Creating Alignment Projects

1. Do one of the following, depending on the part of the user interface you are using:

   • Ribbon Select the Tools ribbon. In the Launch section select MadCap Align.

     Switching between ribbons and the tool strip… You can use the Options dialog to switch between ribbons and the classic tool strip layout. See Switching Between Ribbons and the Tool Strip. 

     More about ribbon options… Keep in mind that the smaller the application window becomes, the more the options in a ribbon shrink. Therefore, you might only see a small icon instead of text, or you might see only a section name displayed with a down arrow to access the options in it. You can hover over small icons to see tooltips that describe them. You can also enlarge the application window or click one of the section drop-downs in the ribbon to locate a hidden feature.

   • Menu Select Tools>MadCap Align.

2. In MadCap Align do one of the following, depending on the part of the user interface you are using.

   • Ribbon Select File>New Align Project.
   • Menu Select File>New Align Project.

   • Standard Toolbar Click .

     To open the Standard toolbar from the menu view, you can select View>Toolbars>Standard.

   The Start Alignment Wizard opens.

3. Next to the Original Version field, click .

4. In the dialog that opens, navigate to the original project or file (in the original language) that you have already translated, and double-click the appropriate file.

   notes

   Note: Individual image files can be selected and translated in their own Lingo projects. However, if the images are included in Flare projects, you can translate the callout text for those images at the same time that you are translating the other parts of the Flare project.

   Note: Some file types are not supported in alignment projects.

5. Next to the Translated Version field, click .
6. In the dialog that opens, navigate to the previously translated version of that same project or file and double-click it.
7. (Optional) From the drop-down, you can select a translation memory database.

8. (Optional) If you want to automatically upload previously translated segments to translation memory, click the check box.

   notes

   Note: If you select this check box, any uploaded segments that are already matched 100% will not be displayed in the File Map window pane in MadCap Align. Only files with segments that require alignment will appear in that window pane.

   Note: If you do not use this feature, you will need to manually upload the translated segments to translation memory after the alignment project is created.

   Note: In order to use this feature, you must first install a translation memory database. See About Translation Memory and Creating a Translation Memory Database.

9. Click Next.
10. In the Source language section, select the original language that is used in the project you are translating. In the Target language section, select the language that you want to use for the translation.
11. Click Next.
12. In the Project Name field, type an appropriate name for your project.
13. By default, a path to the Documents\My Aligned Projects folder on your hard drive is entered in the Project Folder field. (This folder is created when you install the program.) All subfolders and files related to the aligned project will be placed in this folder as you work on the project. Continue with the next step, unless you want to have your project files placed in a different folder. If so, do the following.
    1. Click . The Select Folder dialog opens.
    2. Navigate to the folder you want, select it, and click OK.
    note

    Note: In some operating systems, the folder is called "My Documents" instead of "Documents."

14. Click Finish.

When you create an alignment project, a file with an .lialign extension is automatically generated (e.g., My Project Version 2 Italian.lialign). This is the main file for the alignment project and is stored at the root level of the project folder in Windows (e.g., Documents\My Aligned Projects\My Project Version 2 Italian\My Project Version 2 Italian.lialign). You can open the project by double-clicking this file. See Opening Projects.