Re: [dita] On the DITAVAL file

[Robert D Anderson <robander@us.ibm.com>]

Hi Chris,

Many of our users in IBM are using all parts of the DITAVAL file. Most
projects seem to use revision markers in some way (whether for final
output, or simply to generate output for reviews), and flagging is commonly
used to highlight items that are of interest only to a given platform. For
instance, when one paragraph applies to using a product on Linux, and the
next paragraph applies to Windows, this is used to insert a small graphic
to highlight which is which. The DITAVAL format allows for alternate text
to make these images accessible.

I'm not sure how much Erik's proposal for style policies could or would
take over these functions - he'll probably have to speak to that.

Robert D Anderson
IBM Authoring Tools Development
Chief Architect, DITA Open Toolkit


                                                                           
             "Chris Wong"                                                  
             <cwong@idiominc.c                                             
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                                       [dita] On the DITAVAL file          
                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           
                                                                           




What do we want to accomplish with the DITAVAL file? I see it as useful for
specifying deliverable content, much like a DITA map, but this is only the
filtering part of the file. When we (Idiom) discussed supporting DITAVAL,
it just seemed overengineered when all people were asking for was
conditional text. Nobody was requesting flagging nor revision marking.

Is anyone using the revprops part of DITAVAL? Or flagging? These parts
determine appearance, not content. I'm just trying to get a handle on the
different applications of DITAVAL.

Chris