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Metadata, conditional processing, and indexing
Conditional processing concepts
When DITA content is processed to a reading format, rules to exclude or highlight some of the content can be defined in a ditaval file. This conditional processing requires metadata attributes to be set on DITA elements that may possibly be excluded or highlighted.

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
- Conditional processing concepts
  When DITA content is processed to a reading format, rules to exclude or highlight some of the content can be defined in a ditaval file. This conditional processing requires metadata attributes to be set on DITA elements that may possibly be excluded or highlighted.
- Condition (or select) attributes
  The audience, platform, product, otherprops and rev attributes can be applied to most DITA elements. They are used for conditional processing, and are known as the condition (or select) attributes.
- Filtering and flagging
  Content marked with metadata attributes can be conditionally processed so that the content is filtered (excluded) or flagged (highlighted) in the published output.
- Other metadata
  In addition to the select attributes, DITA content includes many forms of metadata. These metadata elements and attributes are used to manage and organise topics, ditamaps and publications.
- Indexing
  DITA incorporates powerful features for indexing, including multi-level indexing, and see and see-also redirection. Index entries can be applied in the ditamap, in the topic prolog, and inline within the topic content.
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.

Conditional processing concepts

When DITA content is processed to a reading format, rules to exclude or highlight some of the content can be defined in a ditaval file. This conditional processing requires metadata attributes to be set on DITA elements that may possibly be excluded or highlighted.

Conditional publishing or conditional processing in DITA is the technique where metadata attributes set in the DITA content are used as the basis for filtering (excluding) or flagging (highlighting) portions of the content during the transformation process. The rules for what to filter or flag are typically defined in a separate DITA values (ditaval) file, which is nominated when the transformation process is started.

Flagging is a method of highlighting where the content is highlighted with a symbol or formatting. The rules for flagging are typically defined in the ditaval file.

Nearly all DITA elements, from topics through to inline elements, have a common set of metadata attributes intended for conditional processing:

audience
platform
product
otherprops

For example, a paragraph in a topic might have an audience attribute of administrator, and in some contexts, the content needs be published so that any administrator paragraphs are excluded. In this case, the ditaval file would be defined so that elements with an audience attribute value of administrator are excluded.

The rev attribute, also common to most DITA elements, can be used for flagging, but not filtering. It is used for recording the version or revision of the documentation in which the element was added or changed.