Computer-assisted translation
Encyclopedia : C : CO : COM : Computer-assisted translation
Computer-assisted translation, Computer-aided translation, or CAT is a form of translation wherein a human translator translates texts using computer software designed to support and facilitate the translation process.
Computer-assisted translation is sometimes called machine-assisted, or machine-aided, translation.
Contents
Computer-assisted translation vs. Machine translation
Although the two concepts are similar, computer-assisted translation should not be confused with machine translation (MT).In computer-assisted translation, the computer program supports the translator, who translates the text himself, making all the essential decisions involved, whereas in machine translation, the translator supports the machine, that is to say that the computer or program translates the text, which is then edited by the translator, or not edited at all. Difficulties with such unedited output are described at machine translation.
Overview
Computer-assisted translation is a broad and imprecise term covering a range of tools, from the fairly simple to the more complicated. These can include:
- Spell checkers, either built into word processing software, or add-on programs;
- Grammar checkers, again either built into word processing software, or add-on programs;
- terminology managers, allowing the translator to manage his own terminology bank in an electronic form. This can range from a simple table created in the translator's word processing software or spreadsheet, a database created in a program such as FileMaker Pro (almost a standard in the translation industry) or Microsoft Access, or, for more robust (and more expensive) solutions, specialized software packages such as LogiTerm, MultiTerm, Termex, etc.
- Dictionaries on CD-ROM, either unilingual or bilingual
- Terminology databases, either on CD-ROM or accessible through the Internet, (such as [The Open Terminology Forum], TERMIUM or Grand dictionnaire terminologique from the Office québécois de la langue française)
- Full-text searches (or indexers), which allow the user to query already translated texts or reference documents of various kinds. In the translation industry one finds such indexers as Naturel, ISYS Search Software and dtSearch.
- Concordancers, which are programs that retrieve instances of a word or an expression in a monolingual, bilingual or multiligual corpus.
- Bitexts, a fairly recent development, the result of merging a source text and its translation, which can then be consulted using a full-text search tool.
- Translation memory managers (TMM), tools consisting of a database of text segments in a source language and their translations in one or more target languages.
- Systems that are nearly automatic as in machine translation, but allow user decisions for ambiguous cases. These are sometimes called human-aided machine translation.
Comparison of different CAT Tools
(Alphabetical order, free software first, proprietary solutions second.)
| Tool | Supported File Formats | OS | Price | License |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [ForeignDesk] | HTML, C Source Files, Java Source Code, Microsoft Help File Sources (HPJ, HHC, HHK, CNT), Trados, | Windows | Open Source | |
| [Okapi Framework] | PO, Windows RC, TMX, Wordfast, Trados, Java Properties, Regular-expression-based text, Illustrator, INX, ResX, Table-type files, XML | Windows (.NET) | LGPL | |
| [OmegaT] | HTML, DocBook, Plain Text, PO, JavaHelp, Java Resource Bundles, OpenOffice.org, StarOffice | Multiplatform (Java) | Open Source | |
| [Transolution] | HTML, StarOffice/Openoffice.org, XLIFF, DOCBOOK | Multiplatform (Python) | GPL | |
| [AidTransStudio] | OpenOffice.org, MS Word Xml | Windows (.NET) | Basic: Free | Proprietary |
| [Cafetran] | HTML, XML, OpenOffice.org, AbiWord, Kword, MS Word | Multiplatform (Java) | 180 Euro | |
| [Déjà Vu (DVX)] | XML, Plain Text, OpenOffice.org, Adobe FrameMaker, Adobe PageMaker, ASP, Interleaf/Quicksilver, InDesign, Help Content, SGML, MS Access, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, MS Word, QuarkXPress, RTF, Resource files, C/C++/Java source files, Java Properties, JavaScript, VBScript, GNU gettext | Windows | 490 Euro | Proprietary |
| [Heartsome Translation Suite] | HTML/XHTML, XML, Plain Text, OpenOffice.org, StarOffice, AbiWord, PO/POT (GNU Gettext), SVG, Adobe FrameMaker (MIF), Adobe InDesign, DocBook, DITA, Java Properties, JavaScript, RTF, Tagged RTF, Trados TTX, MS Office 2003 XML, ResX (Windows .NET Resources) | Multiplatform (Java) | See [price list]. | |
| [LogiTerm] | ? | ? | ? | |
| [MemoQ] | HTML, plain text, MS Word (plus RTF and other Word documents), Excel, PowerPoint, Trados TTX, proprietary bilingual format | Windows | 4Free: Freeware Translator Pro: 390 Euro LSP 5: 1490 Euro | Proprietary |
| [MetaTexis] | HTML, XML, Resource files MS Word (all kinds of text files that can be imported by MS Word), MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, Adobe FrameMaker, Adobe PageMaker, QuarkXPress | Windows | Lite: 29 Euro Pro: 79 Euro .NET/Office: 109 Euro | Proprietary |
| [MLTS] | ? | ? | ? | |
| [MultiCorpora MultiTrans] | ? | ? | ? | |
| [MultiLing Fortis Translation Suite] | ? | ? | ? | |
| [Rainbow] | HTML, XHTML, Scripts, Photoshop, etc. | Windows (.NET) | Freeware | Proprietary |
| [SDLX] | ? | ? | ? | |
| [STAR Transit] | ? | ? | ? | |
| [Trados Translators Workbench] | When it is installed, it automatically adds a template to MS word. To use in Excel, PowerPoint, one should use T_windows application installed with workbench | ? | ? | |
| [Tr-aid] | ? | ? | ? | |
| [WordFast] | MS Word | Microsoft Office Word macro | 180 Euro | Proprietary |
| [WordFisher] | ? | ? | ? | |
| [Similis] | HTML, PDF, Word, Trados | Windows | 295 Euros (monoposte) | Proprietary |
| [Open Language Tools] | HTML/XHTML, XML, DocBook SGML, ASCII, StarOffice/OpenOffice/ODF, .po (gettext), .properties, .java (ResourceBundle), .msg/.tmsg (catgets) | Multiplatform (Java) | Free | CDDL |
| File Formats | OS | Price | License | |
External links
CAT Discussion groups
- [Aid Trans Studio Forum]
- [Déjà Vu ( DVX / DV3 )]
- [Déjà Vu (DV3)]
- [Déjà Vu ( DVX / DV3, in Spanish)]
- [Déjà Vu ( DVX / DV3, in French)]
- [Heartsome Support List]
- [LogiTerm]
- [MetaTexis]
- [Okapi Framework]
- [OmegaT]
- [SDLX]
- [Trados]
- [WordFisher]
- [WordFast]
Software Localization Tools
Translation memory packages
- [AidTrans Studio]
- [Cafetran]
- [Déjà Vu]
- [Heartsome Translation Suite]
- [LogiTerm]
- [MetaTexis]
- [MLTS]
- [MultiCorpora MultiTrans]
- [MultiLing Fortis Translation Suite]
- [OmegaT]
- [SDLX]
- [STAR Transit]
- [Trados Translators Workbench]
- [Tr-aid]
- [WordFast]
- [WordFisher]
- [Similis] second generation translation memory
Other tools
- [CATCount]
Computer Assisted Translation Tools Indexes
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.