Crossref 4.4.2 XML Elements and Attributes

Abstract

For anyone trying to understand both the basics and the full range of options available when making a DOI metadata submission to Crossref, this linked table of XML element and attribute descriptions gives one small publisher’s best understanding of the most recent version of Crossref’s metadata submission elements and attributes. As of April 2021, the most recent version of Crossref XML files is 4.4.2. This table provides definitions for the six Crossref XML Schema Definition (xsd) files that include the most commonly used description elements of a DOI submission: crossref4.4.2.xsd, common4.4.2.xsd, fundref.xsd, AccessIndicators.xsd, clinicaltrials.xsd, and relations.xsd. The table also includes a brief description of the main features of the externally defined jats:abstract (JATS) element. This table focuses not on XML syntax but on the intent and structure of the elements from a small publisher perspective. This table is one small publisher’s interpretation of Crossref XML and is not authoritative in any way. It will inevitably contain errors, and the author takes no responsibility for its use, which is necessarily and entirely at your own risk. Any submissions created with information from this table should be verified for correctness against the official automated documentation and tools at the Crossref submission site. Note, however, that occasional errors and inconsistencies in those Crossref XML files were uncovered during the creation of this table. Every effort has been made here both to document inconsistencies in the original files and in this interpretation of those files. Important links to Crossref documentation, including comment on the apparent status of Crossref web pages, are provided in the References section after the table on the last document page.