book

XML and InDesign

by Dorothy J. Hoskins

January 2013

Beginner to intermediate

148 pages

3h 45m

English

O'Reilly Media, Inc.

Start your free trial

Related skills

Associated roles

Android developer

About This Book and InDesign CSConventions Used in This BookUsing Code ExamplesSafari® Books OnlineHow to Contact UsContributorAcknowledgments
Data-Like Content Example: The Course Description XMLData Exported as XMLModeling the Structure for the Import XMLTopical Content: The Handbook XMLEvaluating the Handbook Text for StructureModeling the Structure as a Set of TopicsIteration and RefinementNet Results: Vast Improvements in Understanding and Speed
Doing It Adobe’s Way: The Placeholder ApproachModeling the XML You WantGetting some structure into InDesignCreate placeholders for XML elementsCreating test XMLImporting XML into PlaceholdersAdding style to the XML elementsMapping styles to tagsImporting the “real” XML fileAn Aside: The Scary “Map Styles to Tags” Dialog MessageMingling Non-XML and XML Content in a Text FlowExporting XHTML When XML is in Your InDesign FileDoing It Your Way: Using the Options for Your Own ProcessImport XML Using Only Merge—No Other Import SettingsUsing AppendLinking to External XML FilesExternal updates on Open and using the Links paletteCreating Text Flows for the Imported XMLThe Importance of “Document Order” for Imported XMLRearranging XML elements in the structure paneFixing up structure in the Story EditorUnderstanding InDesign’s XML Import OptionsUsing “Clone Repeating Text Elements”Importing Only Elements That Match StructureAvoiding Overwriting Text Labels in the Placeholder ElementsDeleting Nonmatching Structure, Text, and Layout ComponentsImporting ImagesInline Image Imports
The Case for Tagging Content: Why You Need XMLTagging for ImportTagging for Iterative XML DevelopmentWorking Without an Initial DTD
Marking Up (Tagging) Existing Content for XML ExportThe Special Case of InDesign Tables (Namespaced XML)Examining the TableTagging Images as XML in InDesignImage Options in the Export XML Dialog
Export in XML Order Compared with Page Layout and Article Pane OrderAlternate Layouts and XML Are Not Compatible FeaturesUntested: Liquid Layout and InDesign Files Containing XML Structure
Why Validate?How to Validate XML in InDesignLoading a DTD and Getting the Correct Root ElementAuthoring with a DTDDealing with Validation ProblemsOccurrence and Sequences of ElementsValidating Outside of InDesignDuplicating Structure to Build XMLCleaning Up Imported XML ContentFast and Light Credo: Develop Now, Validate LaterIterating the Information Structure and DTD
The 1:1 Import ConundrumBad CharactersInscrutable Errors, Messages, and CrashesInDesign Is Not an XML Authoring Tool
XSLT for Wrangling XML versus XML Scripting for Automating XML PublishingXSL: Extracting Elements from a Source XML File for a New UseXSL: Getting the Elements to Sort ThemselvesXSL: Getting Rid of Elements You Don’t WantCreating Wrappers for Repeating ChunksMaking a Table from Element StructuresUpcasting Versus DowncastingUpcasting from HTML to XML for InDesign ImportDowncasting to HTMLGenerate a Link with XSLT (Not Automated)Adding Useful Attributes to XMLA General Formula for Adding AttributesGenerating an id Attribute for a divUse of the lang Attribute for TranslationsCreating an Image href AttributePaths to imagesA Word about Using Find/Change for XML Markup in InDesign
The Challenge of Mapping Deep DTDs to Shallow InDesign StructuresThe Challenge of Mapping Shallow Structures to Deep DTD StructuresUse of Semantic ids and Style Names (Expert-Level Development)
A Brief Note about InCopy and XMLA Brief Note about IDML and ICMLAutomating InDesign: The Power of IDML and ICML ProgrammingAn ICML developer’s test caseSummary
InDesign ResourcesXML ResourcesXSLT Resources

Content preview from XML and InDesign

Chapter 10. Advanced Topics: Transforming XML with XSL

Topics in this section deal with transforming XML during import and export using the eXtensible Stylesheet Language Transforms (XSLT). Anyone can write XSLT with a text editor. Refer to Appendix A for some useful books to learn more about XSLT.

An aside regarding scripting InDesign and XML rules-based publishing

There is a lot of potential hidden in the phrase “XML Scripting,” available since InDesign CS3. The power tools are scripting (AppleScript, Visual Basic and JavaScript) and rules-based XML publishing.

Scripting InDesign is a developer’s delight—for developers who like print publishing. If you want to get a better idea of what can be done, see the O’Reilly Short Cut publications, such as Scripting InDesign with JavaScript by Peter Kahrel (O’Reilly, 2006). (Despite the original date of the book, the scripting reference is still valid.)

You can get started with the scripts by visiting the Adobe website and searching for “scripting reference” documentation in the InDesign Help and Forum sections of the site. Online searches will reveal more InDesign scripting references.

XSLT for Wrangling XML versus XML Scripting for Automating XML Publishing

Here’s what I think are the key differentiators for which process to use and why: if you need to change the XML structure itself as it is being imported or exported into InDesign, use XSL transforms. I provide some examples later in this book. InDesign has its limitations in transforming ...