How can you quickly compare source and target? Thread poster: 2nl (X)
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2nl (X) 
Netherlands
Local time: 08:02
I prefer to have Source and Target aligned vertically and to be able to easily check the Source at all times.
I was wondering whether the fact that the source segment in Felix disappears as soon as you start typing, will cause any problems for this coordination of Source and Target.
Is this just something one gets used to?
| | | | Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 08:02
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
| I suppose it's the downside of having a non-uncleaned file | Dec 1, 2015 |
2nl wrote:
Is this just something one gets used to?
I suppose so. It is a selling point of Felix that the file you're working on (the DOC(X) file) is not turned into an uncleaned file, i.e. with lots of codes and the source text hidden in it.
| | | | 2nl (X)
Netherlands
Local time: 08:02
TOPIC STARTER | Yes, I can see the big advantage of that | Dec 1, 2015 |
Samuel Murray wrote:
It is a selling point of Felix that the file you're working on (the DOC(X) file) is not turned into an uncleaned file, i.e. with lots of codes and the source text hidden in it.
Yes, I can see the big advantage of that. I guess you just cannot have it all then (ease of the eyes and code-free documents).
| | | | Michael Beijer
United Kingdom
Local time: 07:02
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
+ ...
| MS Word's Side by Side feature, with Synchronous scrolling activated | Dec 1, 2015 |
2nl wrote: I prefer to have Source and Target aligned vertically and to be able to easily check the Source at all times. I was wondering whether the fact that the source segment in Felix disappears as soon as you start typing, will cause any problems for this coordination of Source and Target. Is this just something one gets used to?
I solve this by creating two copies of my doc: src.doc and trgt.doc, which I then open with the Side by Side feature in MS Word, with Synchronous scrolling activated. No matter where I am in my target document, the source will always be immediately available. And not just a preview (with all the attendant problems this might entail), but the actual real file. No need for any hidden code or uncleaned files.
I sometimes put the two documents side by side on my main screen, and sometimes I put the src.doc on my second screen to the left of my main screen, depending on the types of document I am working on.
I put the Felix TM window on my main screen, above my target document. Oh yeah, and my tlTerm dictionary "Word integration" window for automatic terminology lookups of anything under my caret.
So I now use CafeTran for files warranting a more segmented approach, and Felix + tlTerm for docs with more flowing text (press releases, marketing nonsense and stuff with actual paragraphs, etc., where I want to be able to freely move stuff around).
[Edited at 2015-12-01 08:57 GMT]
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2nl (X)
Netherlands
Local time: 08:02
TOPIC STARTER | Nice solution! | Dec 1, 2015 |
Michael Beijer wrote:
I solve this by creating two copies of my doc: src.doc and trgt.doc, which I then open with the Side by Side feature in MS Word, with Synchronous scrolling activated.
That's a nice solution indeed. But how do you handle projects that consist of 15 DOCX files?
| | | | Michael Beijer
United Kingdom
Local time: 07:02
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
+ ...
2nl wrote: Michael Beijer wrote:
I solve this by creating two copies of my doc: src.doc and trgt.doc, which I then open with the Side by Side feature in MS Word, with Synchronous scrolling activated. That's a nice solution indeed. But how do you handle projects that consist of 15 DOCX files?
I open them one by one, like in the good old days
| | | | 2nl (X)
Netherlands
Local time: 08:02
TOPIC STARTER | I'm just asking | Dec 1, 2015 |
Michael Beijer wrote: I open them one by one, like in the good old days
Then I must have misunderstood this:
Also, after finishing a job consisting of 15 separate Word docs in a segment-based CAT tool, who really feels like opening all these files in Word and going through them again manually, to check that everything looks right, and, even more importantly, that the text actually reads well? I don't. Which is why I now recommend using a Word-based CAT tool for many kinds of more flowing text.
I thought that this workflow was something that Felix would make simpler.
| | | | Michael Beijer
United Kingdom
Local time: 07:02
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
+ ...
| Opening 15 documents isn’t necessarily faster or simpler in Felix, but … | Dec 1, 2015 |
2nl wrote: Michael Beijer wrote: I open them one by one, like in the good old days Then I must have misunderstood this: Also, after finishing a job consisting of 15 separate Word docs in a segment-based CAT tool, who really feels like opening all these files in Word and going through them again manually, to check that everything looks right, and, even more importantly, that the text actually reads well? I don't. Which is why I now recommend using a Word-based CAT tool for many kinds of more flowing text. I thought that this workflow was something that Felix would make simpler.
Opening 15 documents isn’t necessarily faster or simpler in Felix, but what I meant in the above quote is this: when translating in a CAT tool, I personally spend most of my time in the CAT tool, and when it is finally time to export my documents, I can hardly ever be bothered to actually open every single one of them (even though this is what is being sent to the client), and go through them to check that everything is OK. I mean, I usually run a spell check (in addition to the spell check already run inside my CAT tool, because MS Word also checks grammar and some other stuff), and maybe have a quick look, but that's about it.
This is different than Felix, where I am actually working in the document that will be sent to my client, so as I go along, I will be fixing and checking and tweaking things, to make the document just right. Therefore, in a project consisting of 15 documents, my client is likely to get a much better finished product (in terms of the formatting of the documents, as well as text cohesion) if I use Felix then if I use a CAT tool such as CafeTran or memoQ.
Of course, the latter have all manner of benefits, which I am well aware of (e.g., tons of repetitions across a large number of smaller documents, the ability to quickly filter (and run complex F&R operations) on a particular term in the source or target column, QA routines, etc.). However, for certain types of documents, they also have very real disadvantages, primarily stemming from a lack of real context, and the disconnect between working in a CAT tool, and the final documents actually sent to your client.
I used to think that absolutely everything could/should be done in a CAT tool, but I have recently changed my mind on this. The beauty of using Felix for certain types of jobs is that I am still able to benefit from the most important aspects of using a CAT tool (TM/TB), but I also get to work in MS Word.
I am therefore currently in the process of experimenting with using Felix for certain types of documents and CafeTran for other types of documents, as well as looking into potentially interesting (synergistic) combinations thereof.
[Edited at 2015-12-01 09:57 GMT]
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