how it works
Mobile
With digi-libris Reader mobile text prompts can be added “by hand” or easily edited using digi-libris for Windows professional.
Text prompts are plain text files (UTF-8) with two columns separated by a tab character. The first column holds the position in seconds from the start of the video (no decimals) and the second column contains the text to be displayed.
They are normally attached to the video by the producer or content provider as part of a pre-loaded library or a bulk download offering using the electronic library exchange format.
It works in preview mode as well as with downloaded and streamed or linked media without infringement of copyrights.
Content providers offering such help to their audience will advise their readers to search for and download the free digi-libris mobile app on the Google Play Store for use on Android tablets and phones. Desktop versions for Windows, Mac and Linux can also be downloaded from this site.
There are several options to produce localized versions of videos
| Original Production | Shooting the video again in each language with actors that speak the language |
| Postproduction with new voice | Record and replace the voice track for each language |
| Postproduction with subtitles or captions | Create versions with localized subtitles and/or caption |
| Text prompts only | Leave the video untouched and just build a voice overlay file for each language that synchronizes automatically with the images. Added advantage: The original video is not modified and if legally linked to a remote source, the copyright is not infringed. |
The cost factor often determines the production
method used but the last one is definitely
· by far the least expensive· and the fastest to roll-out, can be produced by an individual usually in less than an hour· does not become part of the video itself but it is added at play time· can be added to locally stored and linked videos, thus avoiding copyright infringement.
Text prompts can easily be added and are
normally attached to the video by the producer or content provider either as a
dMeta[1] bundle or as part of a bulk download offering using the electronic library exchange format[2]
(elxf). Alternatively text prompt files and videos are stored in the same
directory.
The work and the translation has, of course, to
be performed or supervised by someone who speaks the language.
For our examples
we used existing videos downloaded from the web for which we did not have
access to the original voice texts, so we
·
sent them
to an online service that extracted the text and returned a file with some
timing tags
·
corrected
the English text as it had some difficulties with scientific terms and
background music
·
got the
English text translated using Google Translate (while not perfect, at least it helps understanding the action or context)
·
corrected
the translations mainly for syntactical or aesthetic reasons
·
modified
the time line by comparing and synchronizing it with the sound track of the
video using digi-libris Reader professional.
[1] dMeta stands for data + metadata bundle and allows to package
documents or any other digital assets together with metadata, attachments
(including text prompts) and links for distribution. These are simple zip files
anybody can open and any enabled software tool (e.g. digi-libris Reader) can
read to automatically classify its content in the users’ knowledge base.
[2] The electronic library exchange format (elxf) has first been
proposed by Bizgraphic in 2016 as an open format.
Just as PFD and MP4 have become the de facto standards for text books and tutorial videos, this provider agnostic format for eLibraries allows for
Just as PFD and MP4 have become the de facto standards for text books and tutorial videos, this provider agnostic format for eLibraries allows for
· bulk downloading, i.e. is suitable for large collections of documents and any other kind of digital assets· previewing before downloading and comparing offerings from various content providers· just adding links (to avoid copyright infringement), not recommended for off-line use· translations of titles, descriptions and/or abstracts into any other language· video overlays of voice transcripts in multiple languages (text prompts in foreign languages)· incremental publication of updates and additions· automatic classification in users' personal knowledge base for rapid re-finding.