---
title: "Where I Stand on DITA"
date: 2009-01-23
description: "$( document ).ready(function() { // Handler for .ready() called. $("
canonical_url: https://idratherbewriting.com/2009/01/23/where-i-stand-on-dita/
---
# Where I Stand on DITA
For a blog about the latest trends in technical communication, I've been conspicuously silent about [DITA](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin_Information_Typing_Architecture), the XML standard for technical documentation that is rapidly becoming the norm in the industry. Tonight I realized that I need to examine more closely where I stand on DITA. Several events prompted this.

At my work we have a small authoring group that is tool independent. I use Flare, another colleague uses RoboHelp, another colleague has no need for a robust help authoring tool, another department uses UPK (Oracle's help authoring tool), and we don't really have a unified approach. Adobe just released its new Technical Communication Suite that includes the latest version of a package of tools. Flare continues to move forward, as does Author-it and Doc-to-Help. But I'm feeling a bit fatigued by these proprietary tools. Rather than choosing another tool, I would rather choose a standard format and let individuals choose their own tools to create documentation in that format.

The WordPress Docs mailing has also been heating up. Apparently WordPress has come to the realization that its [Codex](http://codex.wordpress.org), a giant wiki that would kill all trees in the world if printed, does not satisfy the beginner's need for a basic "handbook."

WordPress' wiki has been, in my opinion, a fascinating project of community documentation. From what I understand, a previous wiki held WordPress documentation but was abandoned to create the Codex. Now the developers are considering transfering the core information from the Codex to a DocBook format, which they would maintain in a Subversion repository (SVN) so they can manage quality control and branching. If you want to see in to the heart of Web 2.0 and documentation, look closely at WordPress.  The Codex has grown beyond itself, become chaotic, redundant, outdated in parts, maze-like and unnavigable. Still, nuggets of essential information are spread throughout, making it indispensable. Maintained almost entirely by volunteers, the wiki proves to be a problematic format. It can't sustain long-term, massive amounts of information before people feel the need to start fresh again.