Key Concept Archive

Extend Your DITA Reuse with Keys

A crucial benefit of moving to a structured authoring environment is the ability to easily reuse content. Text entities, file entities and now with the DITA standard there is also keys and keyrefs. This DITA key method allows a user to create a placeholder for text, file paths or graphics….

Is Your DITA Output Ugly?

Traditionally, stylized DITA output has been clunky and code-editor driven. But it doesn’t have to be that way. See how one tool is taking features from other user experiences and bringing them in to a world that has been neglected. You can create styling libraries like you create content libraries….

How to Reuse DITA Content

Reusing content is beneficial but complicated without knowing how and what to reuse. Join easyDITA to learn how to set up reuse strategies, tie in organizational goals, and employ best practices for your team. About the Visiting Dojo Master Gosia Radymiak is a Customer Success Manager for easyDITA, a DITA…

Is Arbortext DITA Pure DITA? YES!

Is Arbortext pure DITA?  Yes. Arbortext is pure DITA, pure XML. We are always surprised when we get this question because: Arbortext was the software IBM was using when they developed DITA. What does it mean to be “pure DITA”? DITA is an architecture and a method for writing, not a…

How to Identify DITA Topic Types (like a ninja)

When you’re new to DITA everything seems hard. Even choosing a topic type. New writers lean away from the specialized toward the generic. Teams get inconsistent structures for similar information across deliverables. In this session, Liz Fraley will show you one strategy for identifying topics—in legacy content and for new…

Ki, Qi, Key: The Way of DITA Harmony With Keys and Key References

An introduction to DITA’s key and key reference facility: why, when, and how. If you have images, content references, variable text, or cross references in your DITA content you need keys. This presentation helps harness the energy of your content and return it to harmony. About the Visiting Dojo Master…

DITA was developed on Arbortext

When it comes to DITA, PTC has a history of being first: PTC was the first to deliver a complete DITA solution. As the first vendor to support DITA at IBM, the first vendor to support DITA editing, and the only vendor to participate as a founding member of the…

Same mess, different tools – Liz Fraley on the Content Content Podcast

b Post Summary In her interview, Liz Fraley talks in detail about the history of structured authoring and how her opinions have changed over 17 years in the technical writing industry. Last month I had the opportunity to talk with Ed Marsh of the Content Content podcast. I’ve known Ed…

Structured Authoring for Beginners

Are you new to structured authoring and topic-based writing? Are you more comfortable with unstructured desktop publishing applications and apprehensive about moving to XML or some other structured authoring environment? This workshop is for you if you want to know the how, why, and what it is about structured authoring…

Topic Based Writing: Future-Proofing Your Content?

This is what we’ll cover: Topic-Based writing: the basics The nature of a topic Topic morphology: title, short description (optionally) and content The importance of conceptual consistency Topic-Based writing: content creation and management Standing alone versus story telling A theory of content architecture? Relationship to DITA and structured writing Governance…