The Extensible Markup Language (XML) is an open, general-purpose specification for creating markup languages. Its primary purpose is to help information systems share structured data, particularly via the Internet, and it is used both to encode documents and to serialize data. It is used in a wide variety of technical communication document formats, including Microsoft Word, OpenOffice, XHTML, DITA, DocBook, and RSS, among others.
#32365
Linking DITA Topics Through Relationship Tables
DITA provides a powerful means of linking using relationship tables. The benefit of using a relationship table is the ability to create and maintain links in one place with the map rather than in the topics. Links can be created both between topics of the same information type and between topics of different information types that are not directly related through parent/child relationships. Therefore, the best practice for linking in DITA is to use a relationship table within a map.
Bruski, Kylene. Center for Information-Development Management (2005). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#32366
Specializing Topic Types in DITA
The Darwin Information Typing Architecture (DITA) provides a way for documentation authors and architects to create collections of typed topics that can be easily assembled into various delivery contexts. Topic specialization is the process by which authors and architects can define topic types, while maintaining compatibility with existing style sheets, transforms, and processes. The new topic types are defined as an extension, or delta, relative to an existing topic type, thereby reducing the work necessary to define and maintain the new type.
Priestley, Michael. IBM (2001). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#32367
Migrating HTML to DITA, Part 1: Simple Steps to Move from HTML to DITA
The Darwin Information Typing Architecture (DITA) has emerged as a standard topic-oriented document architecture. DITA holds many advantages over information authored directly in HTML, including better reuse, easily changed presentation styles, and easy single sourcing. This article, the first of two parts, explains how to get a quick start with DITA using HTML topics that are already available. It shows you how to use the provided XSLT transform to do the migration, and examines what is needed to ensure quality results.
Anderson, Robert, Don Day and Erik Hennum. IBM (2005). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#32381
Some general notes on RDF, its history and prospects, and a Grand Challenge to the RDF community.
Bray, Tim. Aaron Swartz Weblog (2008). Articles>Information Design>XML>RSS
#32475
In releasing jQuery v.1.2, a decision was made by the development team to drop XPath support from the core. Instead, an officially released XPath jQuery plugin is now available, which provides deprecated functionality. Although initially disappointed by this decision, I was happy to discover that alternative methods for obtaining data from an XML file are still available without the plugin.
Reindel, Brian. d'bug (2008). Articles>Web Design>XML>Ajax
#32530
Microformat Encoding and Visualization
So you have heard about microformats, read the introductory articles, and even bought the book. But now you are probably thinking "great - I have done my part to make the web a better place by adding microformats; what's next? What can people do with my data besides add it to their address book or calendar?" The intent of this article is to get you to think about microformats in different ways, and to demonstrate some interesting visualizations and mash-ups of microformatted content.
Suda, Brian. Opera (2008). Articles>Web Design>XML>Metadata
#32597
Extend Enumerated Lists in XML Schema
The addition of new values to a list is a common and necessary requirement. Schema designers often seek to build into the architecture a means to permit additional values that were unknown at design time. How can schema designers create an enumerated value list that is extensible and easy to implement? Discover several approaches used to achieve this goal.
Kiel, W. Paul. IBM (2008). Articles>Information Design>XML>Databases
#32682
The Wisdom of Crowds Meets the Wisdom of Authors: How XML Enables the Semantic Web
Key to the Semantic Web is semantic markup, which lets users annotate their web pages with metadata -- HTML attributes that don't get displayed in the document. Semantic metadata describes what the pages are about, letting authors define things with authority and precision.
Wlodarczyk, Paul. Content Wrangler, The (2008). Articles>Web Design>Information Design>XML
#32792
Introduces readers to the major DITA tools for editing, content and translation management, and publishing.
#32793
DITA and the Technical Communicator 
How will DITA conversion affect your work? Sigman shares what she's learned from her own survey of technical communicators.
Sigman, Christine Marini. Intercom (2008). Articles>TC>XML>DITA
#32794
DITA is known for the rigidity of its structure, but technical communicators have opportunities to adapt it to their content through specialization, a term that refers to the customization of DITA structures.
Sliwinski, Larissa. Intercom (2008). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#32795
The Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) has formed a new committee for encouraging the use of DITA in all areas of business. Readers can learn how to work with their organization to make the sharing of DITA content possible.
Manning, Steve. Intercom (2008). Articles>Business Communication>XML>DITA
#32797
Many people see DITA architecture as a shortcut to avoiding content modeling. O'Keefe warns readers against this mistake.
O'Keefe, Sarah S. Intercom (2008). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#33028
Living With Topic Maps and RDF
This paper is about the relationship between the topic map and RDF standards families. It compares the two technologies and looks at ways to make it easier for users to live in a world where both technologies are used. This is done by looking at how to convert information back and forth between the two technologies, how to convert schema information, and how to do queries across both information representations. Ways to achieve all of these goals are presented.
Garshol, Lars Marius. Ontopia (2004). Articles>Information Design>Sitemaps>XML
#33031
Metadata and XML: Improving the Findability of Information
Information about objects on subjects - metadata describes objects. Purposes: Information management and discovery. Metadata enables content to be retreived, tracked, and assembled automatically.
Bogaards, Peter J. Tekom (2004). Presentations>Information Design>Metadata>XML
#33183
You’ve read all the papers on ROI for XML and you get it. You’ve already concluded that moving to DITA will save you tons of time and money. But management says prove it. This paper helps you determine the cost portion of the ROI calculation. What are my costs now? What will my new costs be with DITA? And what is the difference—my savings? This white paper is the first in the DITA Metrics series. The series will discuss cost metrics, reuse metrics, and a reuse strategy. This paper describes one model for calculating the cost of a DITA project. After doing some content analysis on your own documentation, you can customize this cost model to suit your documentation project. In the end, you should be able to speak the financial language of managers and prove to them in dollar signs the value of moving to DITA.
Lewis, Mark A. Content Wrangler, The (2008). Articles>Documentation>XML>DITA
#33304
XML Content Authoring: Interview with Michael Boses
An interview with Michael Boses about his new role with Quark, the need for user-friendly content-authoring tools, and the role of structured content in the dynamic-publishing paradigm.
Abel, Scott. Dynamic Publisher, The (2008). Articles>Content Management>XML
#33306
We define dynamic publishing as: The automated assembly of customized documents with graphic-rich layouts for multiple mediums, including print, the Web, mobile and electronic devices. Dynamic publishing allows organizations to deliver accurate, relevant, and high-fidelity communications across multiple types of media faster and at a lower cost.
Duhl, Joshua. Dynamic Publisher, The (2008). Articles>Document Design>Personalization>XML
#33307
IDC Identifies Trends Contributing to Dynamic Publishing
IDC, a global information technology market research firm, identified a couple of trends related to and influencing dynamic publishing. These include the growth in internet users (and where they get their content), and where organizations will publish content over the next two years.
Dynamic Publisher, The (2008). Articles>Document Design>Personalization>XML
#33308
Dynamic Publishing Makes Creating Localized Communications Easy
International growth is the target for most small companies and is indeed essential in many industries if you want to compete and thrive in this global economy; however, international expansion brings many challenges, especially in terms of communication. For example, how do you implement consistent, global communications that maintain your brand identity, values, and messaging while still allowing for local markets and cultures?
Malagnac, Stephanie. Dynamic Publisher, The (2008). Articles>Content Management>Localization>XML
#33377
Making the Case for XML Content Repositories
As traditional magazine publishers continue to build out their e-media products, many are looking to new, more efficient ways to manage their content and bridge the gap between separate production systems. One solution is XML content repositories, which convert a magazine’s content to a format that’s easily reproduced both digitally and in print.
Fell, Jason. Folio (2008). Articles>Content Management>Business Case>XML
#33395
Publishing DITA Without the DITA Open Toolkit: A Trend or a Temporary Detour?
I'm starting to wonder whether the adoption rate of DITA and the DITA Open Toolkit is going to diverge. Widespread adoption of DITA leads to a a sort of herd effect with safety in numbers. Not so for the Open Toolkit.
Scriptorium (2008). Articles>Information Design>XML>DITA
#33400
What Do Movable Type and XML Have in Common?
Compares Gutenberg's invention of the movable type to the creation of XML. But where movable type changed the “economics of a mechanical process,” XML changed the “economics of content authoring, formatting, and customization.”
O'Keefe, Sarah S. Intercom (2008). Articles>Information Design>Publishing>XML
#33586
A concise list of all acronyms, with individual letter indices (always accessible via the letter bar) which organizes the full names as well.
#33602
With the move to XML, DITA, and other new standards, the entry cost for new tools is lower relative to established tools like Word and FrameMaker, since all tools need to invest to implement these new standards. New workflows are emerging in some cases, such as topic-based authoring and shared content, which give new tools a distinct advantage. The new tools can start with the new paradigm, rather than trying to migrate existing content and provide “backward” compatibility.
Answers for All (2008). Articles>Information Design>XML>Workflow
