What is a “translation memory” (TM)?
As the name suggests, a translation memory (TM) is the translator’s digital memory. The translation memory stores all the translations and their associated source texts. If a segment or sentence is repeated in a later translation job, the TMS provides the translator with the existing translation, so identical content only has to be translated once. This leads to considerable time and cost savings. Translation memory systems (TMS) and CAT tools (computer-aided translation) have become an indispensable part of the translation process. oneword works with a variety of translation memory systems, such as Across, Trados, Transit and others, but also with open source systems.
Reduce costs, increase quality
Besides saving costs, translation memory systems also make an important contribution to quality assurance. Identical or similar contents in paragraphs, sentences or titles can be translated consistently, at the ‘click of a button’. For example, intelligent features for quality control during and after translation enable typos, incorrect numbers or formatting errors to be identified quickly. This can increase translation productivity by up to 80%, while significantly improving the consistency of the content.
The new generation of translation memory technologies
The range of translation memory systems has increased enormously in recent years. The market is more diverse than ever before, from single workstation and cloud-based solutions to translation management systems that are completely integrated into editing processes, with automated order and process management. Systems such as Trados, Across, MemoQ, oneSuite and others have one thing in common: even the latest generations of TMS are translation databases whose main benefit continues to be that they enable existing translations to be reused, which brings with it huge cost savings. Most recently, leading systems are also being interfaced with machine translation systems to combine the advantages of both system worlds: maximum translation reuse (TMS), machine-generated translations and the expertise of post-editors (machine translation + post-editing).
Using translation memories at oneword
As an independent language service provider, using innovative translation memory technologies and localisation tools is part of our everyday translation work. When we choose which solutions to use, we are either guided by our customers’ preferences, or select the best translation memory system to suit a particular customer’s situation. We also offer training in all common systems. We will be happy to help you choose a new system. We are also a certified translation service provider for the Across Language Server, Trados Studio and Trados GroupShare and we also have Transit NXT and Trados Passolo as standard. In addition, we use systems such as various terminology databases, platforms for order management and, for review processes, quality assurance tools such as Xbench and many others.
Translating with Across – oneword is a certified service provider
oneword offers you more than 10 years of experience translating in Across. Our Across translation team handles several thousand Across projects per year and receives regular training on the increasingly comprehensive functionalities and requirements of Across. As your partner we provide rapid support if you have any questions about your Across Language Server, user settings or troubleshooting.
Do you want to reduce the time, effort and cost involved in running your Across server and outsource the project creation process? It goes without saying that we are happy to do this for our customers.
We’ll be happy to work together with you to define the following tasks:
- Optimising processes in Across: Optimisation of your system and user settings by our experienced team of Across experts.
- Settings in Across: We can help you to set up your translation and review processes to comply with the ISO 17100 or ISO 18587 quality standards and then implement these in Across in line with the standards.
- Extensive pool of translators: Our professional translators cover a wide range of subject areas and industries, have a high level of expertise in Across, and cover almost all language combinations.
- Terminology management in Across: Our project and terminology management team is well-versed in Across terminology processes. We will support you in setting up and managing your in-house terminology and in establishing a secure and efficient terminology workflow.
- Outsourcing: We will manage and control your Across Server for you, without you having to hand over the reins.
- Support for new Across workflows and processes: We support all Across processes, for example review processes, integration of machine translation systems, post-editing processes and much more.
- Individual training courses for Across: for beginners, advanced users and on specialist topics
oneword is a translation service provider certified for Trados Studio
Trados Studio and GroupShare are our standard CAT tools for translations alongside Across. The advantage of using Trados for translations is that our own tools and services such as oneTask, oneReview, oneMemory and oneTerm connect seamlessly with the system. Trados is currently the global market leader for language management solutions. The range of systems – from WorldServer to GroupShare and Passolo – and the range of applications, function extensions, interfaces etc. are more diverse than with many other tools. As a certified Trados language service provider, we have several decades experience with all Trados versions and Passolo localisation software.
Our Trados translators are experienced and highly qualified professional translators who receive regular training and further education. As a Trados specialist, we integrate all those involved in the process into the translation processes. We implement the optimum settings for the document formats, design the most efficient processes and maintain and secure your translation memories with the utmost care.
You’ll always be well advised by us
- Personal support for your translation projects through dedicated contact persons and company translation memories, at no additional cost and with full user rights
- Professional alignment or migration of your existing translation content to Trados Studio or GroupShare
- Extensive pool of translators: Our team of Trados translators offers almost every conceivable language combination and is available for your projects
- Consultancy and expertise: Do you use Trados yourself? We will support your established processes and your stipulations about quality assurance and controls. We will create suitable test routines, style guides and guidelines with you and for you – and of course we will do this based on certified processes in line with ISO 17100 and ISO 18587
Translation memory in open source
oneword is one of the main sponsors of open source in the translation sector. Therefore, in addition to proprietary translation memory systems, such as Trados, Across, Passolo and Transit NXT, we also use our self-developed open-source translation system oneSuite.
Since we were founded in 2004, we have been committed to open source as a founding member of the FOLT (Forum Open Language Tools) working group. Based on the results of this working group, a number of excellent open source solutions have been developed in the translation sector. The success of the initiative was crowned by a collaborative project with IBM, which made its own translation manager tool – the tried-and-tested IBM TM2 – available to the open source community in Autumn 2010 under the name OpenTM2. OpenTM2 has been used by hundreds of professional translators and localisation experts for many years. This project was further developed with translate5 (oneSuite is an instance of translate5) and transferred to the more modern and faster t5memory, supported by a handful of sponsors such as oneword. The cloud-based system is a promising translation solution that integrates all the functions of comparable translation memory systems and has already extended some of them.
Good to know: Our office is still at its original site in the Böblingen/Sindelfingen Software Centre, attached to the Open Source Solution Park.
What does our Open Source expertise actually mean for you?
- As an Open Source solutions partner, we can offer you a number of benefits right away: In addition to well-known standard tools, we can offer you intelligent tools that create more value without adding costs and that can be perfectly integrated into your workflows.
- Are you interested in acquiring a translation memory system or finding a new one, but don’t want to purchase a proprietary system for reasons of cost, and because you want to invest in your own processes and modifications to create a bespoke translation environment that is perfect for you? We can help you in a number of different ways:
- Open source-aided translation solutions perfectly fulfil both your requirements and the requirements of state-of-the-art translation management.
- Do you want a process that is linked seamlessly to your CMS, editorial system or SAP and automated workflows? This is not a problem with open source. We program the relevant interfaces or applications.
- Time savings thanks to access to our wealth of expertise: consultancy, customization, implementation, programming, translation management services and translations from a single source.
- Thanks to our widespread network of partners in the open source sector, where we work as sponsors and co-developers in numerous different projects, and our exceptional breadth of expertise in translation management, we can offer all-embracing translation solutions for every size of company and budget.
- Having an open source solution gives you access to far more translation resources than any other standard CAT tool, because all translators can afford to use open source software. We run regular training courses for our professional translators.
- Powerful API interfaces streamline the integration of proprietary systems such as Trados, MemoQ and other software systems.
- No compromises when it comes to quality: Our translations and translation processes fully comply with ISO 17100.
Outstanding features of oneSuite:
- 100,000 segments and 1,000 files possible per task
- Terminology portal
- Machine translation interface for MTPE
- All file formats can be processed
- For review processes: oneReview in a perfect layout for most file formats, browser-based, with ‘Track Changes’ in the style of MS Word
- Free software under the open source GPL3 license and the open source AGPL3 license
oneMemory – sharing translation memories
With our oneMemory service, we offer customers access to their stored TMS data. This is ideal for companies that want to leave the management and maintenance of their memories in professional hands, but still want to maintain unrestricted access to and an overview of them at all times.
oneMemory – sharing translation memories
With our oneMemory service, we offer customers access to their stored TMS data. This is ideal for companies that want to leave the management and maintenance of their memories in professional hands, but still want to maintain unrestricted access to and an overview of them at all times.
Translation memories – underestimated corporate value
Translation memories are not only valuable for a company because they save time and money and add to overall quality. A well-maintained translation memory, whose content has grown over the years, is an asset to treasure. Not only does it act as a knowledge database and reference work for staff, but it can also be used as the foundation for company-specific dictionaries and in machine translation programmes. For this reason, it is crucial that you secure the property rights and unrestricted usage rights for your TMs. If you have to align your translated documents at a later date, or purchase a TM from your service provider, this might not only be expensive, but perhaps even impossible. Would you like to know how we handle this issue? You can read more here.