<refentry id="article.element">
<?dbhtml filename="article.html"?>
<refentryinfo>
<pubdate>$Date$</pubdate>
<releaseinfo>$Revision$</releaseinfo>
</refentryinfo>

<refmeta>
<indexterm><primary>elements</primary>
<secondary>article</secondary></indexterm>
<refentrytitle>article</refentrytitle>
<refmiscinfo>Element</refmiscinfo>
</refmeta>
<refnamediv>
<refname>article</refname>
<refpurpose>&article.purpose;</refpurpose>
</refnamediv>

&article.synopsis.gen;
<refsect1 condition='ref.description'><title>Description</title>

<para>
The <sgmltag>Article</sgmltag> element is a general-purpose container for
articles.  The content model is both quite complex and rather loose in
order to accommodate the wide range of possible <sgmltag>Article</sgmltag> structures.  Although
changes to the <sgmltag>Article</sgmltag> element have been discussed on several
occasions, no better model has been presented.
</para>

<para>
An <sgmltag>Article</sgmltag> is composed of a header and a body.  The body
may include a table of contents and multiple lists of tables, figures,
and so on, before the main text of the article and may include a number of
common end-matter components at the end.
</para>

<refsect2><title>Processing expectations</title>
<para>
&format.block;  Frequently causes a forced page break in print media.
May be numbered separately and presented in the table of contents.
</para>
</refsect2>

<refsect2 role='fu' revision="4.0"><title>&FutureChanges;</title>
<para>
<indexterm><primary>DocBook DTD</primary><secondary>Changes for <acronym>V4.0</acronym></secondary>
</indexterm>
The <sgmltag>ToC</sgmltag> element in the content model may be
replaced by <sgmltag>TocChap</sgmltag>. This change may be delayed if the
DocBook technical committee decides to review the whole 
<sgmltag>ToC</sgmltag>/<sgmltag>LoT</sgmltag> apparatus.
</para>
</refsect2>




&article.parents.gen;
&article.children.gen;
</refsect1>
<refsect1 condition='ref.elem.attrdesc'><title>Attributes</title>
<variablelist>
<varlistentry><term>class</term>
<listitem>
<para>
<sgmltag class="attribute">Class</sgmltag> identifies the type of article.
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry><term>parentbook</term>
<listitem>
<para>
<sgmltag class="attribute">ParentBook</sgmltag> holds the &AT.ID; of an enclosing
<sgmltag>Book</sgmltag>, if applicable.
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry><term>status</term>
<listitem>
<para>
<sgmltag class="attribute">Status</sgmltag> identifies the editorial or publication 
status of the <sgmltag>Article</sgmltag>.
</para>
<para>
Publication status might be used to control formatting (for example,
printing a <quote>draft</quote> watermark on drafts) or processing (perhaps
a document with a status of <quote>final</quote> should not include any
components that are not final).
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
</refsect1>
<refsect1 condition='ref.elem.seealso'><title>See Also</title>
&article.seealso.gen;
</refsect1>
<refsect1><title>Examples</title>

<informalexample role="example-source">
<programlisting>&article.example.1.txt;</programlisting>
</informalexample>

&article.example.seealso.gen;
</refsect1>
</refentry>

