The Manuals Machine - Extending Content Types

The Standard Document Type provides the core word processing constructions including paragraphs and bullet lists. But what if you want to include special types of element in your text-based documents? How to provide tips and warnings in a standard appearance with that little bomb? Or standard format for catalogue items with short description, stock number, picture and price?

The Author/Editor and the Standard Document Type are both extensible, to enable incorporation of specific types and appearances of content for particular business or literary requirements. Three methods are available:

• you can provide additional element types
• you can use table elements to store the data, and provide special XSLT templates to show the desried appearance
• you can use HTML elements, to do whatever you want - including execute script to reference other XML data sources and/or to use dynamic HTML

Defining Additional Element Types

You can add arbitrary elements to XML documents that employ the Standard Document Type, using any tag name of your choice except for those that are already reserved for the Manuals Machine's elements.

To display your element, you must provide an XSLT template to match the tag name. You add this into a file called TPcustom.xsl and becomes included into the stylesheet for the Standard Document Type. This template can apply any XSLT rules for rendering the element, including executing Javascript.

Editing Additional Element Types

Documents with additional elements can be opened and saved in the Author/Editor, and if you select one of your additional elements it will be presented for editing in the 'XML View'. You can also edit the document using any XML editor of your choice. Note that when you save the element it will be passed through schema checks and indentation tidy-up; the schema checks ignore unexpected element types and the save routine will issue a summary report on non-standard content.

So if you're happy to edit the underlying XML, there nothing you have to do except provide the XSLT template for your tag name.

To fully integrate the element for authoring purposes (for example, the tips and warnings element for reference book authors), an Editing Form for the element must be added into the authoring environment. Mechanims are provided for this. To date all Custom Editing Forms have been developed by SMH Systems for its clients; should there be demand we may publish a SDK with instructions and code templates.

Using Special Table Layouts

The Manuals Machine provides a second mechanism for custom content, which is to use table elements. Normally table elements provide a simple rows-and-columns organisation [more ...]

Special Appearance, Logic or Hyperlinking for Table Cells

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Skills Required

To provide extensions you need a good working knowledge of XSLT. There many books and websites on this topic, for beginners and experts.

SMH Systems can provide training, and we can also develop for you the stylesheets for your specific extensions.

Customising Page Headers

For page headers you can choose any of those supplied with The Manuals Machine and you can customise appearance using CSS.

You can also define your own original forms of heading, which you implement by providing XSLT templates. You can build smarts into these templates because they can even include Javascript code and can discover the context in which the page has been accessed.