##### 3.1.6.3 data-about

The <data-about> element identifies the subject of a property when the subject isn't associated with the context in which the property is specified. The property itself is expressed by the <data> element. The <data-about> element handles exception cases where a property must be expressed somewhere other than inside the actual subject of the property. The <data-about> element is particularly useful as a basis for specialization in combination with the <data> element.

Important: Do not use the <data-about> element to identify the object of a property. The href attribute of the <data> element serves that purpose.

###### Contains

Doctype | Content model
topic, map, concept, ditabase, glossary, glossentry, glossgroup, reference, task, bookmap, classifyMap, subjectScheme, machineryTask, learningAssessment, learningBookmap, learningContent, learningMap, learningOverview, learningPlan, learningSummary | ( (data) then (data or data-about) (any number) )

###### Contained by

Doctype | Content model
topic (base) | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, typeofhazard, consequence
map (base), learningMap | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, map, topicref, relcell, topicmeta, linktext, searchtitle, topichead, topicgroup, anchorref, mapref, topicset, topicsetref, keydef, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, typeofhazard, consequence
topic (technical content) | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, typeofhazard, consequence, uicontrol, screen, codeph, codeblock, var, oper, delim, sep, pt, pd, fragref, repsep, msgph, msgblock, filepath, userinput, systemoutput
map (technical content) | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, map, topicref, relcell, topicmeta, linktext, searchtitle, topichead, topicgroup, anchorref, mapref, topicset, topicsetref, keydef, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, typeofhazard, consequence, uicontrol, screen, codeph, codeblock, var, oper, delim, sep, pt, pd, fragref, repsep, msgph, msgblock, filepath, userinput, systemoutput
concept | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, conbody, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, typeofhazard, consequence, uicontrol, screen, codeph, codeblock, var, oper, delim, sep, pt, pd, fragref, repsep, msgph, msgblock, filepath, userinput, systemoutput
ditabase | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, conbody, prereq, context, steps-informal, stepsection, cmd, info, tutorialinfo, stepxmp, choice, choptionhd, chdeschd, choption, chdesc, stepresult, result, postreq, refbody, refbodydiv, refsyn, proptypehd, propvaluehd, propdeschd, proptype, propvalue, propdesc, glossterm, glossdef, glossProperty, glossUsage, glossScopeNote, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, typeofhazard, consequence, uicontrol, screen, codeph, codeblock, var, oper, delim, sep, pt, pd, fragref, repsep, msgph, msgblock, filepath, userinput, systemoutput
glossary, glossentry, glossgroup | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, conbody, glossterm, glossdef, glossProperty, glossUsage, glossScopeNote, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, typeofhazard, consequence, uicontrol, screen, codeph, codeblock, var, oper, delim, sep, pt, pd, fragref, repsep, msgph, msgblock, filepath, userinput, systemoutput
reference | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, refbody, refbodydiv, refsyn, proptypehd, propvaluehd, propdeschd, proptype, propvalue, propdesc, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, typeofhazard, consequence, uicontrol, screen, codeph, codeblock, var, oper, delim, sep, pt, pd, fragref, repsep, msgph, msgblock, filepath, userinput, systemoutput
task (strict), task (general) | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, prereq, context, steps-informal, stepsection, cmd, info, tutorialinfo, stepxmp, choice, choptionhd, chdeschd, choption, chdesc, stepresult, result, postreq, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, typeofhazard, consequence, uicontrol, screen, codeph, codeblock, var, oper, delim, sep, pt, pd, fragref, repsep, msgph, msgblock, filepath, userinput, systemoutput
bookmap | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, map, topicref, relcell, topicmeta, linktext, searchtitle, person, organization, summary, printlocation, bookpartno, booknumber, topichead, topicgroup, anchorref, mapref, topicset, topicsetref, keydef, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, organizationname, otherinfo, addressdetails, locality, localityname, administrativearea, thoroughfare, emailaddress, url, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, typeofhazard, consequence, uicontrol, screen, codeph, codeblock, var, oper, delim, sep, pt, pd, fragref, repsep, msgph, msgblock, filepath, userinput, systemoutput
classifyMap | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, map, topicref, relcell, topicmeta, linktext, searchtitle, topichead, topicgroup, anchorref, mapref, topicset, topicsetref, keydef, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, topicsubject, topicapply, subjectref, topicCell, subjectCell, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, typeofhazard, consequence
subjectScheme | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, map, topicref, relcell, topicmeta, linktext, searchtitle, subjectScheme, schemeref, hasNarrower, hasKind, hasPart, hasInstance, hasRelated, subjectdef, subjectHead, enumerationdef, elementdef, attributedef, defaultSubject, relatedSubjects, subjectRole, topichead, topicgroup, anchorref, mapref, topicset, topicsetref, keydef, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, typeofhazard, consequence
machineryTask | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, prereq, context, steps-informal, stepsection, cmd, info, tutorialinfo, stepxmp, choice, choptionhd, chdeschd, choption, chdesc, stepresult, result, postreq, reqcond, reqcontp, personnel, perscat, perskill, esttime, supequi, supply, spare, safecond, typeofhazard, consequence, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, uicontrol, screen
learningAssessment, learningOverview, learningSummary | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, lcIntro, lcObjectivesStem, lcObjective, lcAudience, lcTime, lcPrereqs, lcSummary, lcNextSteps, lcReview, lcResources, lcChallenge, lcInstruction, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, lcInteractionBase, lcQuestionBase, lcInstructornote, lcQuestion, lcOpenAnswer, lcFeedback, lcFeedbackCorrect, lcFeedbackIncorrect, lcAnswerContent, lcItem, lcMatchingItem, lcAreaCoords
learningBookmap | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, map, topicref, relcell, topicmeta, linktext, searchtitle, person, organization, summary, printlocation, bookpartno, booknumber, topichead, topicgroup, anchorref, mapref, topicset, topicsetref, keydef, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, organizationname, otherinfo, addressdetails, locality, localityname, administrativearea, thoroughfare, emailaddress, url, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, typeofhazard, consequence
learningContent | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, lcIntro, lcObjectivesStem, lcObjective, lcAudience, lcTime, lcPrereqs, lcSummary, lcNextSteps, lcReview, lcResources, lcChallenge, lcInstruction, prereq, context, steps-informal, stepsection, cmd, info, tutorialinfo, stepxmp, choice, choptionhd, chdeschd, choption, chdesc, stepresult, result, postreq, conbody, refbody, refbodydiv, refsyn, proptypehd, propvaluehd, propdeschd, proptype, propvalue, propdesc, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, lcInteractionBase, lcQuestionBase, lcInstructornote, lcQuestion, lcOpenAnswer, lcFeedback, lcFeedbackCorrect, lcFeedbackIncorrect, lcAnswerContent, lcItem, lcMatchingItem, lcAreaCoords
learningPlan | data-about, data, title, navtitle, shortdesc, desc, p, note, lq, q, sli, li, itemgroup, dthd, ddhd, dt, dd, fig, figgroup, pre, lines, ph, alt, stentry, draft-comment, fn, indexterm, index-base, cite, xref, entry, author, source, publisher, copyrholder, category, metadata, prodname, brand, series, platform, prognum, featnum, component, searchtitle, abstract, body, bodydiv, section, sectiondiv, example, prolog, linktext, linkinfo, lcIntro, lcObjectivesStem, lcObjective, lcAudience, lcTime, lcPrereqs, lcSummary, lcNextSteps, lcReview, lcResources, lcChallenge, lcInstruction, lcClient, lcPlanTitle, lcCIN, lcModDate, lcDelivDate, lcPlanSubject, lcPlanDescrip, lcPlanPrereqs, lcGeneralDescription, lcGoals, lcNeeds, lcValues, lcOrgConstraints, lcEdLevel, lcAge, lcBackground, lcSkills, lcKnowledge, lcMotivation, lcSpecChars, lcWorkEnvDescription, lcPlanResources, lcProcesses, lcTaskItem, lcAttitude, lcPlanObjective, lcJtaItem, lcGapItemDelta, lcLearnStrat, lcAssessment, lcDelivery, lcLMS, lcNoLMS, lcHandouts, lcClassroom, lcOJT, lcConstraints, lcW3C, lcPlayers, lcGraphics, lcViewers, lcResolution, lcFileSizeLimitations, lcDownloadTime, lcSecurity, b, u, i, tt, sup, sub, coords, index-see, index-see-also, index-sort-as, lcInteractionBase, lcQuestionBase, lcInstructornote, lcQuestion, lcOpenAnswer, lcFeedback, lcFeedbackCorrect, lcFeedbackIncorrect, lcAnswerContent, lcItem, lcMatchingItem, lcAreaCoords

###### Inheritance

- topic/data-about

###### Example

The full properties of a cited book can be maintained conveniently in the prolog:

    <topic id="questions">
        <title>Questions and answers</title>
        <prolog>
            <data-about href="urn:isbn:0156983508" scope="external">
                <data name="title">The World Doesn't End</data>
                <data name="author">
                    <data name="firstname">Charles</data>
                    <data name="lastname">Simic</data>
                </data>
                <data name="published" datatype="year">1989</data>
                ...
            </data-about>
            ...
        </prolog>
        <body>
            ...
           <lq href="urn:isbn:0156983508">In a forest of question marks ...
           </lq>
           ...
        </body>
    </topic>

###### Attributes

Name | Description | Data Type | Default Value | Required?
href | Provides a reference to a resource. See 3.4.2.1 The href attribute for detailed information on supported values and processing implications. | CDATA | #IMPLIED | No
format | The format attribute identifies the format of the resource being referenced. See 3.4.2.9 The format attribute for details on supported values. | CDATA | #IMPLIED | No
type | Describes the target of a reference. See 3.4.2.8 The type attribute for detailed information on supported values and processing implications. | CDATA | #IMPLIED | No
scope | The scope attribute identifies the closeness of the relationship between the current document and the target resource. See 3.4.2.10 The scope attribute for more information on values. | (local | peer | external | -dita-use-​conref-​target) | #IMPLIED | No
univ-atts attribute group (includes select-atts, id-atts, and localization-atts groups) | A set of related attributes, described in 3.4.1.3 univ-atts attribute group |  |  |
global-atts attribute group (xtrf, xtrc) | A set of related attributes, described in 3.4.1.2 global-atts attribute group |  |  |
class, outputclass | Common attributes described in 3.4.1.9 Other common DITA attributes |  |  |

Previous Topic: 3.1.6.2 data

Next Topic: 3.1.6.4 foreign

Parent Topic: 3.1.6 Specialization elements

Sibling Topics:

3.1.6.1 boolean

3.1.6.2 data

3.1.6.4 foreign

3.1.6.5 index-base

3.1.6.6 itemgroup

3.1.6.7 no-topic-nesting

3.1.6.8 state

3.1.6.9 unknown