TEI Tools

Contents

Tools for creating, editing, transforming, and publishing TEI documents and schemas are an essential part of using the TEI Guidelines. Because the TEI is expressed in XML, TEI users can take advantage of the abundance of XML tools now being developed for general use. In addition, the TEI community develops and distributes TEI-specific tools. Some of these are maintained and distributed directly by the TEI: for instance, the Roma tool for schema customization is an integral part of the publication of the TEI Guidelines, though the underlying tool may also be installed and used separately. Similarly, the stylesheets that are used by the TEI itself to convert TEI documents into various formats are distributed here for use and adaptation by others. Tools maintained by the TEI are described in more detail below and may be downloaded from the TEI web site.

Some tools are also contributed by members of the TEI community, and are not maintained by the TEI. These might include tools for transforming specific document types into HTML, or for converting bibliographies from using <bibl> to using <biblStruct> , or for generating visualizations of metrical structure. The community is strongly encouraged to contribute tools that may be generally useful, and to adapt or improve existing tools. Tools contributed by the TEI community are distributed through the TEI wiki, and are described in more detail below.

All tools distributed by the TEI are open-source and are provided under a GNU public license unless otherwise indicated.

Roma

Roma is a web-based application which allows TEI users to generate P5-compatible schemas and documentation. Roma is useful for all TEI customization development, whether you want to create a simple TEI schema by selecting a few of the most relevant TEI modules for your project, or want to do a more complex customization involving modifications to specific elements. Roma can also help you generate TEI documentation in languages other than English (for more detail, see the section on internationalization below). For detailed instructions on using Roma, see Customizing the TEI with Roma. A command-line version of Roma (called ‘roma’) is also available and can be installed and run locally; a description and instructions for use can be found here. The source code for Roma is available from the TEI Sourceforge site. Roma is the P5 equivalent of the older TEI Pizza Chef a web-based tool that builds customized TEI DTDs compatible with P4 and earlier versions of the Guidelines.

Stylesheets

The TEI maintains a library of XSL stylesheets developed by Sebastian Rahtz, which can convert TEI XML files to HTML, LaTeX, or XSL:FO documents. These stylesheets are designed for specific purposes and are not intended as general-purpose conversion tools. Other XSL and CSS stylesheets are listed in the stylesheets section of the TEI Wiki, and all TEI users are encouraged to contribute their own stylesheets to this collection.

Authoring and editing tools

The number of tools for authoring and editing TEI documents is growing rapidly. While the TEI does not endorse any specific tools, it does maintain a contributory list of tools to help users learn about what is available and make informed choices. That list is maintained at the TEI wiki and contributions are welcome.

Transformation and publishing tools

Tools for presenting or publishing TEI documents are also becoming widespread. The TEI maintains a contributory list of these tools at the TEI wiki. The Tools Special Interest Group has additional information available.

If you have developed tools for working with TEI documents that you're willing to share, please consider contributing them. More information is available at the TEI tools wiki.

Internationalization of the TEI

One important tool developed by the TEI is the system for generating versions of the Guidelines in languages other than English. This initiative, funded in part by the ALLC, provides a framework for managing translations of the TEI reference documentation, element names, attribute names and values, and potentially the prose of the TEI Guidelines themselves. Work is currently under way to translate the reference documentation and the element and attribute names into five languages: French, Spanish, German, Chinese, and Japanese. Other languages to be covered in the future if funding and effort permit include Hindi, Italian, Polish, Romanian, Slovenian, and Tibetan. With this framework in place, TEI users will be able to generate internationalized versions of the TEI using the Roma interface described above. Click here for more information.