Post History

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/38268
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Few short publications, that summarize the differences, and guide to a decision:

**1)** [S1000D or DITA – Which Should You Use?](https://blog.sdl.com/digital-experience/s1000d-or-dita-which-should-you-use/)...A dude with 30+ years in the business of aerospace and software development provides the same "common wisdom" that you mentioned, and emphasizes the different philosophy of DITA "flexibility" vs S1000D "standard" (the "Theory X and Theory Y" part). _..."S1000D implementers dream of the flexibility of DITA, but understand why they’re locked into the S1000D “standard”."_

**2)** [DITA vs S1000D - Which One Is Right For Me?](https://www.onestrand.com/dita-vs-s1000d-which-one-is-right-for-me/)...Specifications, including the differences, benefits and disadvantages to working with each. From an aerospace-industry oriented source.

**3)** [DITA and software development](http://www.tcworld.info/e-magazine/technical-communication/article/ten-reasons-why-dita-and-agile-are-made-for-each-other/): Ten reasons why DITA and Agile are made for each other and a match for software development teams: Starts from "Topic-based approach" ([DITA topic](https://www.oxygenxml.com/dita/1.3/specs/archSpec/base/topicover.html)), "Task topic type" ([DITA General task topic](https://www.oxygenxml.com/dita/1.3/specs/archSpec/technicalContent/dita-generic-task-topic.html)), and more.

**4)** [Another publication](http://ditaworks.com/unravelling-dita-and-s1000d/) states "What sets DITA apart" (from S1000D). _...is "its [specialization](https://docs.oasis-open.org/dita/v1.0/archspec/ditaspecialization.html)s" and "inherited versatility"._ _...Example: IBM developerWorks: [Specializing topic types in DITA: Creating new topic-based document types](https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/x-dita2/index.html)._

In addition:

- Adobe FrameMaker can be used to handle DITA projects. 
- Adobe FrameMaker comes ready for DITA out of the box.
- Adobe promotes DITA (Google it: [Adobe DITA World](https://www.google.com/search?q=Adobe%20DITA%20World))

--

I emailed _Keith Schengili-Roberts_ from IXIASOFT (of publication number 3) about the technical-differences and his answer was a chapter from his book, that you already mentioned. I repeat:

"S1000D does include a mechanism for the reuse of content, known as data modules. These data modules can contain text and/or graphic content, and can be ‘plugged in’ where needed within any S1000D document. There are a number of data module types, roughly analogous to the DITA topic types, _and include information that is specific for creating checklists, service bulletins, front matter, parts data, wiring data, learning modules, procedures, faults, information for the crew/operator and more. As you can see from this short list, many of the data modules were originally tailored for specific purposes within the aerospace sector which would not apply in more general circumstances_." ... "The specificity of some of its module types to the aerospace and related industries limits the appeal for its adoption outside of these sectors."

(In S1000D) "Each data module comes with a unique identifier, called the Data Module Code, which is designed in part as a mechanism for ensuring that the same module do not appear more than once within a single document. _This points to one of the key differences between DITA and S1000D, which is the granularity of the level of reuse. While S1000D encourages reuse at the data module level (roughly equivalent to a topic within DITA), it does not have mechanisms for intra-data module reuse._"

(In DITA) "One of the chief differentiators of DITA when compared to the other documentation standards available is the ability to reuse content at both granular (i.e. word, phrase, sentence, topic) and topic/chapter levels. From a practical perspective, it is these multiple stages of reuse that come into play into making DITA a popular standard, making possible the additional advantages of consistent messaging, lower localization costs, and greater efficiencies as writers reuse existing content instead of having to recreate it."

Original score: 5