When compared with an unstructured document, a structured document is more flexible, robust, and manageable. They are beneficial for any technical publication team publishing a considerable volume of technical documents. The structured authoring process involves multiple aspects of content handling within the document structure using DTD and XSLT.
What are DTD, XSLT, and structured authoring?
A document type definition (DTD) defines the documentation structure using tags or elements. The schemas control the DTD elements within a document and help the author decide where and when these elements can be used depending on the content type.
Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformations (XSLT) is an XML language based stylesheets used to alter XML documents in conjunction with special processing software often known as an FO.
Structured authoring entails adopting a consistent pattern to your content, such as always using the same tag sequence using a combination of DTDs and XSLTs.
How are XSLT and DTD useful for businesses?
XSLT is used in B2B communication to transfer data between two separate organizations. In the ideal scenario, both businesses will decide on a common vocabulary, styles, and branding, for using a DTD or schema to describe the data.
Consider an instance where data is transferred between many organizations in XML format. Hence the reliability of business-to-business information is essential for the efficient operation and transaction of data. In this information transaction process, XSLT ensures a method to verify the structure of XML data and conforms to the data structure acceptable by the databases across the partner organization.
Whereas, DTD helps in ensuring that the XML structure is not changed at random.
Among others, applications for e-commerce and business-to-business operations require a highly robust yet assurance for the structure of the XML documents.
DTD provides a framework for describing and documenting the structure of an XML document. A good combination of DTD and XSLT controlled content can be a great business generator for businesses that author, manage, and publish high volumes of content.
Benefits of implementing structured authoring in your business
- Ensures that information is organized consistently.
- Validates information organization automatically.
- Provides content consistency.
- Supports content reuse.
- Metadata can be used to add information to documents.
- Distinguishing between content and formatting.
- Reduces the need for localization.
Hence using DTD and XSLT in structured authoring allows you to establish and enforce consistent information structure in documents.
Reach out to Metapercept Technology Services, and get the consultation on your documents. Drop an email to info@metapercept.com, or visit us at https://metapercept.com.
