Some basic things I want to understand about SDL Trados Studio
Thread poster: Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Thailand
Local time: 19:26
English to Thai
+ ...
Mar 25, 2021

Hello everyone,

I'm very new here and also new to the translation software, so I might be around asking for your help.
If there's anything I ever need to know, please feel free to advise. Thank you very much in advance.


I've just installed the Trial version of Trados Studio 2021, and purchased the license a few days after that. So now I'm using the Trial version and trying to get used to its user interface.

I already read through some of the
... See more
Hello everyone,

I'm very new here and also new to the translation software, so I might be around asking for your help.
If there's anything I ever need to know, please feel free to advise. Thank you very much in advance.


I've just installed the Trial version of Trados Studio 2021, and purchased the license a few days after that. So now I'm using the Trial version and trying to get used to its user interface.

I already read through some of the manuals but still don't get what I want to know. So please kindly advise me about the following stuff :


1. When starting a new task, what's the difference between "creating new project" and "translate as a single document" ?

2. Is ".sdlxliff " the regular file type for this program, and does it mean that you open this .sdlxliff file when you want to continue translating only and not after you finish it?

3. What is the type of a translated file a customer typically asks for, the original file type or .sdlxliff file? And what is their purpose when their source file is an MS word file but they tell you to use Trados?


another question regarding software installation :

4. When I'm using the Trial version but also have the purchased license on hand, what are the features from the purchase that I can activate right away or what else should I do to get the most out of my purchase while still using up the Trial one?



That's all. These are all I need to know for now.
I apologize if there were similar questions that have been asked before. Please feel free to direct me to the existing answers if that happens.
Also if there are some useful guides which might help me get through the basics easily, please kindly recommend.

Thank you very much for your kind help.








[Edited at 2021-03-25 12:38 GMT]
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KASPARS KIRSFELDS
 
Dr. Tilmann Kleinau
Dr. Tilmann Kleinau  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 11:26
Member (2006)
English to German
+ ...
Answers Mar 25, 2021

Hello Nucleara,
here are the answers:
1. When starting a new task, you normally translate as a single document. However, you create a new project if you have more than one file to translate or if you want to use the definitions o0f your workflow later for a similar job.

2. While you translate, ".sdlxliff " is the regular file type for this program, and when you are finished, Trados saves your file(s) in your source format again. Plus, you keep the .sdlxliff file and ca
... See more
Hello Nucleara,
here are the answers:
1. When starting a new task, you normally translate as a single document. However, you create a new project if you have more than one file to translate or if you want to use the definitions o0f your workflow later for a similar job.

2. While you translate, ".sdlxliff " is the regular file type for this program, and when you are finished, Trados saves your file(s) in your source format again. Plus, you keep the .sdlxliff file and can reuse it whenever you like, e.g. for changes the client wants you to make, and then finish your translation again.

3. The customer typically asks you for a file in the source format (word or excel or...). What Trados does is help you translate your file and combine your translation with the original layout so that, in the end, you have your target language in the original layout (which you should control).

4. If you have the purchased the license, you should activate your licence number as soon as you can. But you can work with your trial licence for the time the trial lasts (often, 30 days) in order to see how the program works.

A good start,

Tilmann
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Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Dalia Nour
Bajram Djambazi
KASPARS KIRSFELDS
 
Stepan Konev
Stepan Konev  Identity Verified
Russian Federation
Local time: 13:26
English to Russian
Webinars Mar 25, 2021

In addition to specific answers given by Dr. Tilmann Kleinau, I also suggest that you join SDL webinars they hold from time to time. You will get emails on such events. Don't dodge them — they are held online mostly and you can ask your questions.
What regards your 4 questions, here is my version of answers:

1. You can translate as a single document (Single file project) if you want minimum default functionality. I advise that you set up a project once, and then just add or
... See more
In addition to specific answers given by Dr. Tilmann Kleinau, I also suggest that you join SDL webinars they hold from time to time. You will get emails on such events. Don't dodge them — they are held online mostly and you can ask your questions.
What regards your 4 questions, here is my version of answers:

1. You can translate as a single document (Single file project) if you want minimum default functionality. I advise that you set up a project once, and then just add or remove files as necessary. Create 3 projects: EN-TH, TH-EN, and ES-TH. That's enough. When you get new file(s) for translation, just open Studio, select source flag, drag your file(s) and prepare without project TM. Then switch to target flag. Once you're done with translation, you can keep the file(s) for a week for example and then remove them from the project.

2. For each single translatable file, Studio creates 2 sdlxliff files for its internal purposes: one is kept in your source language folder (remains unchanged through the entire translation process), the other is kept in your target folder (contains all your edits you make during the translation process). You can click on the sdlxliff file to open it, but you must make sure you open the right file (the target one). A better option is to open Studio, open your project, go to Files view and open the right file.

3. They may ask both.
Nucleara wrote:
what is their purpose
They need your sdlxliff file to populate their own TM [to pay you less next time]. There is an option to update TM with sdlxliff.

4. The only limitation of the trial version is 30-day trial period. Other than that both versions are equal. If we go beyond Studio, your license allows you to download Multiterm and plugins from SDL Appstore. However you don't actually need Multiterm to work as a translator. And you don't know what plugins you may need at the beginning of your career. At a later stage, when you understand your needs, you will use SDL Appstore often. So far there is no great difference for you. You can try Studio in trial mode now. Sometimes people tend to uninstall Studio when they can't solve their issues. This may cause subsequent issues with your license if it is activated. Therefore I recommend that you activate your license after all your experiments.

[Edited at 2021-03-26 01:36 GMT]
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Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Dalia Nour
Bajram Djambazi
 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 11:26
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
@Nucleara Mar 25, 2021

Dr. Tilmann Kleinau wrote:
1. When starting a new task, you normally translate as a single document. However, you create a new project if you have more than one file to translate or if you want to use the definitions o0f your workflow later for a similar job.


Yes, or to put it differently: Trados always creates a "project" in the sense that it will create an SDLPROJ file with all the settings for that project in it. If you choose the option to create a project, Trados will create an entire set of folders with the various files in the various folders. If you choose the option to translate a single file, Trados creates the SDLPROJ file in the same folder as the SDLXLIFF file. In both cases, the project gets added to the project list.

2. While you translate, ".sdlxliff " is the regular file type for this program, and when you are finished, Trados saves your file(s) in your source format again. Plus, you keep the .sdlxliff file and can reuse it whenever you like, e.g. for changes the client wants you to make, and then finish your translation again.


Yes, although if you have recently worked on the file, then it should still be in your project list. So then you can just run Trados and double-click the project in the project list.

Trados does not automatically create the translation in the source format -- you have to right-click the project in the project list and select the option to create the final file (you can do this as many times as you wish).

3. The customer typically asks you for a file in the source format (Word or Excel or...). What Trados does is help you translate your file and combine your translation with the original layout so that, in the end, you have your target language in the original layout (which you should control).


It depends on the client. In my case, most clients who want me to use Trados have little interest in the final file -- they just want the translated or edited SDLXLIFF file. You have to ask the client what they want. Sometimes a client will insist that you use Trados, but expect you to deliver both an SDLXLIFF file and the final file in the original format (and often you have to make further small edits to the final file, so that eventually it no longer reflects the content of the SDLXLIFF file).


Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Dalia Nour
Bajram Djambazi
 
Stepan Konev
Stepan Konev  Identity Verified
Russian Federation
Local time: 13:26
English to Russian
SDL Community Mar 25, 2021

I forgot to mention: you can ask your questions using SDL Community. However you'd better try the software yourself first. If your questions origin from your failing to read/watch their training materials, they may leave them without a reply.

[Edited at 2021-03-25 18:28 GMT]


Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Dalia Nour
Jorge Payan
Bajram Djambazi
 
Roy Oestensen
Roy Oestensen  Identity Verified
Denmark
Local time: 11:26
Member (2010)
English to Norwegian (Bokmal)
+ ...
What to return depends on the customer Mar 25, 2021

[quote]Samuel Murray wrote:
Dr. Tilmann Kleinau wrote:
3. The customer typically asks you for a file in the source format (Word or Excel or...). What Trados does is help you translate your file and combine your translation with the original layout so that, in the end, you have your target language in the original layout (which you should control).


It depends on the client. In my case, most clients who want me to use Trados have little interest in the final file -- they just want the translated or edited SDLXLIFF file. You have to ask the client what they want. Sometimes a client will insist that you use Trados, but expect you to deliver both an SDLXLIFF file and the final file in the original format (and often you have to make further small edits to the final file, so that eventually it no longer reflects the content of the SDLXLIFF file).


I my case all my clients who use Trados, send me a Trados package, which has the extension sdlppx, and which has all the files I need, i.e. the project file and the translation memory and termbase.

They then expect me to create a return package that they want me to return. Extension: sdlrpx


 
Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Thailand
Local time: 19:26
English to Thai
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you for all of your answers Mar 26, 2021

Thank you very much for all of the answers, they are very helpful.
I will try to apply these pieces of knowledge little by little while exploring the program (and will be back again : D)
And from your suggestions, I will use up the Trial version first before activating the license.


Stepan Konev wrote:

They need your sdlxliff file to populate their own TM [to pay you less next time]. There is an option to update TM with sdlxliff.



This sounds sad...

May I ask another question as an extra example :
I get a test, they give me an MS word file and the instruction says that I translate source words in the left column and fill them in the right blank column. Does this generally mean that I send back the translation file as a regular MS word file and it has nothing to do with Trados file?

[Edited at 2021-03-26 08:13 GMT]


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 11:26
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
Re: project packages Mar 26, 2021

Roy Oestensen wrote:
I my case all my clients who use Trados send me a Trados package, which has the extension SDLPPX, and which has all the files I need, i.e. the project file and the translation memory and termbase. They then expect me to create a return package that they want me to return. Extension: SDLRPX.


Yes, I also get SDLPPX packages a lot, but some clients actually don't want the SDLRPX file -- instead, they want me to send them the SDLXLIFF files (and sometimes also the final translated files) as is. See, SDLRPX files can only be opened by the Professional version of Trados, not the Freelance version, and some agencies are mere intermediaries who don't have the Professional version themselves, but they'd still like to run things like QA.

Oh, and, I sometimes get SDLRPX files to proofread (if the translator was smart enough to generate one), and since my Freelance license can't open such files, I unzip it (since it's just a zip file) and create a new project for the SDLXLIFF manually, proofread it, and then send the SDLXLIFF files back to the client.


Jorge Payan
 
Stepan Konev
Stepan Konev  Identity Verified
Russian Federation
Local time: 13:26
English to Russian
Yes Mar 26, 2021

Nucleara wrote:
Does this generally mean that I send back the translation file as a regular MS word file and it has nothing to do with Trados file?
Exactly.

What regards
This sounds sad...
it depends on your client. My client now only deducts 100% matches. All other fuzzy matches are paid in full. But even so, if you return a file that gives your client a 100% match for your future translation assignment, most probably they will not pay for that match. Therefore, if your client does not instruct you to use CAT tools, use them but don't tell your client.

[Edited at 2021-03-27 01:08 GMT]


Chawanrat Sukhuwit
 
Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Chawanrat Sukhuwit
Thailand
Local time: 19:26
English to Thai
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
I see, thank you. Mar 27, 2021

Stepan Konev wrote:

it depends on your client. My client now only deducts 100% matches. All other fuzzy matches are paid in full. But even so, if you return a file that gives your client a 100% match for your future translation assignment, most probably they will not pay for that match.


So this is how it works...
I though CAT tools were for the benefits of us translators only. I really learned one important fact today.


Stepan Konev wrote:

Therefore, if your client does not instruct you to use CAT tools, use them but don't tell your client.

[Edited at 2021-03-27 01:08 GMT]


I see. Thank you very much for the suggestion


 


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Some basic things I want to understand about SDL Trados Studio







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