We’ve just released Mallard 1.1. Let’s take a look at what’s new. All of these features are already supported in tools like Yelp and Pintail.
This is part 1 in a (probably) 3-part series.
New type attribute for code blocks
MEP-0010: The type Attribute on the code Element
In Mallard 1.0, we used the mime attribute to specify the content type of elements like code and screen. The mime attribute took a MIME type, of course, which seemed like a good idea at the time. Unfortunately, there are very few registered MIME types for the types of content we put in code blocks. So you had to memorize arbitrary long strings.
<code mime="text/x-python">
In Mallard 1.1, we’ve deprecated the mime attribute in favor of the new type attribute. The type attribute takes simple strings, like "xml", "py", and "c". It can also take a space-separated list, so you can provide specific types as well as more generic types to catch different syntax highlighters, like "xml mallard".
<code type="py">
As an added bonus, the type attribute has a shorthand syntax in Ducktype. So instead of typing this:
[code type="py"]
You can just type this:
[code py]
New div element
Mallard gives you a handful of semantic block elements, but sometimes you just need to group some block elements together without semantics. This is useful for extensions like Conditionals that operate on block elements. It can make it easier to control things like translatability with ITS. And it can help with transclusions using XInclude.
Mallard 1.1 introduces the new div element as a generic block element. The div element is a formal element, accepting optional title and desc elements. One extra bonus of this addition is that it provides better fallback behavior for extensions that have formal block elements.
Making example formal
Speaking of formal block elements, we made the example element formal, accepting optional title and desc elements. The example element was the only block container element that didn’t allow any sort of title, and that just seemed silly.
Giving blocks info
All formal block elements now take an optional info element. This can be used, for example, to provide credits and license information for people who drew figures or wrote code listings. Or you can use it to provide alternate titles for UI expanders.
More importantly, this is a crucial first step in making block elements participate in both inline and automatic links, tentatively slated for Mallard 1.2
And more
That’s it for part 1. Keep your eye out for parts 2 and 3. For more information, you can read the Mallard 1.1 changes, the Mallard 1.1 enhancement proposals, and the 1.1 milestone issues.
Want to get involved? Take a look at our 1.2 milestone issues. Or check out the Documentation issue label and help us write tutorials. Keep in touch on the Mallard mailing list.
