| DocBook: The Definitive Guide 2.0.17 (Alpha)

# option

$Revision$

$Date$

option — An option for a software command

## Synopsis

### Mixed Content Model

    option ::=
    (#PCDATA|link|olink|ulink|action|application|classname|methodname|
     interfacename|exceptionname|ooclass|oointerface|ooexception|
     package|command|computeroutput|database|email|envar|errorcode|
     errorname|errortype|errortext|filename|function|guibutton|
     guiicon|guilabel|guimenu|guimenuitem|guisubmenu|hardware|
     interface|keycap|keycode|keycombo|keysym|literal|code|constant|
     markup|medialabel|menuchoice|mousebutton|option|optional|
     parameter|prompt|property|replaceable|returnvalue|sgmltag|
     structfield|structname|symbol|systemitem|uri|token|type|
     userinput|varname|nonterminal|anchor|remark|subscript|
     superscript|inlinegraphic|inlinemediaobject|indexterm|beginpage)*

### Attributes

Common attributes

## Description

`Option` identifies an argument to a software command or instruction. Options may or may not be required. The `optional` element can be used to explicitly identify options that are not required.

### Processing expectations

Formatted inline.

DocBook does not specify whether or not a symbol (such as `-` or `/`) is generated before the content of `Option`, or what that symbol might be. Generating the text may or may not be desirable, but in either case, it is an interchange issue. See Appendix F, Interchanging DocBook Documents.

### Parents

These elements contain option: `action`, `application`, `arg`, `attribution`, `bibliomisc`, `bridgehead`, `citation`, `citetitle`, `classsynopsisinfo`, `code`, `command`, `computeroutput`, `database`, `emphasis`, `entry`, `filename`, `firstterm`, `foreignphrase`, `funcparams`, `funcsynopsisinfo`, `function`, `glosssee`, `glossseealso`, `glossterm`, `group`, `hardware`, `interfacename`, `keycap`, `lineannotation`, `link`, `literal`, `literallayout`, `lotentry`, `member`, `msgaud`, `olink`, `option`, `optional`, `para`, `parameter`, `phrase`, `primary`, `primaryie`, `productname`, `programlisting`, `property`, `quote`, `refdescriptor`, `refentrytitle`, `refname`, `refpurpose`, `remark`, `screen`, `screeninfo`, `secondary`, `secondaryie`, `see`, `seealso`, `seealsoie`, `seeie`, `seg`, `segtitle`, `simpara`, `subtitle`, `synopsis`, `systemitem`, `td`, `term`, `termdef`, `tertiary`, `tertiaryie`, `th`, `title`, `titleabbrev`, `tocback`, `tocentry`, `tocfront`, `trademark`, `ulink`, `userinput`.

### Children

The following elements occur in option: `action`, `anchor`, `application`, `beginpage`, `classname`, `code`, `command`, `computeroutput`, `constant`, `database`, `email`, `envar`, `errorcode`, `errorname`, `errortext`, `errortype`, `exceptionname`, `filename`, `function`, `guibutton`, `guiicon`, `guilabel`, `guimenu`, `guimenuitem`, `guisubmenu`, `hardware`, `indexterm`, `inlinegraphic`, `inlinemediaobject`, `interface`, `interfacename`, `keycap`, `keycode`, `keycombo`, `keysym`, `link`, `literal`, `markup`, `medialabel`, `menuchoice`, `methodname`, `mousebutton`, `nonterminal`, `olink`, `ooclass`, `ooexception`, `oointerface`, `option`, `optional`, `package`, `parameter`, `prompt`, `property`, `remark`, `replaceable`, `returnvalue`, `sgmltag`, `structfield`, `structname`, `subscript`, `superscript`, `symbol`, `systemitem`, `token`, `type`, `ulink`, `uri`, `userinput`, `varname`.

## See Also

`computeroutput`, `constant`, `literal`, `markup`, `optional`, `parameter`, `prompt`, `replaceable`, `sgmltag`, `userinput`, `varname`.

## Examples

    <!DOCTYPE para PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.1.2//EN"
              "http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.1.2/docbookx.dtd">
    <para>
    The <option>-a</option> option on the <acronym>UNIX</acronym>
    <command>ls</command> command or the <option>/r</option> option on the
    <acronym>DOS</acronym> <command>attrib</command>
    command, for example.
    </para>

The `-a` option on the UNIX ls command or the `/r` option on the DOS attrib command, for example.

For additional examples, see also `optional`, `refentry`.

oointerface |  | optional

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