Chapter 2. Instant Start Guide
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## Chapter 2. Instant Start Guide

## 1. Start Using OmegaT in 5 Minutes!

This instant start guide covers only the very basics of OmegaT. Ideally, users should read the User Manual to familiarize themselves with everything OmegaT has to offer. Note for Mac users: shortcuts are described here as "Ctrl+key" but Mac users should instead use "Cmd+key". The "Cmd" key either has a "command" label or an apple symbol on Apple keyboards.

The OmegaT screen consists of one workspace with five distinct panes. Each of these can be resized using the mouse. On the left is the Editor where you type your translation. On the top right is the Match Viewer, where translation memory matches are displayed. Below this is the Glossary Viewer, where glossary matches are displayed. Two additional tabs at the bottom of the window open the Dictionary and Machine Translation panes. (Note: you can of course rearrange the panes to your own liking - the above description applies to your OmegaT after installation).

In the Editor pane OmegaT presents the source text 'segmented' into either sentences or paragraphs. These are then translated, one by one. As you progress from segment to segment, your translations are recorded automatically in a translation memory. Once all the segments have been translated (or before, if you request) OmegaT uses the translation memory to generate the translated document(s) in a “Target” folder.

OmegaT organizes your translation work in translation “projects”. For each project, OmegaT creates a set of folders which, in turn, are used to store the source documents to be translated as well as any glossaries and translation memories you may wish to use. OmegaT also creates a “Target” folder, in which OmegaT places the final translated documents.

## 2. Translating with OmegaT

### 2.1. Creating and opening a new project

Select Project → New... from the menu.

Navigate to the folder where you wish to save the project files, and type in a name for the translation project. This name will be used for the main project folder; all the project files will be stored in this folder or its subfolders.

OmegaT will prompt you to confirm or change the project folders to be created, using the dialog below:

Figure 2.1. New project - dialog window

You can simply accept the default locations of the subfolders, but be sure to check that the source language and target language codes are correct. Select the language code (2 letters) or language-and-region code (2 + 2 letters) from the drop-down list, or type them in by hand (the language code can be 2 to 3 letters). Make a mental note of the location of the Target subfolder (for your translated documents). If you prefer OmegaT to segment by sentence instead of by "paragraph", please read the chapter on Segmentation Rules.

When you click OK to accept the project set-up, OmegaT prompts you to select the source documents for import. You can import individual files with Project > Import Source Files, or you can copy files or even entire folder trees (with all files in all subfolders) manually into the Source folder of your OmegaT project (using your system's file manager, for example). If you've accidentally imported the wrong documents, or too many documents, you can simply remove them again from the Source folder.

To check your list of files to be translated, consult the Project Files window (Menu: Project → Project Files..., if it does not open automatically). If you had to change the Contents of the Source folder, remember to reload the project first (Menu: Project → Reload (F5)). OmegaT opens the first file in the project list by default. Bear in mind that OmegaT can only translate files in the formats below if they match the patterns defined in the file filters. Any other files will be ignored.

- Plain text file formats

  - ASCII text (.txt, etc.)

  - Encoded text (*.UTF8)

  - Java resource bundles (*.properties)

  - PO files (*.po)

  - INI (key=value) files (*.ini)

  - DTD files (*.DTD)

  - DocuWiki files (*.txt)

- Tagged text file formats

  - OpenOffice.org / OpenDocument (*.odt, *.ott, *.ods, *.ots, *.odp, *.otp)

  - Microsoft Open XML (*.docx, *.xlsx, *.pptx)

  - (X)HTML (*.html, *.xhtml,*.xht)

  - HTML Help Compiler (*.hhc, *.hhk)

  - DocBook (*.xml)

  - monolingual XLIFF (*.xlf, *.xliff, *.sdlxliff)

  - QuarkXPress CopyFlowGold (*.tag, *.xtg)

  - SubRip title files (*.srt)

  - ResX files (*.resx)

  - Android resource (*.xml)

  - LaTex (*.tex, *.latex)

  - Help (*.xml) and Manual (*.hmxp) files

  - Typo3 LocManager (*.xml)

  - WiX Localization (*.wxl)

  - Iceni Infix (*.xml)

  - Flash XML export (*.xml)

In addition to the text you wish to translate, tagged text files contain formatting information made visible in OmegaT in the form of “tags”. The tags must also be present in the translated text, even if the formatting does not need to be “translated”. If tags happen to be missing or are misplaced, the text may not be shown as intended and the translation will have to be corrected - see the chapter "Tag verification" below.

### 2.2. Translating segments one by one

Once you have defined the project and the files to be translated, OmegaT opens the first source file in the Editor.

The active segment is highlighted in green; a copy of the source text is displayed just below this in the “target field”. (At this point, all text outside the target field is protected and cannot be modified.) You must type your translation before the tag <`segment 0001>`. OmegaT can be set up to automatically copy the source text into the target text (see Options > Editing Behaviour...), which can be useful when parts of the source text are to remain unchanged. In such cases you will overwrite the source text. Press "ENTER" to advance to the next segment. Note:

- To move to any other part of the text, whether above or below, double-click on the sentence or paragraph you wish to open.

- If you prefer to translate into an empty target field, set this option in Options → Editing Behaviour...

- You can change the setup of the Editor pane (for instance to show the source text or not, highlight the translated text etc) in the Main menu under View.

  When you press "ENTER", several things happen invisibly: OmegaT adds the segment pair (the source segment and its translation) to the internal translation memory . It also automatically translates any other identical segments that it detects. Additionally it scans the translation memory and glossary in search of matches for the next untranslated segment, which it then opens.

### 2.3. Using matches in the translation memories, dictionaries and glossaries

#### 2.3.1. Translation memory matches

Figure 2.2. Matches pane

If OmegaT finds any fuzzy matches (30% or over) for the next segment in the translation memories in the project, it displays them in the Match Viewer. The first match is pre-selected in the Match Viewer by default.

- Press Ctrl+I to insert the pre-selected match at the cursor position, or...

- Press Ctrl+R to overwrite the entire segment with the pre-selected match.

If several matches have been found and you prefer to use a match other than the pre-selected match:

- Select the match you prefer in the Match Viewer: Ctrl+2 for the second match displayed, Ctrl+3 for the third match, etc.

- Then use the Ctrl+I or Ctrl+R shortcuts as above.

You can tell OmegaT to insert any first match above a specified percentage into the target field automatically. Set this option using Options

#### 2.3.2. Glossary and Dictionary matches

Any matching terms in glossaries and dictionaries, that you may have included in the project will be displayed for reference in the glossary and dictionary panes.

#### 2.3.3. Use searches

OmegaT provides a powerful range of search functions. Call up the Search window with Ctrl+F and type in the word or phrase you wish to search for in the "Search for" box. Alternatively, select a word or phrase anywhere in the Editor pane and press Ctrl+F: the selected word or phrase will be inserted automatically into the "Search for" box in the window, that then opens.

#### 2.3.4. Use Machine Translation services

In the Machine Translation pane, if any of the services is activated (see Options > Machine Translate), you will receive an automatic suggestion for the translation of the current segment. Press Ctrl+M to replace the target segment with this suggestion.

### 2.4. Creating translated documents

When you have translated all the segments (or earlier if you wish), OmegaT will create the target document(s) using the translations stored in the translation memory. To do this, select Project → Create Translated Documents (Ctrl+D) from the menu. OmegaT will build translated versions of all the translatable documents in the Source folder of the project, whether or not they have been fully translated. The wholly or partially translated files will be saved to the project's Target folder. To finalize your translation, open the target files in their associated applications (browser, word processor...) to check the content and formatting of your translation. You can then return to OmegaT to make any necessary corrections; do not forget to recreating the translated documents.

## 3. Handling tagged text

OmegaT ensures that the formatting of the source documents (bold, italic etc.) is not lost by marking it with special tags. OmegaT tags are composed of one or more letters followed by one or more digit, using the "/" character for closure (for example: <f0>, </f0> <br>, </s2> etc.). You must handle these tags with care and make sure they are included in the target segments in a proper fashion (see tag operations).

### 3.1. An example...

In these examples we've highlighted the tags to make them easier to see, but in OmegaT they will not be highlighted. The HTML tags, highlighted in blue, will be ignored by OmegaT as they fully enclose the segment. The tags highlighted below in green, however, have to be handled by OmegaT because they are within the segment. Here is an example of a segment in HTML:

`<p>A different display font can be selected via the <b>Display Font</b>dialog. Open it via the <i>Options</i> →<i>Display Font...</i> menu item. The font type and size can be changed from the dialog.</p>`

Here is how OmegaT will display this, with the translation in Afrikaans:

Figure 2.3. Source HTML segment

When OmegaT has created the translated document, the HTML will look like this:

Figure 2.4. Target HTML segment

### 3.2. Tag verification

OmegaT doesn't automatically detect faulty tagging in the translated document. Therefore before you deliver the document to your client, you should always check your tags for errors. Select Tools → Validate Tags... (Ctrl+T) from the menu. A table will be displayed showing the segments where the source and target tags do not correspond. Click on the segment number. You will be taken automatically to the questionable segment in the Editor, where you can correct the tagging. When you have carried out the corrections, check these by pressing Ctrl+T again. Note that the tag verifier may find an error in cases where the tags are correct - for instance when it was necessary to change the order of tags involved in making a grammatically correct translation. Please regard this as a sign that the verifier prefers to err on the side of caution.

In some cases tag errors may even prevent a document from opening. This is no reason to panic - you still have both the source file and the translation available, you just need to make sure you have corrected any tag errors before you create the translated files. Finally, you should always doublecheck the final formatting by opening the translated document in its associated viewer or editor.

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