*; do
-          name="$(basename $docdir)"
-          docdir=$docdir/html
-          if [[ -d $docdir ]]; then
-            ln -sfn $docdir $out/share/doc/hoogle/$name
-          fi
-        done
-      fi
-    done
+    ${lib.concatMapStringsSep "\n" (el: ''
+        ln -sfn ${el.haddockDir} "$out/share/doc/hoogle/${el.name}"
+      '')
+      (lib.filter (el: el.haddockDir != null)
+        (builtins.map (p: { haddockDir = p.haddockDir p;
+                            name = p.pname; })
+          docPackages))}
 
     echo building hoogle database
     hoogle generate --database $out/share/doc/hoogle/default.hoo --local=$out/share/doc/hoogle
diff --git a/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/make-package-set.nix b/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/make-package-set.nix
index 87f3a04ebf5..5215fe4a552 100644
--- a/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/make-package-set.nix
+++ b/pkgs/development/haskell-modules/make-package-set.nix
@@ -25,7 +25,9 @@
 }:
 
 # return value: a function from self to the package set
-self: let
+self:
+
+let
 
   inherit (stdenv.lib) fix' extends makeOverridable;
   inherit (haskellLib) overrideCabal;