Can DITA be used for creating interactive documentation for IT training and user guides?

November 10, 2023
|By Bryan Tipper

Creating interactive documentation for IT training and user guides using DITA is indeed possible. DITA offers the flexibility and structure needed to develop engaging and educational content for IT learners and users. By incorporating interactivity, such as multimedia elements, quizzes, and responsive design, DITA enables the development of dynamic training materials and user guides.

DITA’s modular content approach is particularly advantageous in this context. Content can be organized into reusable topics, making it easy to create and update training modules and user guides. These modules can include interactive components, like video tutorials or interactive simulations, enhancing the learning experience for IT users.

Example:

Here’s a simplified example of how DITA can be used to create an interactive IT training module:


<topic id="training-module">
  <title>Interactive Training Module</title>
  <body>
    <p>This DITA topic includes interactive content for IT training.</p>
    <video src="training-video.mp4" controls></video> <!-- Embedded video -->
    <p>Take the quiz to test your knowledge:</p>
    <quiz id="quiz1" questions="5" passing-score="80">
      <question>What is DITA?</question>
      <answer correct="true">A topic-based XML standard.</answer>
      <answer>It's a programming language.</answer>
      <question>What does HTML stand for?</question>
      <answer correct="true">Hypertext Markup Language.</answer>
      <answer>High-Tech Multimedia Language.</answer>
    </quiz> <!-- Embedded quiz -->
  </body>
</topic>

In this example, the DITA topic “training-module” includes an embedded video and a quiz, creating an interactive training experience for IT learners.