#33993
Lessons Learned: Development from Initial Planning to Successful Implementation
From initial data modeling, to technical XML Schema design and critical programmatic realization, we have an actionable, real-world set of comprehensive recommendations that can help you formulate a successful XML implementation.
Utzinger, Melissa and Cheryl Connors. XML 2006 (2006). Articles>Information Design>XML>Standards
#34150
Lovely DITA, Meta Maid, Ready-made Metadata
Since adaptation and reuse are core ideas of DITA (Darwin Information Typing Architecture), perhaps we'll be forgiven if we adapt and reuse old Beatles standards to explain the newest XML standards (hey, maybe it's the only way to make XML sound catchy). DITA is an IBM gift to the technical documentation community that was approved as a standard this spring by OASIS (Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards), the hosts for many XML interchange standards such as ebXML. Ever since, tech writers have been buzzing about an easier way to get into structured topic-based writing with DITA XML and asking XML Editor vendors to add support for DITA.
Doyle, Bob. EContent (2005). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#34240
XML Design for Relational Storage 
Design principles for XML schemas that eliminate redundancies and avoid update anomalies have been studied recently. Several normal forms, generalizing those for relational databases, have been proposed. All of them, however, are based on the assumption of a native XML storage, while in practice most of XML data is stored in relational databases. In this paper we study XML design and normalization for relational storage of XML documents. To be able to relate and compare XML and relational designs, we use an information-theoretic framework that measures information content in relations and documents, with higher values corresponding to lower levels of redundancy. We show that most common relational storage schemes preserve the notion of being well-designed (i.e., anomalies- and redundancy-free). Thus, existing XML normal forms guarantee well-designed relational storages as well. We further show that if this perfect option is not achievable, then a slight restriction on XML constraints guarantees a “second-best” relational design, according to possible values of the information-theoretic measure. We finally consider an edge-based relational representation of XML documents, and show that while it has similar information-theoretic properties with other relational representations, it can behave significantly worse in terms of enforcing integrity constraints.
Kolahi, Solmaz and Leonid Libkin. WWW 2007 (2007). Articles>Information Design>XML>Databases
#34241
XML Schema’s abstract data model consists of components, which are the structures that eventually define a schema as a whole. XML Schema’s XML syntax, on the other hand, is not a direct representation of the schema components, and it proves to be surprisingly hard to derive a schema’s components from the XML syntax. The Schema Component XML Syntax (SCX) is a representation which attempts to map schema components as faithfully as possible to XML structures. SCX serves as the starting point for applications which need access to schema components and want to do so using standardized and widely available XML technologies.
Wilde, Erik and Felix Michel. WWW 2007 (2007). Articles>Information Design>XML
#34243
XML-Based Multimodal Interaction Framework for Contact Center Applications
In this paper, we consider a way to represent contact center applications as a set of multiple XML documents written in different markups including VoiceXML and CCXML. Applications can comprise a dialog with IVR, call routing and agent scripting functionalities. We also consider ways how such applications can be executed in run-time contact center environment.
Anisimov, Nikolay, Brian Galvin and Herbert Ristock. WWW 2007 (2007). Articles>Business Communication>Information Design>XML
#34261
All About Output from DITA Maps
Using Adobe FrameMaker 9, one can save a DITA Map in various formats depending on one’s requirements. It could be intermediary output, like – FrameMaker Book/Document; or it can be final output, like – Print/PDF.
Adobe (2009). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#34264
If you're new to XML, this article introduces the basic construction of XML documents as well as the rules that you must follow to create well-formed XML, including naming conventions, proper tag nesting, attribute guidelines, declarations, and entities. You'll also gain an understanding of validation in terms of both DTD and schema usage.
Whatley, Kay. IBM (2009). Articles>Information Design>XML
#34330
I decided to simplify the DITA publishing process for myself by building a Windows interface to Ant. Ant was developed to allow programmers to write a simple build file in an XML format, and then process that XML file with the Ant build software.
Self, Tony. HyperWrite (2007). Articles>Information Design>Software>XML
#34359
Structure View Enhancement in FrameMaker 9
The Structure View allows for real-time validation of the structured element content while editing. It discourages the author from violating the constraint rules set by the EDD or XML schema which was earlier possible only while saving or exporting the document. The Structure View is now capable of pointing the constraint error for integer and float data constraints. The content will turn Red indicating that the content does not satisfy the data type constraint.
Adobe (2009). Articles>Information Design>XML>Adobe FrameMaker
#34361
This tutorial uses the DITA Open Toolkit 1.4.2.1 and the corresponding PDF plugin release, and Wrycan's demo text. This assumes you have a working DITA environment and can run the default formatting with PDF plugin.
Blogspot (2009). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#34362
The DITA-OT plugin transforms a map into a single file, suitable for publication, and automatically call the xmlrpc API of the blog to publish it. The DITA Wordpress plugin adds a css (a slightly modified version of the DITA-OT commonltr.css) to your Wordpress theme to properly render the standard domains.
#34364
DITA and XML Community of the Rockies
Our goal is to bring people together — think social network organized around XML, DITA, content management and related topics. This blog serves as a hub for white papers and URL resources, contains a calendar of XML-related events and conferences, tracks industry trends, and keeps members up-to-date as to “what’s new” on the site.
DITA-XML Community of the Rockies. Resources>Information Design>XML>DITA
#34421
Moving Forward with DITA 1.2 and the DITA-OT
DITA enters a new phase this year with version 1.2. We'll learn about the big new features, such as keyref, and see them used in the latest DITA Open Toolkit. Attendees will know how to make use of new DITA 1.2 features using the DITA Open Toolkit. Attendees will understand key aspects of the new DITA 1.2 standard.
Anderson, Robert. STC Proceedings (2009). Presentations>Information Design>XML>DITA
#34580
Endless Possibilities: Norm Walsh on the Changing Nature of Publishing
Why XML documents aren’t a good fit for relational databases, how university professors are creating custom text books for students, and find links to several innovative projects that are demonstrating the power of XML and its cousin XQuery.
Walsh, Norman and Scott Abel. Content Wrangler, The (2009). Articles>Interviews>Information Design>XML
#34718
Linking and Relationship Tables 
Inline links and citations can be disruptive to the flow of information. Try to delete them because a topic is a discrete unit of information that is meaningful when it is displayed alone.
Henry, Carolyn. Silicon Valley DITA User's Group (2005). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#34719
DITA Linking and Relationship Tables
Overview of best practices for using ditamaps and relationship tables to manage linking.
Stark, Scott. DITA Users (2007). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#34720
Improving Relationships in Relationship Tables
While topic relationships can be stored in the topics themselves, as products evolve and user interfaces change, a topic that was required for release 1.0 of a product may no longer be needed in release 2.3. If related topics are maintained at the topic level, removing a topic that is no longer part of the system may involve modifying the related topics of a dozen different DITA files.
Binder, Zachary. XML.org (2008). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#34721
DITA Keyref Example: Links from Glossary Entries
Because keyref is so important and because it also has inherent, unavoidable complexity, I will be posting short examples of how keyref can be used to solve specific business problems. This is the first in an occasional series of such examples. This example shows one particular application of the keyref feature to a real-world problem faced by one of Really Strategies' clients.
Really Strategies Blog (2009). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#34722
DITA maps provide a mechanism for ordering topics and creating a topic hierarchy. Because DITA maps consist of lists of references to topics, you can reorganize the content in a deliverable simply by changing the order of the topic references. You can create different maps referencing the same source topics to create two deliverables to meet different users' needs.
Linton, Jen. ComTech Services (2006). Presentations>Information Design>XML>DITA
#35016
Design Patterns for Information Architecture with DITA Map Domains
The Darwin Information Typing Architecture (DITA) provides maps for assembling topics into deliverables. By specializing the map elements, you can define a formal information architecture for your deliverables. This architecture provides guidance to authors on how to organize topics and lets processes recognize your organizing principles, resulting in a consistent, clear experience for your users.
Hennum, Erik, Don Day, John Hunt and Dave Schell. IBM (2005). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#35020
Enabling Web Service with Common Information Model
In this article we will introduce the concept of WS-Management and Common Information Model (CIM). By exploring the SOAP message with multiple examples, we will learn how to transfer CIM operations through WS-Management SOAP messages.
Hao, Sun. IBM (2009). Articles>Web Design>Information Design>XML
#35045
The DITA Open Platform is a free, open-source project which goal is to provide an enterprise platform for the edition, management and processing of DITA documents.
#35056
XSL stands for EXtensible Stylesheet Language, and is a style sheet language for XML documents. XSLT stands for XSL Transformations. In this tutorial you will learn how to use XSLT to transform XML documents into other formats, like XHTML.
W3Schools (2007). Resources>Information Design>XML>XSL
#35057
Controlling Whitespace, Part 1
XML considers four characters to be whitespace: the carriage return, the linefeed, the tab, and the spacebar space. Microsoft operating systems put both a carriage return and a linefeed at the end of each line of a text file, and people usually refer to the combination as the "carriage return". XSLT stylesheet developers often get frustrated over the whitespace that shows up in their result documents -- sometimes there's more than they wanted, sometimes there's less, and sometimes it's in the wrong place. Over the next few columns, we'll discuss how XML and XSLT treat whitespace to gain a better understanding of what can happen, and we'll look at some techniques for controlling how an XSLT processor adds whitespace to the result document.
DuCharme, Bob. XML.com (2001). Articles>Information Design>XML>XSL
#35058
Automating Stylesheet Creation
Since the early days of XSLT, many have asked whether it was possible to automate the creation of XSLT stylesheets. The general idea of filling out a form or dragging some icons around, then clicking a button and seeing a productive stylesheet generated from your input has always appealed to people. However, the problem of generating working XSLT syntax from the result of someone clicking on pull-down menus and radio buttons has not attracted many takers.
DuCharme, Bob. XML.com (2005). Articles>Information Design>XML>XSL
