RE: [dita] Why There are Constraints on Conref

["Ann Rockley" <rockley@rockley.com>]

I get Eliot's point as well, but I think we need to think about it in the
way that authors think about content. The concepts of single sourcing
preceded DITA and formed the basis for the concepts of DITA.

This is especially important as we move beyond Tech Docs, where the concepts
of linking are not commonplace usage.

-----Original Message-----
From: Tony Self [mailto:tself@hyperwrite.com] 
Sent: Tuesday, September 29, 2009 11:26 PM
To: 'dita'
Subject: RE: [dita] Why There are Constraints on Conref

In the context of single-sourcing, it seems more logical to call the single
source of many content references the source, and the places in which that
single blob of content is used the target. But I totally get Eliot's point
that in the context of linking, the target of the link is the source! 

Obviously, we need to be consistent one way or the other!

Tony

-----Original Message-----
From: ekimber [mailto:ekimber@reallysi.com] 
Sent: Wednesday, 30 September 2009 12:26 PM
To: Kristen James Eberlein
Cc: Ogden, Jeff; tself@hyperwrite.com; dita
Subject: Re: [dita] Why There are Constraints on Conref

On 9/29/09 9:22 PM, "Kristen James Eberlein" <keberlein@pobox.com> wrote:

> I'm glad that Tony brought this up. The DITA spec -- and other
> documentation -- is inconsistent about this.About 50% follows Tony's
> definition of source and target, and another 50% uses the opposite
> construction.
> 
> Personally, it make sense to me that "source" contains the actual
> content -- the content that gets pulled or pushed into else where (the
> "target"), but I'd really like to know if this contradicts some formal
> definition of source and target ....

If you think of conref as a link (which I do), then source is the anchor
that does the addressing and target is the thing addressed.

However, I can see the logic in thinking about conref the other way around.

But the spec should definitely be consistent.

I discount my opinion on this matter because I'm too deeply versed in the
arcana of linking and addressing. I would support whatever option people
think is more intuitive or easier to talk about clearly.

Cheers,

E.





---------------------------------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe from this mail list, you must leave the OASIS TC that
generates this mail.  Follow this link to all your TCs in OASIS at:
https://www.oasis-open.org/apps/org/workgroup/portal/my_workgroups.php