Export to XML release notes

Export to XML 1.4

Released 7 July 2026

Improvements

• The au_collab-type character style now exports correctly for collaborative authorship such as trial study groups.
• Export to XML now runs a cleanup step automatically after every export. This removes unfilled metadata placeholders, for example [DOI] and [Volume], and strips any character styles that aren't set up for export, while preserving their text.
• Boxes, figures, and tables can now contain content in any paragraph style—for example, a numbered list inside a box—without needing a dedicated style for each combination. To set this up correctly you can either use "box wrap" paragraphs at the start and end of the box, or list the style in the Box Caption Continued style set in Orion Compass.
• Special characters in your document (for example, symbols and accented letters) can now export as the character itself or as a Unicode value, matching your organisation's requirements. Previously, they always exported as the character itself.
• Custom character styles you apply now export to their correct JATS or BITS elements.

Export to XML 1.3

Released 23 June 2026

Improvements

• Export to XML now supports BITS 2.0 as an output format for book-structured content, including front matter, body, back matter, appendixes, and contributor metadata. For details, see Export to BITS XML.
• Five author metadata character styles that were previously dropped during export now export to their correct <contrib> child elements: name prefix (au_prefix), surname-only (au_surname-only), suffix (au_suffix), role (au_role), and inline affiliation (au_aff).
• Custom character styles, such as a publisher's red-text or species-nameare now preserved in the XML output rather than being lost.
• Equations within a sentence now export as <inline-formula> rather than <disp-formula>. Previously, all equations used <disp-formula> regardless of context, which produced invalid XML.

Export to XML 1.2

Released 1 June 2026

Improvements

• Export to XML now uses SmartRefs 2.0 reference tags (tps.ref:) to set the publication type on <mixed-citation> elements, and Insert Tag markers (tps.tag:) to wrap content in custom XML snippets configured in Orion settings.
• An author can now be linked to more than one affiliation. Previously, only one affiliation per author was exported.
• When multiple authors share the same affiliation, they now all link to the same <aff> element rather than each generating a duplicate.
• Authors marked as corresponding are now correctly identified in the XML output with corresp="yes" on their <contrib> element.

Export to XML 1.1

Released 12 May 2026

Improvements

• Export now handles figures, tables, and boxes that are not numbered—for example, a single figure cited as "Figure" rather than "Figure 1". Previously, the export failed on unnumbered objects.
• When multiple objects are cited in the same paragraph, they now appear in the output in the order they are cited in the text.
• All bib_* paragraph styles now map to the correct child elements within <mixed-citation>(edition, date, conference, and others) matching eXtyles JATS output.
• You can now omit the DOCTYPE declaration when running Export to XML as part of a larger workflow.

Fixes

• Empty table cells are now exported correctly. Previously, empty cells were omitted, breaking table structure.
• Heading levels now export as correctly nested <sec> elements. Previously, headings at the same level were not generating the correct nesting structure.

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Export to XML 1.0

Initial release. Export to XML delivered Export to JATS XML. See Export to JATS XML for more detail.