Like all TBX formats, TBX-Glossary is defined in two parts: a core structure and a data category selection. The core structure defines the structural levels of concept, language, and term, and it provides a set of generic XML elements for recording descriptive and administrative information at each level. The data category selection shows how these generic elements are used to represent particular data categories.

The full core structure, shared by all TBX formats, is available from LISA as a DTD. However, this core structure is far more complex than TBX-Glossary warrants. Therefore, for simplicity and ease of learning, we have prepared the Minicore, which contains only those elements necessary for producing and parsing TBX-Glossary. Minicore is a strict subset of the full core structure, and any file that complies with it will comply with the full core also.

Data category selections in TBX are formalized in an XCS file (eXtensible Constraint Specification). Glossary.xcs declares the data categories used in convertible glossaries. For a list of these data categories and further information on convertibility, see Convertibility guidelines.

You can validate your TBX-Glossary file against the core structure and the XCS using the free cross-platform TBX Checker program, written in Java and available via the TBX Resources page. You can check its convertibility by running it through convert_glossary and watching for error messages.

See also TBX-Glossary Resources.