How is the impact of DITA specialization changes on existing content and projects evaluated?

November 10, 2023
|By Bryan Tipper

Evaluating the impact of DITA specialization changes on existing content and projects is a critical aspect of managing content evolution. This evaluation ensures that the changes align with industry standards, maintain content quality, and do not introduce inconsistencies. Here’s how this evaluation is conducted:

1. Impact Assessment: When DITA specialization changes are proposed, a comprehensive impact assessment is carried out. This assessment includes identifying the affected topics, maps, and related content elements. It examines how changes might impact the existing structure, dependencies, and output formats. This process may involve the use of tools that analyze DITA content dependencies.

2. Review and Testing: Before implementing changes, a review and testing phase is conducted. Content specialists, technical writers, and SMEs assess the proposed changes. They evaluate whether the modifications conform to industry standards and maintain content consistency. Testing may also include generating output in various formats to ensure that the changes do not disrupt content delivery. Sample code snippets, like the one below, are used to demonstrate the impact on specific elements within topics.

<!-- Example: Impact Assessment -->
<topic id="t5678">
  <title>Updated Procedure</title>
  <body>
    <note>This procedure was updated to comply with <keyword>ISO-9001</keyword> standards.</note>
    <steps>
      <step>Inspect the equipment for compliance with <keyword>ISO-9001</keyword> standards.</step>
      <step>Follow <keyword>OSHA Regulations</keyword> for safety procedures.</step>
    </steps>
  </body>
</topic>

3. Controlled Deployment: Changes are deployed in a controlled manner, often starting with a subset of content to assess their actual impact. This controlled deployment helps identify any unforeseen issues and allows for fine-tuning of changes. A change management system can help track the deployment status and issues encountered.

Once these evaluations are successfully completed, changes can be implemented in a way that ensures content remains in compliance with industry standards and best practices.