Effective management of documentation revisions and updates is essential in the film industry, and DITA XML offers valuable best practices to streamline this process. Whether it’s updating safety guidelines, revising scripts, or enhancing training materials, adhering to well-defined procedures ensures that documentation remains accurate and up-to-date.

Version Control

DITA allows film organizations to implement version control for their documentation. Each document or topic can have a version attribute, indicating the current version number. When updates are made, the version number should be incremented. This practice ensures that everyone is working with the latest version of the document and can track changes over time.

Metadata and Change Tracking

Metadata within DITA documents can capture crucial information such as the date of the last update, the person responsible for the update, and a summary of changes made. By incorporating this metadata, film industry professionals can easily identify when and how a document was revised. This transparency is particularly valuable for compliance and safety-related documents.

Example:

Here’s an example of how DITA facilitates version control and change tracking:

<topic id="safety_guidelines">
  <title>Film Set Safety Guidelines</title>
  <version>2.1</version>
  <last-updated>2023-10-20</last-updated>
  <updated-by>Jane Smith</updated-by>
  <summary>Revised section on fire safety procedures.</summary>
  <content>...
</topic>

In this DITA example, the document includes version information, the date of the last update, the person responsible for the update, and a summary of changes. These details provide a clear history of revisions and enhance document management.