# DITA

Learn how Vale handles DITA content.

{% hint style="warning" %}
Due to the dependency on the third-party `dita` command, you'll likely experience worse performance with DITA files compared to other formats.
{% endhint %}

DITA is supported through the [DITA Open Toolkit](https://www.dita-ot.org/). You’ll need to follow the [installation instructions](https://www.dita-ot.org/dev/topics/installing-client.html), including the optional step of adding the absolute path for the `bin` directory to the `PATH` system variable.

The supported extension is `.dita`.

Vale ignores `<codeblock>`, `<tt>`, and `<codeph>` elements by default.

[Org](/formats/org.md) [Code](/formats/code.md)


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# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.vale.sh/formats/dita.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.