Forum: CAT Tools Technical Help
Topic: What are the most popular CAT tools used or required by translation agencies?
Poster: Christine Andersen
Post title: Spend some time learning about them
A lot of translators hate CAT tools when they first try them. I certainly did. There is a steep learning curve at first, but it is worth making an effort, in my opinion, to get used to a CAT. I use my CAT for almost everything now, and you cut yourself off from a lot of work opportunities if you really can't use one.
Many CAT-users have a favourite and dislike using others.
The commonly used CAT tools are more or less compatible, and there are ways of transferring translation memories and glossaries between them. It takes a little effort, but it is definitely preferable to spending hours working with a CAT that irritates you.
They ARE complicated, but you can learn the basic functions at least so that you simply operate your CAT automatically, and can concentrate on translating.
Having to think about the 'mechanics' all the time will slow you down rather than help, but you can get past that stage.
It is a bit like driving a car, or any other task you do more or less automatically. It may be terrifying at first, but once you master it, you enjoy it.
Some are 'lean and mean' - they are comparatively simple and less expensive, and if you are the kind of translator who never uses the advanced features anyway, then you can reap a lot of advantages simply from the translation memory function.
Others are more complicated, such as MemoQ and Trados Studio, which have a lot of advanced features.
With Trados Studio I like the glossary function and the way AutoSuggest and AutoCorrect make up for the fact that I am a poor typist. You can enter long strings in the glossary, which the CAT will then enter for you, saving typing. Most of my clients use Studio, but I might have liked MemoQ if I had come to it earlier.
Try the free demo versions, and see what you prefer.
Try the 'lighter' CATs too - Wordfast Classic, for instance, might be a good one to start with.
Get someone to help you, at least the first few times you try out a CAT, so that you can see what they do and what you are aiming at. Then choose the CAT that you find most comfortable, and go for it!
Simply knowing what is meant by 'concordance searches' and 'fuzzy matches' and all the other strange terms can be a challenge at first.
When you understand the basics like that, you can start reading blogs such as Emma Goldsmith's
[url removed]
[url removed] #more-2687
Studio and MemoQ are compared here
[url removed]
There are masses of webinars and workshops...
Good luck!
Topic: What are the most popular CAT tools used or required by translation agencies?
Poster: Christine Andersen
Post title: Spend some time learning about them
A lot of translators hate CAT tools when they first try them. I certainly did. There is a steep learning curve at first, but it is worth making an effort, in my opinion, to get used to a CAT. I use my CAT for almost everything now, and you cut yourself off from a lot of work opportunities if you really can't use one.
Many CAT-users have a favourite and dislike using others.
The commonly used CAT tools are more or less compatible, and there are ways of transferring translation memories and glossaries between them. It takes a little effort, but it is definitely preferable to spending hours working with a CAT that irritates you.
They ARE complicated, but you can learn the basic functions at least so that you simply operate your CAT automatically, and can concentrate on translating.
Having to think about the 'mechanics' all the time will slow you down rather than help, but you can get past that stage.
It is a bit like driving a car, or any other task you do more or less automatically. It may be terrifying at first, but once you master it, you enjoy it.
Some are 'lean and mean' - they are comparatively simple and less expensive, and if you are the kind of translator who never uses the advanced features anyway, then you can reap a lot of advantages simply from the translation memory function.
Others are more complicated, such as MemoQ and Trados Studio, which have a lot of advanced features.
With Trados Studio I like the glossary function and the way AutoSuggest and AutoCorrect make up for the fact that I am a poor typist. You can enter long strings in the glossary, which the CAT will then enter for you, saving typing. Most of my clients use Studio, but I might have liked MemoQ if I had come to it earlier.
Try the free demo versions, and see what you prefer.
Try the 'lighter' CATs too - Wordfast Classic, for instance, might be a good one to start with.
Get someone to help you, at least the first few times you try out a CAT, so that you can see what they do and what you are aiming at. Then choose the CAT that you find most comfortable, and go for it!
Simply knowing what is meant by 'concordance searches' and 'fuzzy matches' and all the other strange terms can be a challenge at first.
When you understand the basics like that, you can start reading blogs such as Emma Goldsmith's
[url removed]
[url removed] #more-2687
Studio and MemoQ are compared here
[url removed]
There are masses of webinars and workshops...
Good luck!