New features of SDL Trados Studio 2009

In the first half of 2009, SDL is going to release the new version of their leading translation memory software - namely, SDL Trados Studio 2009 (codenamed “Rivelin”). This new version is going to be a completely new product. At last, we will see some real efforts put in the development and progress of the language technologies. So far, the recent versions of Trados introduced just minor modifications as to make it compatible with other products like the operating system, MS Office applications, the new versions of the file formats, etc.

SDL Trados Studio 2009 Editor

SDL TradosSudio 2009 EditorXLIFF will be the actual translation format from now on. You can still open TTX files created in previous versions. The new projects in the XLIFF format however will be  no longer compatible with the previous Trados versions. The TM exchange format TMX will continue to be supported.

This time the things are different. We will see a real development. Here are some of the new features and capabilities of SDL Trados Studio 2009:

  • An unified interface - no more Translation Workbench + TagEditor or Word, everything will be in a single application - SDL Trados Studio. All file filters, project management tasks, and the actual translation work will be done in the same window.
  • A two-column view in the translation editor just like SDLX, Idiom, Déjà Vu or Accross with a stronger orientation toward WYSIWYG mode. The placeables and term hits in the source sentence are presented like in Workbench (blue and red lines) and the upper case words work now as placeables.
  • A live preview capability enabling the user to see the changes that are being performed in the translation editor pane.
  • The translation memories will be stored in MS SQLite databases (for the freelance editions of SDL Trados Studio).
  • The TTX format will be replaced by XLIFF and
  • The termbase exchange standard TBX (more info here) will now be supported.
  • Real-time quality assurance features will be supported, which means that the errors will be displayed as you translate.
  • The AutoSuggest feature will interactively suggest terms as you type, drawing terms from the content within the translation memory. The freelance version of SDL Trados Studio will not be able to build the AutoSuggest dictionaries but will be able to use externally created ones. When you begin typing the translation text a little drop-down menu appears under the cursor suggesting possible word choices.
  • The PerfectMatch feature (i.e. in-context matching) will be now available in the freelance edition but it will leverage the matches from the existing translation memory, not from the previously translated files.

Only the time will show how the new system will influence the translator’s working habits and the translation technology market.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 2nd, 2009 at 12:03 and is filed under News, Translation Memory. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.