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InDesign
After a fairly unsuccessful version 1, InDesign really gained traction beginning
with version 2. Presently you will encounter InDesign files that are created in
versions 2 and CS (3) through CC2015 (11). To translate efficiently in
InDesign you will need a program that exports all the stories (the above-
mentioned text boxes) into one large file that can be processed in a
translation environment tool. (Of course, it is possible to translate directly
within InDesign, but the emphasis was on "efficient.")
With the release of InDesign CS2, the accessibility of InDesign files became
feasible for translation environment tools because it was now possible to save
files into the XML-based INX format. This format is supported by the vast
majority of TEnTs. Note that you will have to have a copy of InDesign on your
computer to save the file as an INX file (or you can ask the client to do it for
you).
It is also advisable to check what version of CS2 through CS7 your tool
officially supports as there are fairly major differences between the XML
structure of the different versions of InDesign. Since InDesign has become the
quasi-standard desktop-publishing format, you should be able to expect your
TEnT vendor to update quickly to the latest format of InDesign.
Alternative Ways of Working with InDesign CS4 and Later Files
With version CS4, InDesign introduced the ability to export InDesign Markup
Language (IDML) files. These are a zip-compressed set of XML files where
each XML file represents a "story" (text box). While it’s possible to translate
these files without any specialized filter (you can export the IDML file out of
the original InDesign INDD file with File> Export, rename the IDML
extension to ZIP, unzip the file, locate the XML files that contain the story
Transit XV and NXT also support InDesign CS files through a specially purchased
add-in. Third-party vendors, including North Atlantic Publishing (see
www.napsys.com/products/cfg-for-indesign) and Polmann Services (see http://
www.polmannshop.com/ware/en/43-sysfilter-for-indesign), also offers programs
to process early (and later) versions of InDesign.
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content—the translatable text—and import or open them with your TEnT), the
latest version of most translation environment tools now supports the IDML
format directly, and many tools, including Trados Studio, now support only the
IDML format for InDesign.
Processing InDesign Files with Kilgray’s Language Terminal
Kilgray’s Language Terminal (see www.languageterminal.com) has changed
the way translators can work with InDesign files. One of the various features
of Language Terminal is the ability to upload InDesign IDML files of any
version to a server, which converts these files to a memoQ-specific version of
XLIFF. This version of XLIFF, with the extension MQXLZ, can be directly
processed in memoQ or, with a little workaround, in any other tool that
supports XLIFF.
For this workaround, you will need to realize that the MQXLZ format is a
zipped (compressed) format that contains an XLIFF file (with the extension
MQXLF) and a "skeleton" file (which contains all the external data, such as
images). To retrieve the XLIFF file, change the extension of the MQXLZ to ZIP,
right-click on the file and select Open with> Windows (File) Explorer.
Once you see the MQXLIFF file, copy it to an external location and rename it
to XLF or XLIFF. Now you can process it in any other tool. Once you’re finished
with the translation, replace the extension of the XLIFF file with MQXLIFF,
open the ZIP file again with Windows/File Explorer, and replace the old
MQXLIFF file with the newly translated one. Once that is done, close the ZIP
Don’t use a compression utility because that might cause problems in the back
conversion to InDesign.
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file, rename its extension to MQXLZ, and upload it to the Language Terminal
again to have it converted back to an InDesign INDD file. Once the Terminal is
done with the conversion, you can download a ZIP file that contains the INDD
file alongside a PDF with a preview of the translated file.
PageMaker
To translate PageMaker files (an increasingly rare occurrence because Adobe
has long given up active development for PageMaker) with a computer-
assisted translation tool, you can either use Star Transit with a separate plug-
in that supports PageMaker 6-7, or you can use a plug-in that comes with the
Trados product (only version 2007 and below; Trados Studio is not supporting
PageMaker anymore) called Story Collector for PageMaker, which supports
PageMaker versions 6.5 and 7.
Make sure that you first run a test with a pseudo-translated file (a file where the
characters are replaced with "dummy" characters for testing purposes).
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To install the Trados plug-in, open the help file under C:\Program Files\SDL
International\Txxxx_xx\FI\PM for further instruction. Once the plug-in is
installed, open the PageMaker file in PageMaker and you’ll find the command
Trados Story Collector under Utilities> Plug-ins.
Figure 226: Trados Story Collector for PageMaker
Export all the stories into one large PageMaker-specific text file, save the
original PageMaker file (important!), and translate the exported text file with
TagEditor or any other application that supports the PageMaker format. The
import process is virtually the same as the export and should go seamlessly.
All of the above is true for Western languages and to some degree for Eastern
European languages. Any of the more complex languages, however, including
the bi-directional languages (Hebrew and Arabic) or the Asian double-byte
languages, are flat-out not supported in the Western versions of PageMaker.
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Though you can purchase language-specific versions for these languages, it
would make a LOT more sense to convert to InDesign and take it from there.
Because InDesign and PageMaker are both Adobe products, the upgrade path
is relatively easy (both in terms of purchasing a less expensive competitive
upgrade version of InDesign when you already own PageMaker and in terms
of converting the files).
QuarkXPress
Despite the fact that Quark has never been very popular in the translation
community (because of a lack of Unicode support until fairly recently and
different and more expensive versions for different languages, etc.), it used to
be the dominant player in the desktop publishing market, so it is not too
surprising that there is decent support for earlier versions of Quark among the
translation environment tools.
• Star Transit offers a separate plug-in that supports the batch processing of
the English (and Passport) versions 3-9.2 for both the Windows and Mac
platforms.
• Trados (version 2007 and below) offers plug-ins for versions 4.1-6 for
English (and Passport) and version 4.1 for Japanese.
All of these plug-ins were preceded by a program called CopyFlow (see
www.napsys.com). Just like those programs, CopyFlow allows for the batch
export and import of text from Quark files (up through version 9). Later
versions of Quark are only supported by ex TranslationFilter by CoDesCo (see
www.codesco.com/en/ex-translationfilter.html).
If you need to translate Quark 7 and above files, Star Tansit (see above),
CopyFlow and ex TranslationFilter are presently the only tools that allow for
an export into a TEnT-processable format (both on Mac and Windows).
Because of Unicode support in Quark’s version 7 and above, it is now possible
to write in all languages that are covered by Unicode within Quark. However, if
you need language-specific capabilities (spell-checking, hyphenation, etc.),
you may have to invest in one of the many language-specific versions.
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The European language Passport edition of Quark, which has additional spell-
checking and hyphenation capabilities for Western and European languages, is
supported by the above-mentioned tools. If you have only the (cheaper)
English version, you need to make sure to ask your client to save the file as a
"Single Language" file. Otherwise, if the Passport edition was used you will not
be able to open the file.
QuarkXPress’s last Middle Eastern edition was for version 6.5. Fortunately,
however, there are XTensions—QuarkXPress-specific plug-ins—for the English
version of Quark that extend its ability to write in Hebrew, Arabic, Farsi and
Jawi. ArabicXT, HebrewXT, FarsiXT and JawiXT are all available at
www.arabicsoftware.net through versions 8 of Quark.
It becomes much more hairy with the Asian double-byte languages. While the
Japanese version 4.1 is supported by the Trados plug-in and several others by
CopyFlow, it at least means that you have to have several versions of Quark
for different languages, plug-ins and platforms.
Mac vs. Windows for DTP Programs
Many files from DTP applications, especially from the graphic-oriented line,
originate from a Macintosh environment. While generally it’s not a problem to
open a Mac version of PageMaker, InDesign or QuarkXPress on a Windows
edition of the program, there are a couple of things that have to be
considered.
Unfortunately, only ArabicXT is available for both Windows and Mac platforms,
while the others are available only for Mac.
ArabicXT has also been released for Quark 7 and 8 for Mac.
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The most common error is that of missing fonts, which could be either fonts
that are truly missing or, just as likely, fonts that have a slightly different
naming conversion on a Macintosh system than on a Windows platform or vice
versa. You can choose to remap the fonts on a permanent basis (not a good
idea if your client wants to open this on a Macintosh again) or on a temporary
basis.
Figure 227: Error message indicating missing fonts in PageMaker
The other consideration is the differing character set between Windows and
Macintosh, which, if not converted properly, will result in a corruption of
special characters. Assuming that you have performed your translation in a
text-based format on a Windows computer, you have several options to
change the character set.
• You can do this in a Windows version Word 2000 or higher (see page 167).
• You can open and save your text file in a Macintosh version of Word 98 or
higher, which will automatically convert the Windows character set to a
Mac character set.
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Graphic Formats
For graphic applications, the same common threads seem to apply as for
desktop publishing programs: they are expensive, they’re not very intuitive to
learn, and they present considerable obstacles during translation.
Unfortunately, unlike desktop publishing programs, there is no positive flipside
from my perspective as a translator.
Though I know that some of my colleagues have decided differently, I have
left it with this and have decided not to invest time and money into graphic
programs. I use an old version of Corel (Jasc) PaintShop Pro (see
www.paintshoppro.com), a low-priced power tool that I mostly use to make
minor modifications to pixel-based graphics (see page 352). Since Corel
bought PaintShop, the tool has morphed into more of a photo-editing tool, so
the best current alternative may be GIMP (see www.gimp.org), a powerful
open-source image editor that may not be particularly user-friendly but gives
you everything you would ever desire from a graphics application.
Like its desktop publishing programs, Adobe also offers its graphic application on
a month-to-month rental basis, which might be a good option for some projects
(see page 339).
Another graphic application that has been helpful is the low-cost version of
Adobe Photoshop—Adobe Photoshop Elements (see adobe.com/products/
photoshop-elements).
Documents you may be interested
Documents you may be interested
