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DITA Topic Author Mode Actions

A variety of actions are available for DITA documents that can be found in DITA menu, toolbar, contextual menu, and the Content Completion Assistant.

DITA Toolbar Actions

The following default actions are available on the DITA toolbar when editing in Author mode (by default, most of them are also available in the DITA menu and in various submenus of the contextual menu):

Bold
Surrounds the selected text with a <b> tag. You can use this action on multiple non-contiguous selections.
Italic
Surrounds the selected text with an <i> tag. You can use this action on multiple non-contiguous selections.
Underline
Surrounds the selected text with a <u> tag. You can use this action on multiple non-contiguous selections.
Link Actions Drop-Down Menu
The following link actions are available from this menu:
Cross Reference
Opens the Cross Reference (xref) dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target DITA resource at the current location within a document. The target resource can be the location of a file or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. Once the target resource has been selected, you can also target specific elements within that resource. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
File Reference
Opens the File Reference dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target non-DITA file resource at the current location within a document. The target resource can be the location of a file or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Web Link
Opens the Web Link dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target web-related resource at the current location within a document. The target resource can be a URL or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Related Link to Topic
Opens the Cross Reference (xref) dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target DITA resource in a related links section at the bottom of the current document. The target resource can be the location of a file or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. Once the target resource has been selected, you can also target specific elements within that resource. If a related links section does not already exist, this action creates one. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Note:
Related Link to File
Opens the File Reference dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target non-DITA file resource in a related links section at the bottom of the current document. The target resource can be the location of a file or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. If a related links section does not already exist, this action creates one. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Related Link to Web Page
Opens the Web Link dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target web-related resource in a related links section at the bottom of the current document. The target resource can be a URL or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. If a related links section does not already exist, this action creates one. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Insert Image
Opens the Insert Image dialog box that allows you to configure the properties of an image to be inserted into a DITA document at the cursor position.
Insert Media Resource
Opens the Insert Media dialog box that allows you to select and configure the properties of a media object to be inserted into a DITA document at the cursor position. The result will be that a reference to the specified video, audio, or embedded HTML frame is inserted in an <object> element and it is rendered in Author mode so that it can be played directly from there.
Insert Section Drop-Down Menu

The following insert actions are available from this menu:

Insert Section
Inserts a new <section> element in the document, depending on the current context.
Insert Concept
Inserts a new <concept> element, depending on the current context. Concepts provide background information that users must know before they can successfully work with a product or interface.
Insert Task
Inserts a new <task> element, depending on the current context. Tasks are the main building blocks for task-oriented user assistance. They generally provide step-by-step instructions that will help a user to perform a task.
Insert Topic
Inserts a new <topic> element, depending on the current context. Topics are the basic units of DITA content and are usually organized around a single subject.
Insert Reference
Inserts a new <reference> element, depending on the current context. A reference is a top-level container for a reference topic.
Insert Note
Inserts a new <note> element, depending on the current context.
Insert Codeblock
Inserts a new <codeblock> element, depending on the current context.
Insert Intent Question
Inserts a new special <data> element that contains a question or intent. The intent can be used to generate Google Structured data content in WebHelp Responsive output.
Insert Paragraph
Inserts a new paragraph at current cursor position.
Insert step or list item
Inserts a new list or step item in the current list type.

DITA Contextual Menu Actions

The following actions are available in the contextual menu when editing in Author mode (most of them are also available in the DITA menu at the top of the interface):

Edit Attributes
Displays an in-place attributes editor that allows you to manage the attributes of an element.
Insert submenu

This submenu includes the following insert actions that are specific to the DITA framework:

Insert Equation
Opens the XML Fragment Editor that allows you to insert and edit MathML notations.
Insert Note
Inserts a new <note> element at the current cursor position.
Insert Code Block
Inserts a new <codeblock> element at current cursor position.
Insert Menu Cascade
Inserts a new <menucascade> element at current cursor position.
Insert Label
Inserts a special label keyword in the prolog. The label is helpful for searching WebHelp Responsive output for similar topics with the same label.
Insert Paragraph
Inserts a new <p> (paragraph) element at current cursor position.
Insert Section
Inserts a new <section> element in the document, depending on the current context.
Insert Topic
Inserts a new <topic> element, depending on the current context. Topics are the basic units of DITA content and are usually organized around a single subject.
Insert Entity
Allows you to insert a predefined entity or character entity. Surrogate character entities (range #x10000 to #x10FFFF) are also accepted. Character entities can be entered in one of the following forms:
  • #<decimal value> - e.g. #65
  • &#<decimal value> - e.g. &#65
  • #x<hexadecimal value> - e.g. #x41
  • &#x<hexadecimal value> - e.g. &#x41
Style submenu
This submenu includes the following text styling actions:
Bold
Emphasizes the selected text by surrounding it with a <b> (bold) tag. You can use this action on multiple non-contiguous selections.
Italic
Emphasizes the selected text by surrounding it with an <i> (italic) tag. You can use this action on multiple non-contiguous selections.
Underline
Emphasizes the selected text by surrounding it with a <u> (underline) tag. You can use this action on multiple non-contiguous selections.
Subscript
Surrounds the selected text with a <sub> (subscript) tag, used for inserting a character (number, letter, or symbol) that will appear slightly below the baseline and slightly smaller than the rest of the text.
Superscript
Surrounds the selected text with a <sup> (superscript) tag, used for inserting a character (number, letter, or symbol) that will appear slightly above the baseline and slightly smaller than the rest of the text.
Code
Surrounds the selected text with a <codeph> tag.
UI Control
Surrounds the selected text with a <uicontrol> tag, used to mark up names of buttons, entry fields, menu items, or other interface objects.
Filepath
Surrounds the selected text with a <filepath> tag, used to indicate the name, and optionally the location of a referenced file. You can specify the directory that contains the file and other directories that may precede it in the system hierarchy.
Table Actions

A variety of table editing actions are available in the contextual menu when it is invoked on a table (depending on the context, the table-related actions are promoted to the top level of the contextual menu and the Other Actions submenu provides access to the other actions):

Other Actions submenu
This submenu give you access to all the usual contextual menu actions.
Link submenu
The following link actions are available from this submenu:
Cross Reference
Opens the Cross Reference (xref) dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target DITA resource at the current location within a document. The target resource can be the location of a file or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. Once the target resource has been selected, you can also target specific elements within that resource. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
File Reference
Opens the File Reference dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target non-DITA file resource at the current location within a document. The target resource can be the location of a file or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Web Link
Opens the Web Link dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target web-related resource at the current location within a document. The target resource can be a URL or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Related Link to Topic
Opens the Cross Reference (xref) dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target DITA resource in a related links section at the bottom of the current document. The target resource can be the location of a file or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. Once the target resource has been selected, you can also target specific elements within that resource. If a related links section does not already exist, this action creates one. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Note:
Related Link to File
Opens the File Reference dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target non-DITA file resource in a related links section at the bottom of the current document. The target resource can be the location of a file or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. If a related links section does not already exist, this action creates one. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Related Link to Web Page
Opens the Web Link dialog box that allows you to insert a link to a target web-related resource in a related links section at the bottom of the current document. The target resource can be a URL or a key that is already defined in your DITA map structure. If a related links section does not already exist, this action creates one. For more information, see Linking in DITA Topics.
Sort
Available when invoked on a list, it opens a dialog box where you can configure a sorting operation for an entire list or a selection of list items.
Reuse submenu

This submenu includes the following actions regarding reusing content in DITA:

Extract Topic From Selection
Creates a new DITA topic from a selection of content in the current topic.
Search References ()

Finds the references to the @id attribute value for the element at the current cursor position, in all the topics contained in the current DITA map (opened in the DITA Maps Manager view). If no references are found for the current element, a dialog box will be displayed that offers you the option of searching for references to its ancestor elements.

Figure 1. Search References to Ancestors Dialog Box
Tip:
If you are invoking the action on an image, see Searching for References to Images for details about what will be reported.
Find Similar Topics
Opens the Open/Find Resource view and performs a search using text content from the <title>, <shortdesc>, <keyword>, and <indexterm> elements. It is helpful for quickly finding related topics that can be added as related links.
About Element submenu

This submenu includes the following actions:

Style Guide
Opens the DITA Style Guide Best Practices for Authors in your browser and displays a topic that is relevant to the element at the cursor position. When editing DITA documents, this action is available in the contextual menu of the editing area (under the About Element sub-menu), in the DITA menu, and in some of the documentation tips that are displayed by the Content Completion Assistant.
Browse reference manual
Opens a reference to the documentation of the XML element closest to the cursor position in a web browser.
Go to Definition
Moves the cursor to the definition of the current element.
Select submenu

This submenu allows you to select the following:

Element
Selects the entire element at the current cursor position.
Content
Selects the entire content of the element at the current cursor position, excluding the start and end tag. Performing this action repeatedly will result in the selection of the content of the ancestor of the currently selected element content.
Parent
Selects the entire parent element at the current cursor position.
Text submenu

This submenu contains the following actions:

To Lower Case
Converts the selected content to lower case characters.
To Upper Case
Converts the selected content to upper case characters.
Capitalize Sentences
Converts to upper case the first character of every selected sentence.
Capitalize Words
Converts to upper case the first character of every selected word.
Count Words
Counts the number of words and characters (no spaces) in the entire document or in the selection for regular content and read-only content.
Note:
The content marked as deleted with change tracking is ignored when counting words.
Refactoring submenu

Contains a series of actions designed to alter the XML structure of the document:

Review submenu

This submenu includes the following actions:

Track Changes
Enables or disables the Track Changes support for the current document.
Accept Change(s) and Move to Next
Accept All Changes
Reject Change(s) and Move to Next
Reject All Changes
Highlight
Enables the highlighting tool that allows you to mark text in your document.
Colors
Allows you to select the color for highlighting text.
Stop highlighting
Use this action to deactivate the highlighting tool.
Remove highlight(s)
Use this action to remove highlighting from the document.
Manage Reviews
Opens the Review view.
Manage IDs submenu

This submenu is available for topics that have an associated DTD or schema. It includes the following actions:

Rename in
Renames the ID and all its occurrences. Selecting this action opens the Rename XML ID dialog box. This dialog box lets you insert the new ID value and choose the scope of the rename operation.
Search References
Searches for the references of the ID. By default, the scope of this action is the current project. If you configure a scope using the Select the scope for the Search and Refactor operations dialog box, this scope will be used instead.
Search References in
Searches for the references of the ID. Selecting this action opens the Select the scope for the Search and Refactor operations.
Search Occurrences in file
Searches for the occurrences of the ID in the current document.
Folding submenu

This submenu includes the following actions:

Inspect Styles
Opens the CSS Inspector view that allows you to examine the CSS rules that match the currently selected element.
Options
Opens the Author mode preferences page where you can configure various options with regard to the Author editing mode.

Floating Contextual Toolbar for DITA

Oxygen XML includes a dynamic feature where certain editing contexts will trigger a floating toolbar with common actions that are available in the current editing context.

Figure 2. DITA Floating Contextual Toolbar
The floating contextual toolbar is automatically displayed when editing DITA documents in various situations, including:
  • When a <p>, <li>, or <shortdesc> element has a selection inside, the floating toolbar includes actions such as Bold, Italic, Underline, a Link submenu, and more.
  • When an <image> or <xref> element is selected:
    • If the element has an @href attribute, the floating toolbar includes a URL chooser where you can select the appropriate target.
    • If the element has a @keyref attribute, the floating toolbar includes a drop-down control where you can select the appropriate target key reference.
  • When an <object> element is selected:
    • If the element has a @data attribute, the floating toolbar includes a URL chooser where you can select the appropriate target.
    • If the element has a @datakeyref attribute, the floating toolbar includes a drop-down control where you can select the appropriate target key reference.
  • When an element with a @conref attribute is selected, the floating toolbar includes actions for editing, removing, or replacing content references.
  • When a <codeblock> element is selected, the floating toolbar includes a drop-down control where you can select the value of the @outputclass attribute.
  • When a <ul> element is selected, the floating toolbar includes actions for converting it to an ordered list or sorting the list.
  • When an <ol> element is selected, the floating toolbar includes actions for converting it to an unordered list or sorting the list.
  • When an <li> or <step> element is selected, the floating toolbar includes actions for moving the item up or down in the list/procedure.
  • When a <row> or <strow> element is selected in a table, the floating toolbar includes various table-related actions (such as actions for editing table properties, inserting rows, or deleting rows).
  • When an <entry> or <stentry> element is selected in a table, the floating toolbar includes various table-related actions (such as actions for editing table properties, inserting/deleting rows, or inserting/deleting columns).
  • When a <table> or <simpletable> element is selected, the floating toolbar includes actions for editing table properties or sorting the table.

DITA Drag/Drop (or Copy/Paste) Actions

Dragging a file from the ProjectProject Explorer view or DITA Maps Manager view and dropping it into a DITA document that is edited in Author mode, creates a link to the dragged file (the <xref> DITA element with the @href attribute) at the drop location. Copy and paste actions work the same.

You can also drag images or media files from your system explorer or the ProjectProject Explorer view and drop them into a DITA document (or copy and paste). This will insert the appropriate element at the drop or paste location (for example, dropping/pasting an image will insert the DITA <image> element with an @href attribute).

Note: