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Regarding cat tools
Thread poster: Uma Harilal
Uma Harilal
Uma Harilal
English to French
Jun 27, 2014

Hi

I want to know how does these cat tools work. I am planning to start using a cat tool. I am new to these cat tool. Which cat tool should i go for...I dont know any thing about these cat tools.


 
Octavio Armendariz
Octavio Armendariz  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 08:37
French to English
+ ...
Examples of CAT tools Jun 27, 2014

There are many CAT tools available. They basically work with translation memory (TM). They keep track of what you have translated already so you don't have re-translate.

Some CAT tools included Trados (very expensive), WordFast, Deja Vu and Memo Q. Trados provide little information. You may want to go to the websites of the other CAT tools to find out more.


 
Maxi Schwarz
Maxi Schwarz  Identity Verified
Local time: 10:37
German to English
+ ...
According to need Jun 27, 2014

Usually we get tools because of a need. Are you finding that you are translating a lot of large technical text with repeat terminology that must always be rendered the same way? You should not buy a tool simply because some customer insists on your using it. You are the translator, and you know what you need.

 
George May (X)
George May (X)  Identity Verified
Local time: 15:37
French to English
+ ...
CAT tools - it's not just a technical issue Jun 27, 2014

One non-technical issue you should take into consideration is that, increasingly, many agencies and clients will force you to use one specific tool or another because they themselves have invested in that tool and want to capitalize on their investment.

So, you may want to talk to those you work for to hear if they care which tool you use (or not)

Good luck!


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 16:37
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
@Uma Jun 27, 2014

Uma Harilal wrote:
Which CAT tool should I go for?


Do you have stable, fast internet access? What file format do you most often translate in?


 
Alex Lago
Alex Lago  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 16:37
English to Spanish
+ ...
Your question is too broad Jun 27, 2014

Try googling "cat tools".

Spend some time reading the huge amount of information on CAT tools that is available n the internet and then start asking questions about what you don' understand.


 
Christine Andersen
Christine Andersen  Identity Verified
Denmark
Local time: 16:37
Member (2003)
Danish to English
+ ...
Begin with an open mind, and perhaps download one that is free Jun 27, 2014

Just to learn what a CAT is all about, try googling as Alex Lago suggests, but you will soon reach the point where it is much easier to try out how they work.

There are plenty of free demos, but I advise you to start with a 'lighweight' one. Learn the basic features first, and then you can start exploring the glossary functions and advanced features later.

While a lot of translators actually think it is worth paying for the big, expensive CATs, it takes time to learn
... See more
Just to learn what a CAT is all about, try googling as Alex Lago suggests, but you will soon reach the point where it is much easier to try out how they work.

There are plenty of free demos, but I advise you to start with a 'lighweight' one. Learn the basic features first, and then you can start exploring the glossary functions and advanced features later.

While a lot of translators actually think it is worth paying for the big, expensive CATs, it takes time to learn to use all the features. However, in the long term, it is the advanced features that make CATs really useful.

Different CATS suit different styles of working, and perhaps different languages. When you have a better idea of what they can do, you can start thinking about which features are most important for you.

I hated them at first, and still strongly prefer the one I work with. But now I dislike working without it! It is not easy to keep changing from one to another, so you do need to think carefully about it.

Give yourself time, and best of luck!
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Uma Harilal
Uma Harilal
English to French
TOPIC STARTER
Regarding cat tools Jun 28, 2014

Thanks a lot for you suggestions.....I have been going through all the suggestions.

@ christine and alex
I am reading a lot regarding cat tools.
I was going through a cat tool like wordfast and omegat. I saw some videos which help you to understand how to use it. As some are very expensive, i want to go through some less expensive and easy ones.

@George and Maxi
Till now i was getting smaller projects and not very technical ones. But recently i have
... See more
Thanks a lot for you suggestions.....I have been going through all the suggestions.

@ christine and alex
I am reading a lot regarding cat tools.
I was going through a cat tool like wordfast and omegat. I saw some videos which help you to understand how to use it. As some are very expensive, i want to go through some less expensive and easy ones.

@George and Maxi
Till now i was getting smaller projects and not very technical ones. But recently i have been getting technical projects and that too in bulk. So i had lot of problem with the consistency of the language.

@ samuel
I am using high speed internet connection. And i basically use ms word excel and powerpoint.
And till now i have never been asked about which cat tool i use.

@ Octavio
Thanks for the information.

I am thinking of going with wordfast for now and understand its function before going for some expensive ones. When i was going through the videos of both (wordfast and omegat), i think wordfast is little easy to use.

Kindly suggest me if i use wordfast, will it help me in maintaining my consistency of the language? Can we use Ms office format in wordfast?

Or should i go for other ones?
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Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 16:37
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
These are some interesting points to start off from, yes, but... Jun 28, 2014

Christine Andersen wrote:
There are plenty of free demos, but I advise you to start with a 'lighweight' one.


Which ones are the lightweight ones?

Learn the basic features first,


What are the basic features?

...and then you can start exploring the glossary functions and advanced features later.


Are you saying that "glossary functions" is a medium difficult feature (not basic, but not advanced)?

In the long term, it is the advanced features that make CATs really useful.


What are the advanced features?

Different CATS suit different styles of working, and perhaps different languages.


Uma is a French English translator (non-language university degree in English + DELF B2). We don't know what her "style of working is", but we know what her languages are. Which CAT tools suit her languages or do not suit her languages?

When you have a better idea of what they can do, you can start thinking about which features are most important for you.


I don't understand what use it is to think about which features in a CAT tool are most important to you (which presupposes having worked with at least one tool extensively), unless you're thinking of switching to a different tool.


 
neilmac
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 16:37
Spanish to English
+ ...
I prefer Wordfast Jun 28, 2014

Uma Harilal wrote:


Kindly suggest me if i use wordfast, will it help me in maintaining my consistency of the language? Can we use Ms office format in wordfast?

Or should i go for other ones?




Yes, I think it helps maintain consistency of the terms you translate. And Wordfast Classic, which is the basic version I use, works fine with MS Word, Excel and Powerpoint. I recommend you download the demo version and try it out - it only takes about an hour to install and learn to use the basic functions.

If you have any queries, their support staff are very helpful and usually respond quickly to any requests for help.

PS: Plus, WF was designed and developed by a French person/team, and it's your target language...

[Edited at 2014-06-28 14:41 GMT]


 
Dominique Pivard
Dominique Pivard  Identity Verified
Local time: 17:37
Finnish to French
Wordfast Classic & Office 2013 Jun 28, 2014

neilmac wrote:
And Wordfast Classic, which is the basic version I use, works fine with MS Word, Excel and Powerpoint.

Note that support for Excel and PowerPoint works up to Office 2010 (on Windows) and 2004 (on Mac). It no longer works with Office 2013 (Windows) and 2011 (Mac), due to changes made by Microsoft. If you have Office 2013/2011, you must use some other tool for Excel and PowerPoint, for instance Wordfast Pro or Anywhere.


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 16:37
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
@Uma Jun 28, 2014

Uma Harilal wrote:
I am using high speed internet connection. And I basically use MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint. ... I am thinking of going with Wordfast for now.


Wordfast Classic is only really useful for MS Word. Wordfast Anywhere (which is free, but online) and Wordfast Pro (which is not free, but offline) can handle all three the formats you mention. OmegaT can also handle those three, if you re-save them in the 2007+ format (i.e. DOCX, XLSX and PPTX).

It is possible to translate some Excel and PowerPoint files using Wordfast Classic, but it aint simple to do, so you may as well assume that Wordfast Classic works only with MS Word files.


 
Michael Beijer
Michael Beijer  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:37
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
+ ...
CafeTran Jun 28, 2014

Hi Uma,

I recommend CafeTran. It costs only €80 and is the best CAT tool currently available.

Michael


 
Dominique Pivard
Dominique Pivard  Identity Verified
Local time: 17:37
Finnish to French
Best for you Jun 29, 2014

Michael Beijer wrote:
I recommend CafeTran. It costs only €80 and is the best CAT tool currently available.

You should qualify your statement by adding "for me". If CafeTran were the best CAT tool for everyone, its user base surely would be much larger than it is.


 
Michael Beijer
Michael Beijer  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:37
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
+ ...
Just ask Tina Turner. Jun 29, 2014

Ha ha, no, there's no need to qualify anything. It's simply the best. Can you also hear that music in the background?

Michael

[Edited at 2014-06-29 10:03 GMT]


 
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