##### 3.2.2.12 substeps

The <substeps> element allows you to break a step down into a series of separate actions, and should be used only if necessary. Try to describe the steps of a task in a single level of steps. If you need to use more than one level of substep nesting, you should probably rewrite the task to simplify it.

###### Contains

Doctype | Content model
ditabase, task, machineryTask, learningContent | (substep) (one or more)

###### Contained by

Doctype | Content model
ditabase, task (strict), task (general), machineryTask, learningContent | step

###### Inheritance

- topic/ol task/substeps

###### Example

    <substeps>
    <substep><cmd>Hold pencil in a steady, level position.</cmd></substep>
    <substep><cmd>Turn handle until resistance diminishes.</cmd>
    <info>Note: initially, it may be somewhat difficult to turn the handle if
    pencil has never been sharpened before.</info></substep>
    <substep><cmd>To determine if pencil is sharp, remove it from the sharpener
    and inspect the tip.</cmd></substep>
    </substeps>

###### Attributes

Name | Description | Data Type | Default Value | Required?
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: 3.2.2.11 info

Next Topic: 3.2.2.13 substep

Parent Topic: 3.2.2 Task elements

Sibling Topics:

3.2.2.1 task

3.2.2.2 taskbody

3.2.2.3 prereq

3.2.2.4 context

3.2.2.5 steps

3.2.2.6 steps-informal

3.2.2.7 steps-unordered

3.2.2.8 step

3.2.2.9 stepsection

3.2.2.10 cmd

3.2.2.11 info

3.2.2.13 substep

3.2.2.14 stepxmp

3.2.2.15 choicetable

3.2.2.16 chhead

3.2.2.17 choptionhd

3.2.2.18 chdeschd

3.2.2.19 chrow

3.2.2.20 choption

3.2.2.21 chdesc

3.2.2.22 choices

3.2.2.23 choice

3.2.2.24 stepresult

3.2.2.25 tutorialinfo

3.2.2.26 result

3.2.2.27 postreq