memoQ blog

Terminology management in memoQ 8.4

Peter Reynolds
Peter Reynolds - 05/04/2018

6 minute read

Terminology-Management-memoQ-8-4-(1)

If you are keeping up to date with recent memoQ releases, you have probably noticed that much has been done to improve how memoQ and QTerm deal with terminology. 
memoQ 8.3 introduced several improvements to the user interfaces of the term extraction editor and QTerm, and how terminology is displayed in the translation pane. Released last week, memoQ 8.4 continues the same lead: out of the 17 new features, more than 50 percent – 9 features to be precise – are dedicated to boosting terminology management work. In this post, Zsolt Varga, the memoQ designer dealing with terminology, will introduce you to the recently developed functionalities and share insights on the back-stage process that led to this terminology spring in the last two memoQ versions. We started by asking Zsolt about the renewed interest in terminology at memoQ.
 

"In comparison to translation memories, whose impact, value and success are easy to see, measure and monetize, term bases are somewhat harder to grasp. Still, when carefully managed and maintained, term bases can directly improve productivity and create true business value.

We have always been proud of providing customers with terminology tools that are easy to use, update, maintain and integrate into various workflows. We have solid foundations in terminology management both in memoQ client and in QTerm. However, over the years, we have received many terminology-related feature requests and lots of feedback from our users, account managers and colleagues at memoQ. So, it was high time to address those issues and update our terminology offering.

Building on those solid foundations, we wanted to address the key terminology pain points of our customers. In addition, whenever we introduced changes or new features, we ensured that our brand new UX design team improved user experience and kept users’ needs in focus at all times."

The following are the 9 new features in memoQ 8.4 that target terminology management work:

  • Import & export term bases with images: Previously, only QTerm offered true export and import options with term bases with images. Now you can export and import term bases with images between memoQ, QTerm and SDL MultiTerm. From now on, memoQ will also remember your term base export settings.
  • Forbidden terms: It is now easier to identify forbidden terms in the Term Base Editor. In addition, forbidden terms exported to an XLSX spread sheet will be marked red. If an XLSX sheet is imported into memoQ, terms marked in red will be imported as forbidden terms.
  • Filters & QA settings: There are interesting changes in the way memoQ deals with Filters & QA settings. Marek Pawelec has recently written about this on the memoq.com website.
  • More effective stop word lists: In addition to offering default stop word lists in five more languages, the stop word list functionality itself has had a major overhaul, and we believe it is much more usable. There is an interesting post on stop word lists in Kevin Lossner’s blog Translation Tribulations.
  • Filter field in term extraction: memoQ 8.4 introduces a more user-friendly and more effective filter field on the term extraction screen.
  • Smart search settings in QTerm: QTerm now saves the settings from your last search into your user profile, and will use them the next time you log in.
  • Entry relationships in QTerm – If you establish a symmetrical (homonym, synonym, antonym, cohyponym) or an anti-symmetrical (hyponym, hypernym) entry relationship in one entry with another, the corresponding relationship is also created in the other entry.
  • Easy Term Search –  memoQ now offers memoQWeb external users simple and easy access to QTerm term bases for lookup.
  • Filtering Options – The "Begins with" filter condition and search option has been revamped and it now features a more user-friendly term matching interface.

 
Obviously, Zsolt and the memoQ development team have been busy. Since the release of memoQ 8.4, they have had a long Easter break and plenty of time to relax. But they are now back to work and preparing the next version. We asked them what is planned for the future?
 

"We will revisit and rework the whole concept and system of term base permissions as well as the terminology approval workflow. Meanwhile, our UX design team is planning to redesign QTerm to lend it a 21st century look and feel that matches our new brand identity. They are also planning to further improve user experience with the memoQ client.

On a more specific note, we will continue our efforts to facilitate a more integrated use of memoQ client and QTerm term bases. This will include the introduction of the “Example of use” field in QTerm, and the addition of a new default field in all term bases allowing our users to specify the source of a term. 

In response to the repeated requests of our LSP and enterprise customers, we plan to introduce more API functions. And, of course, we will refine existing and recently introduced terminology features based on the latest customer feedback."

 
One of the core ideas which memoQ has had for some time is to build on real-life experience. We asked Zsolt about this.
 

"My long history in the translation industry as a freelancer, in-house translator/reviewer, and project manager proved valuable not only in the actual design process, but also in the course of a series of user interviews I conducted with key opinion leaders in the freelancer community, as well as with our language service provider (LSP) and enterprise partners.

We are truly blessed to have a user community eager to contribute and make our products even better. Recently introduced, the memoQ Design Lab is planned to involve our users even more directly in the product design process via surveys, usability tests and more user interviews."

 
Finally, we asked Zsolt what the reaction has been to the new functionality from memoQ customers.
 

"Reaction to the new functionality has been, for the most part, very positive. Obviously, you cannot make everyone happy all at once, as our product development cycles are not driven by feature requests, even though those are carefully considered. User feedback has been especially positive about the redesigned interface and the new features introduced in the term extraction module – such as the improved stop word list functionality; extending term base export-import options to include Excel files and images; more effective filtering; and easier adding of usage examples. QTerm users were pleased about the many UX improvements, the customizable and editable glossary, and the more effective searching and filtering options. Most recently, our users have welcomed the option to select which term bases to use or not use for QA purposes in a project, a great productivity tool for translators."

 
I would like to end this post with a thought: since we first introduced memoQfest, it has grown into the ultimate forum to exchange ideas with users – freelancers and representatives from LSPs and enterprises from all over the world. Discussions and debates in memoQfest frequently led to the implementation of new functionality and even improving the way we do business. The conference is a great place to talk with other memoQ users as well as our design and development team. It will take place from 30th May to 1st June and it is another forum where you can give feedback on memoQ.
 


Zsolt Varga is a Product Owner at memoQ. He has 16 years of experience in the translation industry, having previously worked for Hungarian language service providers in various roles as in-house translator, reviewer, linguist and project manager. He still occasionally works on freelancer translation projects to continue to have first-hand translation experience and put the latest build of memoQ to the test in real-life situations. In his free time Zsolt likes to hike and travel with his family, swim, watch various motorsports programs and play racing simulation games.

Peter Reynolds

Peter Reynolds

memoQ co-CEO

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