{"id":561,"date":"2025-11-06T23:21:17","date_gmt":"2025-11-06T23:21:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/paratextdiagramlabeler\/learn\/key-concepts-2-2-4\/"},"modified":"2025-11-14T17:20:58","modified_gmt":"2025-11-14T17:20:58","slug":"making-the-maps","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/learn\/making-the-maps\/","title":{"rendered":"Making the Maps"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><i>Once your labels are ready&#8230;<\/i><\/p>\n<div>\n<h2>Data Merge File vs Pre-filled File<\/h2>\n<p>Once you&#8217;ve completed your label work, it&#8217;s time to export it to a file. (Maps you&#8217;ve saved are already IDML data merge files that you can use in InDesign.)<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If you have InDesign, export the labels directly into a pre-filled IDML file.<\/li>\n<li>Otherwise, to use them with Map Creator, you can export the labels directly into a pre-filled MAPX file.<\/li>\n<li>It&#8217;s also possible to export to a .MAPX.TXT file to import into Map Creator, but this is a hassle and can result in misalignment of labels with the English glosses, so this option is not recommended.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Note: You will only see the option for exporting to a pre-filled file if the Labeler can find the template file you&#8217;d need to use. So, for a map from the SIL Map Repository, you&#8217;d need to download (and unzip) the SIL Map Repository folder. Then, you&#8217;d need to specify the path to that folder in the Settings (\u2699\ufe0f), like this:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/78\/2025\/11\/settings-menu.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"773\" height=\"700\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-872\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If, after editing an exported IDML file, such as to adjust styles and\/or label positioning, you want to use your new file as the source for an updated export, simply save a copy in IDML format, and when exporting, point the Labeler at this as the file to use.<\/p>\n<h3>Reasons to Export to a Pre-filled Document<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Save yourself the hassle of importing into Map Creator or setting the Data Merge source in InDesign.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Reasons to Use Data Merge Files<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>If you encounter problems with the pre-filled route, this is a backup option.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<h2>Next Steps<\/h2>\n<p>The creating finished maps varies depending on whether you&#8217;re using Adobe InDesign (IDML files) or Map Creator (MAPX files).<\/p>\n<p>For detailed instructions and tips on how to make the maps, please visit the <strong>SIL Map and Illustrations Repository<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n    <div class=\"sil-button-container\">\n        <a href=\"https:\/\/tiny.cc\/sil-maps\" class=\"sil-button sil-button-primary\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\ud83d\udcda Visit SIL Map Repository<\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<h3>What You&#8217;ll Find<\/h3>\n<p>The SIL Map and Illustrations Repository provides:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Step-by-step instructions for data merging in InDesign<\/li>\n<li>Guidance on importing translations into Map Creator<\/li>\n<li>Tips for adjusting and finalizing your maps<\/li>\n<li>Best practices for map typography and layout<\/li>\n<li>Access to map templates<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Once your labels are ready&#8230; Data Merge File vs Pre-filled File Once you&#8217;ve completed your label work, it&#8217;s time to export it to a file. (Maps you&#8217;ve saved are already IDML data merge files that you can use in InDesign.) If you have InDesign, export the labels directly into a pre-filled IDML file. Otherwise, to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":114,"featured_media":0,"parent":22,"menu_order":7,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"hide_sidebar":false,"hide_h1":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-561","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/561","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/114"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=561"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/561\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":941,"href":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/561\/revisions\/941"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/22"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/labeler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=561"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}