Edit Properties in DITA Maps

The DITA Maps Manager view includes a feature that allows you to view and edit the properties of a selected node. The

Edit properties action is available on both the DITA Maps Manager toolbar and in the contextual menu. The action opens the Edit Properties dialog box and it includes several tabs with various functions and fields that are initialized with values based upon the node for which the action was invoked.

Note: If you select multiple sibling nodes and invoke the

Edit properties action, only the Profiling tab will be available and your modifications in that tab will be applied to all the selected nodes. If you select multiple nodes that are not on the same hierarchical level, the other tabs will also be available and your modifications will be applied to the parent node (the child nodes will inherit the attributes of the parent node).

You can use the Edit Properties dialog box to modify or define attributes, metadata, profiling, or keys in DITA maps or topics. You can also use it to modify the title of root maps.

At the top of the Edit Properties dialog box, the Reference type drop-down list displays the type of the selected node and it depends on the node for which the action was invoked.

The main section of the dialog box includes the following tabs: Target, Keys, Attributes, Metadata, and Profiling. The availability of the tabs and their functions depend on the selected node. For example, if you invoke the action on a root map, only the Attributes, Metadata, and Profiling tabs are enabled and the Title property can be configured. Also, if you select multiple nodes, only the Profiling tab is available.

Target Tab

Figure: Edit Properties Dialog Box - Target Tab

The Target tab of the Edit Properties dialog box displays information about the target node on which the action was invoked and allows you to change the target. It includes the following sections and fields:

Choose a file location section: You can browse for and select the source target file by using the Look in drop-down list, browsing tools, and file window in this section.
URL: Displays the path to the target and allows you to select or change it by using the combo box or browsing tools.
ID: The drop-down list displays all of the targets that are available for the selected target.
Href: The selected target automatically modifies this value to point to the corresponding href attribute of the target element.
Note: If the Reference type is a Navigation Reference, the Href field is changed to Mapref, since a navref element requires a mapref attribute instead.

Keys Tab

Figure: Edit Properties Dialog Box - Keys Tab

The Keys tab allows you to use and define keys for indirect referencing. For more information, see the Working with Keys topic. This tab includes the following:

Define keys: Use this text field to define the keys attribute for the target.
Key scopes [This option is only available if the Built-in DITA-OT 2.x (with experimental DITA 1.3 support) option is enabled in the DITA preferences page]: Use this text field to define or edit the value of a keyscope attribute. Key scopes allow you to specify different sets of key definitions for different map branches.
Key reference: Use this combo box (or the Choose key reference button) to select a key that is already defined in the root map.

Attributes Tab

Figure: Edit Properties Dialog Box - Attributes Tab

The Attributes tab of the Edit Properties dialog box allows you to insert and edit attribute values for the target node for which the action was invoked.

If the target is a root map, the tab displays the title of the map. You can change it in the Title text field and assign it to an Attribute, Element, or All.

For other types of targets, the tab includes the following sections and fields that can be used to edit the attributes of the target:

Navigation title: This text field allows you to specify a custom navigation title for the target reference. You can enforce the use of the specified title by enabling the Lock checkbox.
Collection type: This drop-down list allows you to select the collection-type attribute to create hierarchical linking between topics in a DITA map (for example, unordered, sequence, choice, family, -dita-use-conref-target).
Type: Allows you to select a type attribute (such as topic, task, concept, etc.) for the target element. If you want this attribute to always be populated with a detected value (based on the specifications for the target file), enable the Type checkbox for the Always fill values for attributes option in the DITA preferences page.
Scope: This property corresponds to the scope attribute of the target element. It is populated automatically, based on the selected file type, unless its value for the selected target file is the same as the default attribute value. If you want this attribute to always be populated with a detected value (based on the specifications), enable the Scope checkbox for the Always fill values for attributes option in the DITA preferences page.
Format: This property corresponds to the format attribute of the target element. It is populated automatically, based on the selected file type, unless its value for the selected target file is the same as the default attribute value. If you want this attribute to always be populated with a detected value (based on the specifications), enable the Format checkbox for the Always fill values for attributes option in the DITA preferences page.
Processing Role: This drop-down list allows you to set the processing-role attribute to one of the allowed values for DITA reference elements (for example, resource-only, normal, -dita-use-conref-target).
Other attributes table: This table contains the attributes that are available for the selected reference. You can use this table to insert or edit the values of any of the listed attributes. Clicking a cell in the Value column allows you to use the combo box to enter, edit, or select attribute values.

Metadata Tab

Figure: Edit Properties Dialog Box - Metadata Tab

The Metadata tab allows you to add metadata elements to the target node. Use the buttons on the right side of the tab to insert specific metadata elements (you can add the following metadata elements: navtitle, linktext, shortdesc, keyword, indexterm). The metadata elements are inserted inside a topicmeta element. The editing window allows you to easily insert and modify the content of the metadata that will be inserted.

Profiling Tab

Figure: Edit Properties Dialog Box - Profiling Tab

The Profiling tab allows you to select or change profiling attributes for the selected target nodes. This tab displays profiling attributes and their values as determined by the following:

If your root DITA map references a DITA subject scheme map that defines values for the profiling attributes, those values are used.
If your project defines project-level configuration values for the profiling attributes, those values are used.
If Oxygen XML Editor defines global-level configuration values for the profiling attributes, they are used.
Otherwise, a basic default set of profiling attributes and values are used.

When you modify a value in this tab, the change will also automatically be reflected in the Attributes tab. For more information, see the DITA Profiling / Conditional Text section.

Finalizing Your Modifications

Once you click OK, all your changes are applied to the target node.