Chapter 8. OmegaT Files and Directories
Prev |  | Next

## Chapter 8. OmegaT Files and Directories

OmegaT works with three types of files.

- Translation project files: These constitute a translation project. Losing 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 deal with on a daily basis while translating.

- User settings files: These are created when OmegaT's behavior is modified by user preference settings. Losing them usually results in OmegaT reverting to its "factory settings". This can sometimes cause a little trouble when you are in the middle of a translation.

- Application files: These are included in the package you download. Most of them are required in order for OmegaT to function properly. If for some reason these files are lost or corrupted, simply download and/or reinstall OmegaT to restore them all.

## 1. Translation project files

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

### 1.1. Translation project files location

When you create a translation project, OmegaT automatically creates a list of folders that will later serve as files repositories, and a number of files that are used to set certain project preferences and to hold the project translation memory. By default, a translation project's folders are all grouped under the main project folder. Alternate locations for some of the folders can be chosen at project creation or during the translation. It is therefore possible to select existing folders or create folders in locations that reflect your work flow and project management habits. To change the location of folders after a project has been created, open Project > Properties... in the menu or with Ctrl+E and make the necessary changes.

### 1.2. Translation project files list

When you open a file dialog opened by OmegaT, a translation project will look like a file with an OmegaT icon associated with it. From within a file manager, however, a translation project looks and acts just like any other folder.

Figure 8.1. OmegaT projects and subdirectories

Double clicking the item with the OmegaT icon is sufficient 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:

Figure 8.2. OmegaT project

All the subdirectories will be initially empty.

### 1.3. Omegat

The omegat subfolder contains at least one and possibly several other files. The most important file is the translation memory file, project_save.tmx (...). The project_save.tmx file 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 (...) are added progressively to this subfolder as the translation progresses. They serve as a backup for the project TM. A new one is created each time you reopen a project, thus reflecting its contents before the current session has changed them.

The project stats.txt file (...) contains the statistics of the current project and can be opened in a spreadsheet application to display segment and word count information. The file contains the number of segments for each file to be translated - Total and Remaining - the number of Unique segments per file, the number of Unique words and the number of Unique Characters with / without spaces per file.

Note that Unique segments per file provides the number of unique segments in a given file that do not appear anywhere else in the project. The unique words or characters per file have a similar definition. Note that in a multi-file project the sum of unique segments per file will not necessary be equal to the grand total of unique segments in the project.

The ignored_words.txt and learned_words.txtfiles are used by the spell checker. Note that they are specific for a given project, so if you have already amassed words you wish the spell checker to ignore / accept, you just need to copy the corresponding two files into the `omegat`subfolder of your current project.

### 1.4. Source files

The source subfolder is the location for project files that need to be translated. You can specify a new subfolder and add the files to it later. Note that the structure of the source subfolder may take any form you like. If the files to be translated are parts of a tree structure (as in a website), you need only specify the top-level subfolder and OmegaT will maintain the entire contents, while keeping the tree structure intact.

### 1.5. Target files

When Project → Create Translated Documents (Ctrl+D) is selected, all the files within the `source` directory, whether translated or not, are reproduced in the target directory with the same folder hierarchy to reflect the current state of the translation. In practical terms, OmegaT merges the translation information saved in /omegat/project_save,tmx with the source documents to produce the target contents.

### 1.6. omegat.project

OmegaT automatically creates this file when the project is created and 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). They constitute the exported translation memories that you can use in future projects.

## 2. User files

### 2.1. User files location

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

Windows 2000 and XP | `Documents and Settings\<User Name>\Application Data\OmegaT`
Windows Vista and 7 | `Users\<User Name>\AppData\Roaming\OmegaT`
Windows 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)
MAC OSX | `<User Home>/Library/Preferences/OmegaT`
Other | `<User Home>`

### 2.2. User files list

logs/OmegaT.log | This file records Java error messages while OmegaT is running. Should OmegaT appear to be behaving erratically, it is important to include this file or the relevant part in any bug report
omegat.prefs | An xml file with all the GUI accessible option settings
uiLayout.xml | An xml file with window position data
filters.xml | An xml file with all the data set by the file filter preferences
segmentation.conf | An xml file containing segmentation rules

## 3. Application files

OmegaT is supplied as a package that can be downloaded from SourceForge. This chapter 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. The platform-independent package can be used on any platform with a working Java 1.5 runtime environment, including the platforms for which a specific package also exists. The platform-independent package is supplied as a compressed file (zip or tar archive) that you must extract to the folder of your choice for installation. The file can usually be extracted by double-clicking on the downloaded package. Once the archive has been extracted, a folder containing the following contents is created:

File/ subfolder | Contents
/docs/ | All the user manual files can be found in this folder. You can open them in An Internet browser to obtain access to external links.
/images/ | Icons and logo graphics are included here.
/lib/ | Contains Java files, necessary to the operation of OmegaT.
join.html | This is an ordinary html file that, when opened in your Internet browser, directs you to the OmegaT user group hosted on Yahoo Groups. Joining is not necessary, but will provide you with access to additional services, such as files, questionnaires, and the opportunity to take part in OmegaT-related discussions. The group archives are public and can be viewed without 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, read this document carefully and ensure you understand its implications before doing anything. If in doubt, don't hesitate to ask project members directly either by sending them an e-mail from the SourceForge 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 launching OmegaT. It includes general information on OmegaT, where to find more information, how to contribute, etc. It has been translated into a number of languages.
OmegaT | A text file containing two lines:
| `#!/bin/bash java`
| `java -jar OmegaT.jar $*`
| Linux and OSX users may find this file useful. Make it executable (chmod +x OmegaT) from the command line after making sure you are in the /OmegaT_2.3/ directory. You will then be able to launch OmegaT by executing 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 must launch this file either from the command line or from your file manager, usually by double-clicking it.

Prev |  | Next
Chapter 7. File Filters | Home | Chapter 9. Files to translate