DITA XML Reference Guide

A quick reference guide on Darwin Information Typing Architecture (DITA) elements.

Common

<conbody> the body of the concept topic
<p> a paragraph
<ul> an unordered or bulleted list
<ol> an ordered or numbered list
<sli> simple list
<li> a list item inside a <ul> or <ol>
<fig> a figure, including an optional title
<image> a graphic inside a figure, or inline in text
<section> a subdivision in the topic, with an optional title
	<title> heading, under which you can use the same elements allowed inside the <conbody> element, excluding another <section> element, an <example> element, or a <conbodydiv> element
<related-links> end of topic links
	<link href="URL" format="html" scope="external">

Text Formatting

<b> bold text
<i> italic text
<u> underlined text

<sub> subscript text
<sup> superscript text

References & Definitions

<xref> cross-references
<note conref="location.dita#topicid/whatduckslike"/> conref to reference content
<fn> Footnote
<dl> List of terms and definitions, presented in a format similar to a two-column table
	<dlentry> definition entry element
	<dt> definition term
	<dd> full definition
<term> a word or phrase that needs a definition
<cite> a word or phrase that needs a citation
<varname> a word or phrase that may change based on the user’s circumstances

Tables

<simpletable>
	<sthead> header row
	<strow> body row
	<stentry> simple table entry
<table>
	<title> title for the table
	<tgroup> columns specifications, header rows and body rows
		<colspec> column widths and identifying info
		<thead> table header rows
		<tbody> table body rows
	<row> single row
	<entry> data for table cell

Prolog Elements

<author> the content author
<critdates> critical dates, such as <created> and <revised>
<copyright> copyright year <copyryear>, and copyright holder <copyrholder>
<vrm> product version, release, and modification information

Strict Task Topic

<taskbody> the body of the task topic
<steps> the sequence of actions
<step> each individual action
	<cmd> the action the user takes; this is a required element in a <step>
	<info> additional information about the step
	<stepresult> what happens after performing an action
	<stepxmp> an example of how to do the step
<example> an example of how to do the entire task

Reference Topic

<refbody> the body of the reference topic
<section> a subdivision in the reference topic, with an optional title
<table> a table
<fig> a figure, including an optional title
<properties> a list of properies
<refsyn> a syntax diagram

Glossary Topic

<glossentry> the glossary entry topic type
<glossterm> the word or phrase
<glossdef> the definition of the glossary term

Note Types

<note>
<attention>
<danger>
<caution>
<important>
<tip>

Other

<menucascade> order of a menu path, such as File > Save As
	<uicontrol> text for a menu item
<draft-comment> comments and questions inserted into content while it is being developed
<required-cleanup> wrap content that is tagged incorrectly and needs to be fixed

Looking for something else?
OxygenXML - DITA Elements, A to Z