Trancestris User Guide
Trancestris is a translation editor. It has been created by one of the Ancestris developers, Dominique, a.k.a. "Lemovice".
This tool is easy to use, does not require any knowledge of any sort, and produces translation files that Ancestris can use immediately.
Install and launch Trancestris
We assume you have Java installed on your computer. Otherwise please first read the instructions to install Java.
Then you download Trancestris from here.
You get a file called trancestris.zip that you have to unzip in the directory of your choice.
Then you go to the trancestris/bin directory and run transcetris if you use MacOS ou Linux, or you run trancestris.exe if you use Windows.
Start with Trancestris
The first time you run Transcestris, the following window appears.
Trancestris asks you to download the translation files.
These files are zipped inside the Ancestris_Bundles.zip file. Please do not modify this name.
In the second field, choose a directory where you would like to store the translations.
Trancestris also asks you which translation you will produce. By default, it suggests English to French. You may change both languages but we recommand you to start from either the English of the French version.
Then click OK.
Trancestris displays the Tip of the Day. Click "Next" to see other tips or else "Close" to start working with Transcestris.
Trancestris then downloads the Ancestris_Bundles.zip file. Once done, if everything went ok, you should have the following message.
Click "Ok".
E-mail setting
Once you have translated a file for Ancestris, you will need to send it to us.
In order for Transcestris to send us your work, Trancestris will first ask you to set-up your email configuration.
Click "OK". The following email settings window appears.
Please fill in the following fields:
- Your name as Firstname and Lastname
- Your email address
- The outward mail server address (SMTP): this depends on your internet provider.
- Encryption : in general, you will check the box "no encryption"
- SMTP port : in general, 25 is used
- Check the box "server requires authentication" depending on your SMTP provider
That's it. You can start translating.
Translating
Transcestris workspace looks lilke the following.
The window above shows a tree-like structure on the left hand side, and sentences to translate on the right hand side.
If you are beggining with translation work, just a little advice : do not try to translate a whole lot immediately.
Try it first with a small file, so we can set you up and test the whole translation cycle.
Once you receive our confirmation that it wen well, download the translation file again. It should include the work you already did. Start from this new file to continue.
The tree-like structure on the left hand side is where you will select a file to translate and see the coverage of the work you already achieved.
To select a file to translate, unfold the directories until you get to the files.
If a directory is red, it includes translation files still to be translated.
If a directory is blue, no translation remains to be done.
Once you select a file, the sentences that it includes will appear on the right hand side.
A file corresponds to a given functionnality of Ancestris and therefore, all sentences within a file should deal with the same topic.
Some sentences may be in red, black or blue.
- Red sentences are to be translated
- Black sentences have already been translated.
- Blue sentences are spelt the same in both languages and deserve to be checked.
If a sentence is not to be translated, Trancestris will not let you modify it.
To actually modify a sentence, write it at the bottom of the screen and click OK when finished. Then proceed to the next sentence.
Tip : it might be a good idea to have Ancestris open at the same time on your computer so you can see what functionality you are currently translating.
HTML tags
HTML tags should be left untranslated at the positions they have in the sentence.
HTML tags are word starting with "<" and ending with ">". For instance, you may find "<html>" and "<br>".
"<html>" is the start of an HTML text. "<br>" represents a line break.
For instance, you may find the following sentence to translate :
<html>Please click on OK</html>If you had to translate it in French, you would write:
<html>Veuillez cliquer sur OK</html>You see, both HTML tags "<html>" and "</html>" have been left where they were.
Send your translation
To send us your translation, click the icon with the little envelop.
A message window will appear. Fill in the fields and tell us your message.
Click "Send" when completed. Trancestris will create a zipped file including all the files you have translated since your last download.
For instance, if you translate from English to Italian, the file Ancestris_Bundles_it.zip will be created next to your downloaded file Ancestris_Bundles.zip.
This Ancestris_Bundles_it.zip file contains the modified files which will be sent to us.
In case the automatic send does not work, just send this file manually to us.
If the sending is successful, you should see the following confirmation message.
You may then close Transcestris.
In case try to close Transcestris before sending us the translation work, you will see the following message.
You may ignore this message and click "No".
Checking your translation has been included in Ancestris
Once you have sent us the translation files, please wait for our confirmation that it did make it into Ancestris before continuing the translation work.
Your translation file are manually integrated into the code of transcetris.
Every night, Ancestris is compiled and all translations received from all translators during the day are integrated into the software.
The following morning, your translation has been integrated and the new translation file is available.
You can check Ancestris if your work is visible in the software.
Then you can download the new translation file and continue translating.
For that, just start Transcestris which will detect the change and offer to download the new translation file.
Delayed sending
If you want to keep working on some translation and send thel another day, make sure you save your work
If you saved your work and closed Trancestris without sending it to us, DO NOT download the translation file again when you reopen Transcestris, otherwise it would overwrite the file where your modifications have been made.
Trancestris will warn you, but we prefer to tell you so you do not waste your efforts.
Tip : regardless of the quantity of translations you did, it is preferable to send it to us before you close Trancestris.