Re: [dita] Issue #29: How best to handle <mapresources>? Feedback wanted.

[Chris Nitchie <chris.nitchie@oberontech.com>]

Not to speak for Eliot, but I think it's a matter of readability and cleanliness. It's the same reason we have <topichead>; you could just use <topicref> with no @href, but this expresses the intent more clearly. <mapresources> is cleaner than <topicgroup processing-role="resource-only">. I think it makes sense in mapgroup. Many groups I've encountered that are using keys would benefit from an official container for key definitions.

Chris

ïOn 10/2/19, 7:46 PM, "dita@lists.oasis-open.org on behalf of Kristen James Eberlein" <dita@lists.oasis-open.org on behalf of kris@eberleinconsulting.com> wrote:


    Eliot, in your code sample, what benefit do you get from <mapresources>?
    Seems as if <topicgroup> serves the basic purpose ...

    Best,
    Kris

    Kristen James Eberlein
    Chair, OASIS DITA Technical Committee
    Principal consultant, Eberlein Consulting
    www.eberleinconsulting.com
    +1 919 622-1501; kriseberlein (skype)

    On 10/2/2019 7:18 PM, Eliot Kimber wrote:
    > I vote for adding mapresources to mapgroup domain.
    >
    > My use case relative to bookmap is having submaps for chapters where
    > each chapter is a separate keyscope scope and has its own keydefs, e.g.:
    >
    > <chapter keyscope=" install" keys="installation" href="topic-12355.dita">
    > <topicmeta>
    > <navtitle>Installation</navtitle>
    > </topicmeta>
    > <mapresources>
    > <topicgroup>
    > <topicmeta>
    > <navtitle>Images</navtitle>
    > </topicmeta>
    > <keydef keys="illus-remove-cover" format="jpg"
    > href="media/illustrations/image-2343342.jpg"
    > />
    > </topicgroup>
    > </mapresources>
    > <topicref keys="install-prep" href="topic-452342.dita"/>
    > <topicref keys="install-process" href="topic-452344.dita"/>
    > </chapter>
    >
    > In my personal DITA use I often define a specialization named
    > "keydefs" and then use that as we are proposing to use mapresources.
    >
    > It would be a natural constraint to allow <mapresources> only as the
    > first child of specific topicref types (chapter, part, etc.) if map
    > authoring needs to be that constrained.
    >
    > One thing to keep in mind is that map authoring by its nature
    > generally requires a deeper understanding of how DITA maps work, which
    > usually means that the map author doesn't need as much guidance,
    > meaning it's usually not worth the effort to setup constraints for
    > maps as compared to topics, where it's usually very important. For the
    > typical map author a simple convention or pre-defined template
    > document is usually sufficient.
    >
    > Cheers,
    >
    > E.
    >
    > --
    > Eliot Kimber
    > http://contrext.com
    >
    > On 10/2/19, 4:26 PM, "Kristen James Eberlein"
    > <dita@lists.oasis-open.org on behalf of kris@eberleinconsulting.com>
    > wrote:
    >
    > One of the goals of proposal #29, "Update bookmap" is to provide
    > an intuitive location in a bookmap for map authors to locate
    > resource-only objects such as:
    > * Key definition maps
    > * Subject scheme maps
    > * Topics that hold information for constructing PDF cover pages
    > We have several options for how handle the <mapresources>
    > element:
    > 1. Define this element directly in <bookmap>. (In this
    > case, I think it should be named <bookmapresources>).
    > 2. Define this element in a new domain. I don't think we want to
    > do this, since we have an existing map domain.
    > 3. Add this element to the map group domain.
    > So, given these two option, which is the correct choice for the
    > TC?
    > I don't have the answer, but I can suggest the framework in
    > which we can make the answer. I think we need to focus on
    > the user experience for map authors and information architects and
    > ask the following questions:
    > * How useful will a <mapresources> element be in map? Will
    > it solve any existing problems? Make anything easier?
    > * Will having <mapresources> available everywhere that
    > <topicref> is available add to element overload for
    > authors? Make developing maps more difficult?
    > If having a <mapresources> element in the map group domain
    > solves problems/meets real user requirements, then I can support
    > that.
    > If we only have theoretical use cases for adding
    > <mapresources> to the map group domain, then I'll advocate
    > for simply adding <bookmapresources> to bookmap.mod. We know
    > that bookmap design has inherent flaws, and remember that the goal
    > of the bookmap update proposal is "to remediate problems without
    > breaking backwards compatibility."
    > --
    > Best,
    > Kris
    > Kristen James Eberlein
    > Chair, OASIS DITA Technical Committee
    > Principal consultant, Eberlein Consulting
    > www.eberleinconsulting.com <http://www.eberleinconsulting.com>
    > +1 919 622-1501; kriseberlein (skype)
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