Order of files in virtual merge

Hi all,

 

I have a problem, one I am surprised by not having found any information in the internet, which seems quite strange as I believe my problem must have happened to a multitude of translators.

I now have Trados Studio 2017, but I believe this is not version-dependent. So here it goes.

 

I created a large project consisting on 14 smaller files which make up one manual, from the befinning to the end. I am a fanatic of virtual merge so I work opening all files at the same time, So far so good.

 

The problem lies in the order of “virtual merging”. I have noticed that the order of the files (I just copy pasted them from the Explorer window to the Files window in the relevant step when creating the project) does not match the natural order of the manual. I'd like to rearrange the files  so when I open them by “virtual merge”. they open in the right order and not in a random order they are.

 

I have to say that the 14 files have names that are not arranged numerically. For instance, one file is called Ship interior, another is called Ship exterior, another is Engines, etc. I mention this because their names are NOT Project1, Project2, Project3, etc. All in all, THE FILES ARE NOT LISTED CONSECUTIVELY.

Therefore, I need to be able to "virtual merge" this files in a particular order, or arrange them somehow so the virtual merging starts with the file named “Cover page” and not “Machinery”, and then goes to "Introduction", and not "Appendix". Any ideas of how to do so?

 

I mention I have been already working in this for 10 days so I'd rather not recreate the project if possible, unless it's the only way. :(

 

EDIT: I have discovered that if you pick the files one by one (in the Files tab), you can go any order you like using Control+Left click, and Trados will virtual merge the files in the order you selected them. That's rather annoyiing, as I have to do that each time I open Trados and I'd like this to stick.

 

Please help. I hope I explained the issue acceptably!

Parents Reply
  • To get the task done is not a out-of-box functions in Trados. I think you can prepare two batch script to handle the files which need to be merged. Copy all your files to a temporary directory. And use the cmd tool if your system is Windows. And simply rename command will solve you problem. The syntax of this command is "Rename  sourcefilename targetfilename". But firstly you need to enter the files location. If you have hundreds of files. Use the pipeline command "dir >1.txt" to get the files name list. And copy the file list into an excel file. And  then construct your rename batch script in the excel table. You can easily get what you need. And rule of the rename list can be reversed easily. Of course, if using a software to do the work will be much easier. But it is more flexible of using the batch script, you can handle all  the action logic by yourself.

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