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DITA authoring concepts
Moving from style-based authoring to a structured authoring methodology such as DITA requires a radically different approach to writing.
Distinction between format and style, and data and metadata
In DITA, format has a different meaning to style. Likewise, the meanings of data and metadata are very different. These distinctions in meaning are important to understanding the broader concept of the separation of content and form.
The blurred line between content and form
Text that labels the content that follows should be applied in the publishing process, and not included in the content itself.

Introduction
Information types and topics
Topics are the building blocks of modular documents, and organising topics by semantic information types is one of the architectural features of DITA.
DITA map files
Syntax and mark-up
Language and punctuation
Graphics and figures
Cross-referencing
Cross-references are a means of binding individual topics into a coherent and navigable document.
Content re-use
Metadata, conditional processing, and indexing
The DITA documentation process
DITA authoring concepts
Moving from style-based authoring to a structured authoring methodology such as DITA requires a radically different approach to writing.
- Introduction to DITA
  DITA is an XML standard, an architectural approach, and a writing methodology, developed by technical communicators for technical communicators.
- Distinction between format and style, and data and metadata
  In DITA, format has a different meaning to style. Likewise, the meanings of data and metadata are very different. These distinctions in meaning are important to understanding the broader concept of the separation of content and form.
  - Challenges for new DITA authors
    The philosophical differences between style-based authoring and semantic authoring present the greatest challenges for new DITA authors.
  - The blurred line between content and form
    Text that labels the content that follows should be applied in the publishing process, and not included in the content itself.
- Specialisation
  Specialisation allows you to construct your own types of documents without losing the benefits of working within a DITA framework; in particular, you can maintain interchangeability.
- Generalisation
  When information in a specialised information type needs to be converted into the information type from which it was specialised, the process is known as generalisation.
- Constraints
  The constraints mechanism in DITA allows the use of elements and attributes in an information type to be restricted without needing to create a full specialisation. Constraints aim to simplify the authoring process by reducing the complexity of an information type.

The blurred line between content and form

Text that labels the content that follows should be applied in the publishing process, and not included in the content itself.

The difference between content and form is sometimes surprisingly difficult to identify.

For example, in the following sample, the word Note: looks like part of the content, but on deeper reflection, it turns out to be part of the presentational form.

Screen capture showing difference showing one rendition of a Note

This becomes more obvious when you look at alternative ways of presenting the same information, such as the following:

Screen capture showing difference showing a rendition of a Note with an icon

Screen capture showing difference showing a rendition of a Note with borders

The mark-up of that element in DITA must always follow the pattern:

<note>Before having...</note>

and never:

<note>Note: Before having...</note>

Embedding the label for an element in its text will limit the ways in which the element can be presented.

Ensuring that form is not mixed with content can be quite challenging when publishing tools don't make a sufficient distinction between text with a specific purpose and more general text. For example, when task topics are published through the default DITA Open Toolkit, no special formatting or labelling is applied to pre-requisite (prereq) elements. Avoid the temptation to add form to the content, and instead work to modify the publishing templates, stylesheets and processes so that the required formatting is applied during processing.

Ensuring that labels are applied in the publishing process rather than in the content will also simplify localisation, as there is less text to translate.