Attributes for Content Reuse

Conditional Processing Attributes

These attributes allow you to include or exclude content based on specific conditions, supporting sophisticated conditional publishing.

• audience: Targets user groups (e.g., admin, enduser). Example:

  
  <p audience="admin">Use the command line interface...</p>
        

• platform: Targets operating systems (e.g., windows, mac). Example:

  
  <p platform="windows">Double-click the installer...</p>
        

• product: Targets specific product versions. Example:

  
  <p product="professional">Configure single sign-on...</p>
        

• otherprops: Custom filtering for specific needs. Example:

  
  <note otherprops="gdpr">European customers must consent...</note>
        

DITA processors support complex filtering using Boolean logic and multiple attributes.

conref Attribute

The conref attribute enables direct reuse of content elements from other topics. Referenced content stays synchronized across uses.

Sample Usage:

<task id="userlogin">
  <title>Log In</title>
  <shortdesc>This task guides users through logging in.</shortdesc>
  <taskbody>
    <steps>
      <step conref="snippets.dita#snippets/loginstep"/>
    </steps>
  </taskbody>
</task>
  

Best Practices: Organize reusable content, use meaningful IDs, maintain appropriate granularity, and manage changes carefully.

copy-to Attribute

The copy-to attribute creates topic copies with different contexts or metadata while maintaining original content integrity.

When to Use: When content needs to appear in multiple locations with distinct navigational or URL contexts.

conref vs. copy-to Comparison:

Decision Framework: Use conref for embedded reuse with synchronization, and copy-to for multiple locations with different contexts or URLs.