Here I gathered free resources for learning DITA which will be helpful for technical writers. This is the third article of the series. Read other post to learn more about DITA and technical writing:

• Courses on Learning DITA for Technical Writers
• Books on Learning DITA

So, meet my list.

learningDITA

Yes, I mentioned this resource but this is really worth your attention.

LearningDITA.com provides e-learning for individuals who want to explore DITA, the Darwin Information Typing Architecture.

This site was set up by Scriptorium as a hub for DITA and content strategy training.

More information on how to take the course, what tools you should use, and the like on the website.

Introduction to the Darwin Information Typing Architecture

From this introduction by IBM you’ll learn DITA basis. Here is a list of the topics:

• Information interchange, tools management, and extensibility
• Main features of the DITA architecture
• The topic as the basic architectural unit
• Benefits of the DITA architecture
• DITA overview
• DITA delivery contexts
• DITA typed topic specializations (infotyped topics)
• DITA vocabulary specialization (domains)
• DITA common structures
• Elements designed for specialization
• The values of specialization
• And much more!

IBM also provided learners with FAQ about the Darwin Information Typing Architecture:

• Why is “Darwin” in the name of this architecture?
• Where can I learn more about topic-oriented writing and user assistance?
• How does DITA differ from DocBook?
• How will changes to the DTD be made and controlled?
• May I use this DTD in my own company?

If you still have questions about DITA, visit the FAQ.

DITA (online self-study elearning) training course

This online training course teaches the basic skills in how to create content using the DITA XML technical writing standard. The ten learning modules in this course contain videos of the trainer with supporting slides and images. The course includes exercises and model answers for the delegates to complete and review.

If you’re not sure what DITA is, and why you’d want to use it, download our free illustrated guide to the business benefits of DITA.

Video tutorials

Get started with DITA using FrameMaker in 10 minutes

To use DITA to create content, you essentially need to know how to:

• Create tasks, concepts, and references.
• Compile these topics into a ditamap
• Publish the ditamap to create PDF and other deliverables.

And this is what the author coveres in video tutorials.

Webinar: What Is DITA

In this webinar, authors cover the big picture of what DITA is and how it works. The topics they address include:

• The meaning of ‘DITA’ and the origin for the name
• Structured authoring
• Semantic tagging
• Basic DITA topic types
• DITA reuse
• How technical writers can apply DITA attributes to their content

Viewers will gain an understanding of how these aspects relate to a holistic DITA strategy and how they can best take advantage of DITA’s benefits.

What helped you to learn DITA? Share your resources in the comment section!