Editing text in Word images - some anomalies Thread poster: Kevin Pfeiffer (X)
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Kevin Pfeiffer (X) 
Germany
Local time: 13:16
German to English
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Perhaps someone can give me a couple tips here.
I just received another Word doc with several illustrations that have text needing translation. Right-mouse-clicking gives me the option of editing the picture. I can then select and edit little text blocks, but there are two strange things that seem to happen.
First, many labels are often broken into individual word blocks, so that "High Potentials" might be in two editable objects, instead of one.
Secondly,... See more Perhaps someone can give me a couple tips here.
I just received another Word doc with several illustrations that have text needing translation. Right-mouse-clicking gives me the option of editing the picture. I can then select and edit little text blocks, but there are two strange things that seem to happen.
First, many labels are often broken into individual word blocks, so that "High Potentials" might be in two editable objects, instead of one.
Secondly, I will sometimes select a text object and drag it aside, but beneath it will be another copy! In many cases up to a total of three overlaid copies of the text!
I have seen this now on two different Word docs from two different clients, so am wondering what is going on. Where does this come from and what is the best way to handle such "critters"?
And, one last question: Is there a way from within Word to get an illustration count? And/or a count of the text within them?
Many thanks in advance for your advice,
-Kevin (Word 2003) ▲ Collapse
| | | | Jerzy Czopik
Germany
Local time: 13:16
Member (2003)
Polish to German
+ ...
| Sorry, but the answer is not very satifsfactory | Aug 1, 2006 |
Double or tripple objects are the product of your customer.
The same is with objects in two or more "pieces".
And there is no way to get the word count from the pictures in usual way. The only way is to produce a PDF, make an OCR over it, save the results as plain text without formatting and cout it.
As for the formatting of Word files and pictures - I´ve already given up the hope, that a day will come, when Word (or other files) will come formatted as they should. Word... See more Double or tripple objects are the product of your customer.
The same is with objects in two or more "pieces".
And there is no way to get the word count from the pictures in usual way. The only way is to produce a PDF, make an OCR over it, save the results as plain text without formatting and cout it.
As for the formatting of Word files and pictures - I´ve already given up the hope, that a day will come, when Word (or other files) will come formatted as they should. Word files in the first are well known to be bad formatted. IMO this is because Word is so easy to use, so people with no clue about formatting are creating files...
To say it in a satirical way (and please take no ofense, this is not meant so) it looks like that:
The chief says to his clerk: Peter, here is a machine, I need a manual for it. Write it. Peter, however, is a secretary, and does not understand, how the machine works. So he goes to John, the engineer. Then they start writing. The engineer is speaking, Peter is writing. But Peter has just learned, that he can write in Word. He has never heard about indents, fixed tabulators, columns and so on. And so we gat a perfect written and formatted manual
Regards
Jerzy ▲ Collapse
| | | | Vito Smolej
Germany
Local time: 13:16
Member (2004)
English to Slovenian
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SITE LOCALIZER | text in images - my experience | Aug 1, 2006 |
They come in two flavours:
i) as text boxes
ii) burnt in into the image
Text boxes can be translated with CAT - because they ARE text -. In case of Trados - my experience - the program does not see them, except if you open them explicitely.
I do not know, if this kind of text does get included in the word count. Pls note, that it takes (much) longer to find them, open them etc compared to usual textual segments. Sometimes you need to resize them so ... See more They come in two flavours:
i) as text boxes
ii) burnt in into the image
Text boxes can be translated with CAT - because they ARE text -. In case of Trados - my experience - the program does not see them, except if you open them explicitely.
I do not know, if this kind of text does get included in the word count. Pls note, that it takes (much) longer to find them, open them etc compared to usual textual segments. Sometimes you need to resize them so actually see what you are writing etc, a can of worms in other words -.
In the second case I overlay the original with a text box that includes the translated text. This way the customer can change the fonts and/or position.
If this is beyond my pain limit in terms of volume, I talk it over with the client. I had cases where this kind of work cost me more in time than the complete text I got to translate.
Hope it helps
regards
Vito ▲ Collapse
| | | | Kevin Pfeiffer (X)
Germany
Local time: 13:16
German to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | Re: Editing text in Word images | Aug 1, 2006 |
[I've found that subject lines like "thanks" are not very useful when searching through the archives here.]
Jerzy,
Many thanks for the very quick response. I will keep this all in mind and adjust my price estimate accordingly.
I still wonder how this can happen, but maybe the answer is that I should sit down and try to create some "pictures" in Word myself.
-Kevin
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Jerzy Czopik
Germany
Local time: 13:16
Member (2003)
Polish to German
+ ...
| How this can happen | Aug 1, 2006 |
This is just a thought out scenario, but with very high probability, that it can happen this way.
Why double or tripple text-boxes? Because when you copy a text box, using for example ctrl+c and then press ctrl-v it lasts a moment until the text box is placed. The more complex the image is and the slower the PC the longer it takes. So the user tempts to hurry the PC and presses ctrl+v again and again...
Why splitted in many text boxes? Well, because our Peter has not learned, ... See more This is just a thought out scenario, but with very high probability, that it can happen this way.
Why double or tripple text-boxes? Because when you copy a text box, using for example ctrl+c and then press ctrl-v it lasts a moment until the text box is placed. The more complex the image is and the slower the PC the longer it takes. So the user tempts to hurry the PC and presses ctrl+v again and again...
Why splitted in many text boxes? Well, because our Peter has not learned, that you can make the text box not only wider, but also higher...
TBH I cannot understand why so many people use tabulator instead of indent, hard return at line end, spaces to adjust text and so many other "tricks" to make the file looking like they want it to. For me it is much easier to set up an indent, make the line narrower if necessary, press "ctrl+shift+space" to get a nonbrakable space where things shall be kept together, set up a document with two columns where necessary instead of using of all the "tricks" I daily find in files comming from outside.
You may ready between the lines, that I´m frustrated - indeed I am. I´m daily frustrated with texts comming to translate, and segmented like that:
"hexagonal(br)
screw"
Then the customer says "do not change anything" - and the translation into Polish is perfect! Recently we had a similar case here, posted by Vito. The polish translation for the above would read "hexagonal" = "screw", and "screw" = "hexagonal", because the order in Polish is changed... Now imagine, what happens, when there will be a term:
"hexagonal(br)
nut"...
And something like this happens all the time...
Regards
Jerzy
PS
Sorry, this is no real explanation why, but just a summarison on what happens and how it is caused.
[Edited at 2006-08-01 12:33] ▲ Collapse
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