The LCG is a computer program designed to process structured textual and multimedia data and produce their output presentation in one of the supported output formats. LCG is highly modular and many of its components may be used independently as Python libraries.
LCG stands for Learning Content Generator, since it was initially developed to generate e-learning courses, but the current use is much wider, so we don't refer to it by the full name to prevent missunderstanding.
LCG supports multimedia and interactive content. Accessibility is one of the major concerns, with a special attention to users of screen-readers and other assistive technologies.
The input data formats were designed to allow content creation without the need for any particular software or tool and to be easy to understand and edit even for non-technicians.
One of the key points is total separation of input data and their output presentation. Thus it is easy to change the appearance and user interface of the generated output without any changes in the source data. This proved to be very useful when customizing interactive user interfaces to different output formats and for different target groups (e.g. people with various handicaps or using special technologies).
LCG defines a set of generic content elements, such as paragraphs, sections, bullet lists or tables. This set can be, however, further extended for particular application. Implementations of more specialized constructs, such as input forms, media viewers/players or interactive exercises exist.
LCG also handles documents in multiple languages correctly. It is able to manage several language versions of one document, as well as intermix more languages in one document.
The following output formats are currently supported:
- HTML (a set of hyperlinked web pages)
- IMS content package (for use within a Learning Management System)
- HHP help (HTML Help Workshop format used by many on-line help viewers)
- PDF (a printable document)