D4. Working with Media

This lesson provides a guide to working with media in FLEx, including how to add pictures, audio, and video to a dictionary project. Here’s a summary:

Objective:

• Learn how to insert and manage media files in FLEx.

• Understand when and why to use pictures, audio, and video in dictionary entries.

• Configure media settings for dictionary publication.

Key Topics:

1. Types of Media in FLEx

FLEx supports three types of media:

• Pictures – Illustrate words, ideal for concrete nouns.

• Audio – Helps users hear pronunciations and example sentences.

• Video – Shows actions or cultural practices, though not always supported in online dictionaries.

2. Working with Pictures

Why and When to Use Pictures?

• Enhances comprehension (e.g., "lion" with an image).

• Best for concrete nouns; abstract words are harder to depict.

• Must be sourced legally (team-created, royalty-free, or with permission).

Adding Pictures in FLEx

• Navigate to Lexicon Edit → Sense Level.

• Click Insert Picture, then select an image.

• Options for image handling:

  • Copy (recommended) – Keeps the original and adds a copy to LinkedFiles.

  • Move – Moves the image to LinkedFiles.

  • Leave – Links but doesn’t store it (not recommended).

Picture Metadata

• Caption: Displays under the image (defaults to headword but can be customized).

• File Path: Shows storage location.

• Publication Settings: Choose which dictionaries display the image.

Managing Multiple Pictures

• Entries can have more than one image.

• Images can be reordered or deleted if necessary.

3. Working with Audio

Why Use Audio?

• Assists language learners and non-native speakers.

• Crucial for language documentation (especially endangered languages).

• Helps linguists compare pronunciations.

Adding Audio to FLEx

• Navigate to Pronunciation or Example Sentence fields.

• Click Insert Sound or Movie.

• Choose Move, Copy, or Leave (same as pictures).

• Verify by clicking the play button next to the entry.

Recording Directly in FLEx

• FLEx allows users to record pronunciations.

• Click record button, speak, then save.

• Useful for capturing dialectal variations.

Using an Audio Writing System

• Can be set up for vernacular or analysis languages.

• Allows multiple pre-recorded or live recordings per word.

4. Working with Video

Why Use Video?

• Best for actions, gestures, and cultural practices.

• More storage-intensive than pictures or audio.

• Some publishing platforms may not support video.

Adding Video to FLEx

• Similar process to adding audio.

• Linked under Pronunciation or Example Sentence fields.

• Stored in LinkedFiles, but large videos should be handled externally.

5. Managing and Configuring Media

• Reorder or delete media files as needed.

• Ensure media appears in the correct publications.

• Metadata fields allow for crediting sources and specifying copyright/license.

Completion:

• Includes hands-on activities for inserting and managing media.

• A quiz (80% passing score) ensures understanding.

• Encourages backing up FLEx projects regularly.

OpenAI. (2025). ChatGPT [Large language model]. https://chatgpt.com