What Is The XLIFF Translation Instrument?
How does the XLIFF translation tool work?
The industry has developed a lot so far, which of course would not have been possible without the advantages that the learning method has brought over the years. However, e-learning is not without its problems. One of the few challenges that many people have encountered is the eLearning language barrier. Well, the XLIFF translation tool is the solution to this problem.
What is the XLIFF translation tool? How exactly can the tool remove the language barriers that often arise in the eLearning area? What are the pros and cons of the XLIFF translation tool? You will find answers to these and many other questions later in this article. So let’s get down to business without further ado.
What is the XLIFF translation tool and what exactly does it contain?
XLIFF is an acronym that stands for XML Localization Interchange File Format. It is an XML-based format that was developed in 2002 to systematize the exchange of localizable data between different tools during a process called localization. In addition, the XLIFF tool offers many advantages; One of them is that it improves the lives of learner designers and eliminates the need for duplication. Over the past few years, authoring tools have undoubtedly helped e-learning designers create courses. However, one of their drawbacks is that they didn’t make translation easy. But with the continued advancement of technology, some authoring tools now offer support for the XLIFF translation tool.
How exactly does the XLIFF translation tool work?
Create your English course and duplicate it
It all starts, of course, with the creation of your English course. After that, you will need to duplicate the course for each of the languages that suit the needs of your specific learner. Before moving on, you may want to ask why there is a need to duplicate your English course. Well, it’s pretty simple: the purpose is to be able to make a fully localized version in each of the languages. Each version works as a stand-alone course content and will meet the language, culture, and potential region of your specific learner. This is where the XLIFF tool comes in.
Export your XLIFF files and send them to the translator
After you’ve created your English course and duplicated it using the correct authoring tool, as explained above, the next step is to export the course content to an XLIFF file and send it to the correct XLIFF-backed translation tool. Note that the XLIFF version only contains the textual content of your course. And since it does, you may want to avoid situations where a sentence refers to an interactive element as it can confuse the translator. For best results, make sure that the published edition of the course is sent so that the translator can fully understand the content in context and translate the course accordingly.
Import the translated XLIFF file
As soon as the exported XLIFF files have been completely translated, they are imported again in the next step using an authoring tool. To do this, in most cases you will have to go to the duplicated courses and select the correct key to help you import the files back. Once you have successfully imported the translated XLIFF files, you can be confident that the course content will be back in the right place in your course and prepare for validation and publication.
Validation and publication
As mentioned earlier, the XLIFF file will not be inserted in the correct place in your course. However, you need to understand that the translation process does not end there as you will need to validate your work before it is published. In the validation phase, your work will be checked to ensure that everything has been translated correctly. Of course, you don’t have to be a translator to spot mistakes. However, if you think you can’t do this, it will be much easier to get a speaker of the language to help you conduct a review.
Why should you choose the XLIFF translation tool for your eLearning course?
Finally, a quick question: Why exactly is it important to choose the XLIFF tool for the translation of your eLearning course?
The answer to the question is that the translation process is pretty straightforward and quick to complete. All you need to do is use the right authoring tool to create your English course. After that, you need to finalize a base version of the content and then export it to the XLIFF file. After the translation is done, use the import menu, check for errors, then publish.
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