# OmegaT Files and Directories

- Translation project files

- User files

- Application files

OmegaT works with three types of files.

- Translation project files: They constitute a translation project. Loosing them may affect the project's integrity and your ability to complete a job. Project files are the most important files in OmegaT. They are the files you will deal with on a daily basis while translating.
- User setting files: They are created when OmegaT's behavior is modified by user accessible preference settings. Loosing them will usually result in having OmegaT work with "factory" settings. This can sometimes cause a little trouble when you are in the middle of a translation.
- Application files: They are included in the package you download, most of them are necessary to have OmegaT function properly. If for some reason such files are lost, just download and/or reinstall OmegaT to restore them all.

### Translation project files

An OmegaT translation project consists of a number of files and directories.

### Translation project files location

When you create a translation project, OmegaT automatically creates a list of directories that will later serve as files repositories, as well as a number of files that will be used to set some project preferences and to keep the project translation memory. By default, a translation project directories are all grouped under the main project folder. Alternate locations for the directories can be chosen at project creation or during the translation. This way it is possible to select existing directories or create directories in locations that reflect your work flow habits. To change the location of directories after a project has been created, open Project → Properties... and do the necessary changes.

### Translation project files list

In a file dialog opened by OmegaT, a translation project will look like a file with an OmegaT icon associated to it. From a file browser, however, the same translation project looks like just any other folder.

Selecting the item with the OmegaT icon is enough to open the project A translation project Example_Project created with the default settings will be created as a new subfolder with the following structure:

The glossary subfolder is empty, when starting a new project. It is the place for your glossaries, if you have any available for the project.

### Omegat

The subfolder omegat will contain at least two files, the translation memory file project_save.tmx (...) and the statistics file project_stats.txt (...) . The file project_save.tmx is the working translation memory for the project. With the autosave function activated, it will be automatically updated when you quit. It is the translation memory used to create the translated files. A number of TMX files with names of the form project_save.tmx.<date and time>.bak (...) will later on be added to this subfolder. They serve as a backup for the project TM and are being added each time you reopen a project, thus reflecting its contents before the current session has changed it.
  The stats.txt file contains the statistics about the current project and can be opened in a spreadsheet application to display segment and word count information. The information it contains is more detailed that what is displayed in the Project Files window.
  The ignored_words.txt and learned_words.txt files are reserved for the use by the spell checker in the forthcoming versions of OmegaT.

### Source

The source subfolder is the space for the files to be translated. You can specify a new subfolder and add the files to it the project later as well in the project list window. Note that the structure of the source subfolder is completely in your hands. If the files to be translated are parts of a tree structure, you just need to specify the top subfolder and OmegaT will copy it all, while keeping the tree structure intact.

### Target

  When Project → Create Translated Documents is selected while a project is opened, all the files in /source/, translated or not, will be reproduced here with the same folder hierarchy to reflect the current state of the translation. Practically speaking, OmegaT merges the translation information saved in /omegat/project_save.tmx with the source documents to produce the /target/ contents.

### Tm

  Translation memories from previous translations can be put into this subfolder. They have to be in the tmx format. Use available tools to transform from other formats. Note that project_save.tmx is the translation memory, mediating between your source and the eventual target. However, the ancillary TM files are available for finding most convenient candidates for untranslated segments.

### omegat.project

  OmegaT automatically creates this file when the project is created. It contains the project parameters. The parameters included in this file can be modified from the Project properties window.
project_name-omegat.tmx (...)
project_name-level1.tmx
project_name-level2.tmx
  These files contain the source and target segments corresponding to the contents of the /source/ folder at the time of their creation (usually when the translated files have been created).

### User files

### User files location

User files are stored in a separate location where they can be accessed by any version of OmegaT. The location depends on the platform you use:

Windows | 2000 and XP: Documents and Settings\<User Name>\Application Data\OmegaT Vista: Users\<User Name>\AppData\Roaming\OmegaT Other: <Something>\OmegaT (<Something> corresponds to the location of the "home" folder as determined by Java.)
Linux/Solaris/FreeBSD | <User Home>/.omegat (.omegat is a directory, the dot preceding its name makes it invisible unless you type `ls -a` or an equivalent command.)
MacOSX | <User Home>/Library/Preferences/OmegaT
Other | <User Home>

### User files list

log.txt | This file records Java error messages while OmegaT is running. When you think OmegaT is behaving erratically it is important to include this file or the relevant part in any trouble report.
omegat.prefs | An xml file with all the GUI accessible option settings, as well as window position data.
filters.conf | An xml file with all the data set by the file filters preferences.
segmentation.conf | An xml file with all the data set by the sentence segmentation preferences.

### Application files

OmegaT comes as a package you can download from SourceForge. In this chapter we will consider the platform independent package that contains the application in a standard Java form. Other packages include a Linux `.tar` package, a Windows installer -with or without a Java Runtime Environment, a MacOSX installer and a source code package for developers. This platform independent package can be used on any platform with a running Java 1.4.2 runtime environment, including the platforms for which there is a specific package. The platform independent package comes as a compressed file that you need to decompress in the folder of your choice for install. Decompression is usually done by double clicking on the downloaded package. Once decompressed, a folder containing the following contents will be created:

File/ subfolder | Contents
/docs/ | All the user manual files are in this folder. You can open them in an internet browser to have access to external links.
/images/ | Icons and logo graphics are included here.
/lib/ | Java files are included here. They are necessary to the well functioning of OmegaT.
join.html | This is a normal html file that once opened in your internet browser will redirect you to the OmegaT user group hosted on Yahoo Groups. Joining is not necessary but will give you access to some extra services like access to some files and irregular polls, besides for being able to join in OmegaT related discussions. The group archives are public and consultation does not require subscription to the group.
changes.txt | A relatively detailed list of modifications between this version and the preceding versions.
license.txt | The GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE. This license allows you to do certain things with OmegaT, including modifying and distributing it. If you are interested in modifying or distributing OmegaT, take a good look at this document and make sure you are aware of all its implications before doing anything. In case you are in doubt, don't hesitate to ask project members directly either by sending them a mail from the Source Forge page or by sending a public mail to the user group.
doc-license.txt | The GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE. This license covers the documentation. See above.
readme.txt | This file is very important and you should make sure you read it before starting OmegaT. It includes general information about OmegaT, where to find more information, how to contribute etc. It is translated to a number of languages.
OmegaT | A text file that containing two lines: `#!/bin/bash` `java -jar OmegaT.jar $*` You may find this file useful if you make it executable (`chmod +x OmegaT`) from the command line after making sure you are in the `/OmegaT_1.8/` directory. From now on you'll be able to start OmegaT by calling this file from the command line.
OmegaT.bat | A batch file, used to launch OmegaT from the Windows command line. It contains just the following line: `java -jar OmegaT.jar %*`
OmegaT.jar | The main OmegaT application. To launch OmegaT you have to either call this file from the command line or launch it from your file manager (usually by double-clicking it).

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