Links

The <link> element inserts a hyperlink into your document. Hyperlinks are links to content not in your document (for example, a file, webpage, or image). The text inside <link> is the link text.

New in CXML 3.4

<link> now supports @status, @author, and @dateTime.

<link> has five attributes:

AttributeValueDescription
refstringRequired. Specifies the hyperlink destination.
labelstringSpecifies a label for the hyperlink.
status NEWadded
changed
deleted
Indicates the modification status of the hyperlink.
author NEWstringThe author of the tracked change.
dateTime NEWISO 8601 datetime stringThe date and time of the tracked change (2024-01-09T14:37:00Z).

A hyperlink:

xml
<section>
  <p>
    <link ref="http://www.montypython.com/">Monty Python Official Site</link>
  </p>
</section>

A hyperlink with tracked changes:

xml
<section>
  <p>
    <link ref="http://www.montypython.com/"
      status="added"
      author="Eric Idle"
      dateTime="1969-10-05T09:00:00Z">Monty Python Official Site</link>
  </p>
</section>

Cross-references

The <ref> element inserts a cross-reference into your document. Cross-references are links to content (internal or external) referenced on a different page other than the current page of your document. With cross-references, you can reference an anchor (<anchor>) or paragraph (<p>) (for example, a specific page number, a part of a paragraph, or a full paragraph). If the location of your linked content changes, Adobe InDesign updates the cross-reference.

New in CXML 3.4

<ref> now supports @status, @author, and @dateTime.

<ref> has six attributes:

AttributeValueDescription
refTypeanchor
paragraph
Required. Specifies whether the cross-reference destination is an anchor or paragraph.
refIdstringRequired. The unique ID of the anchor or paragraph.
formatstringRequired. The name of the cross-reference format in Adobe InDesign. See also Use cross-reference formats .
status NEWadded
changed
deleted
Indicates the modification status of the cross-reference.
author NEWstringThe author of the tracked change.
dateTime NEWISO 8601 datetime stringThe date and time of the tracked change (2024-01-09T14:37:00Z).

A cross-reference to an anchor:

xml
<p>
  <anchor id="1" />
  The endangered Bemaraha woolly lemur (Avahi cleesei)
  is named after John Cleese
</p>
<p>
  Read more about lemurs on page
  <ref refType="anchor" refId="1" format="Page Number" />
  .
</p>

A cross-reference to a paragraph:

xml
<p id="1">The endangered Bemaraha woolly lemur (Avahi cleesei)
is named after John Cleese</p>
<p>
  Read more about lemurs on page
  <ref refType="paragraph" refId="1" format="Page Number" />
  .
</p>

A cross-reference with tracked changes:

xml
<p>
  Read more about lemurs on page
  <ref refType="anchor" refId="1" format="Page Number"
   status="added"
   author="John Cleese"
   dateTime="1975-04-05T09:00:00Z" />
  .
</p>

The <doclink> element inserts a document link into your document. Document links behave similar to hyperlinks (<link>), but they link to the ID of an anchor (<anchor>) or paragraph (<p>) element in the same document.

New in CXML 3.4

<ref> now supports @status, @author, and @dateTime.

<doclink> has five attributes:

AttributeValueDescription
refTypeanchor
paragraph
Required. Specifies whether the document link destination is an anchor or paragraph.
refIdstringRequired. The unique ID of the anchor or paragraph.
status NEWadded
changed
deleted
Indicates the modification status of the document link.
author NEWstringThe author of the tracked change.
dateTime NEWISO 8601 datetime stringThe date and time of the tracked change (2024-01-09T14:37:00Z).

A document link to an anchor:

xml
<p>
  <anchor id="1" />
  Seven asteroids are named after Monty Python or its members
</p>
<p>
  Document link to
  <doclink refType="anchor" refId="1">asteroids named after Monty Python</doclink>
  .
</p>

A document link to a paragraph:

xml
<p id="1">Seven asteroids are named after Monty Python or its members.</p>
<p>
  Document link to
  <doclink refType="paragraph" refId="1">asteroids named after Monty Python</doclink>
  .
</p>

A document link with tracked changes:

xml
<p>
  Document link to
  <doclink refType="anchor" refId="1"
    status="added"
    author="John Cleese"
    dateTime="1975-04-05T09:00:00Z">asteroids named after Monty Python</doclink>
  .
</p>

Anchors

The <anchor> element is used in cross-references (<ref>), document links (<doclink>), and index entries (<indexterm>) to specify the destination of a link.

New in CXML 3.4

<anchor> now support @author and @dateTime.

<anchor> has five attributes:

AttributeValueDescription
idstringRequired. The unique ID of the anchor.
namestringThe name of the anchor. An anchor with the name attribute also generates a bookmark in Adobe InDesign that appears in the final PDF document. NOTE The Main Story is processed first, and Elements after, so bookmarks in Elements will always appear after the ones in the Main Story.
statusadded
changed
deleted
Indicates the modification status of the anchor.
author NEWstringThe author of the tracked change.
dateTime NEWISO 8601 datetime stringThe date and time of the tracked change.

An anchor:

xml
<anchor name="Round Table" id="round-table-T1" />
Last updated: 27 Apr 2026, 18:30:36
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