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Introduction
You may sometimes wonder why there is a discrepancy in the number of words between the source file and XTM Metrics after project creation. This is because each CAT Tool or any other application operates according to its own set of rules. Wordcount is not exempted from such rules and tends to differ across various software. For example, whereas one application can count an email address as one word, another one can count is as three words. Wordcount in XTM is thus calculated “on its own terms”.
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Calculation of XTM wordcount as compared with other software
Algorithm for XTM wordcount
Not all CAT tools have a basic similar wordcount mechanism (please, note that Microsoft Office is not a CAT tool), actually, each CAT tool and any other application might be based on a different word count algorithm, as there are many.
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XTM wordcount vs Microsoft Office
In the vast majority of cases, clients compare the wordcount output between XTM and MS Office files. As was mentioned in the previous section, Microsoft Office is not a CAT tool, so the comparison of the two is with no rhyme or reason. What is more, if a given project is using a filter template, this may result in a higher or lower word count, as we might exclude or include some elements from and into translation.
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IMPORTANT!
Please, keep in mind that the vast majority of elements you wish to be extracted for translation can, in fact, be set up either by you or our XTM Support team.
If you want to more on the way XTM extracts content for translation from Office files, please, get familiar with the following article: How does the extraction of segments in MS Office files work (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)?
XTM allows you to create your own filter templates which are used to identify translatable text in a document of a specified Office format. Please, get familiar with the guideline: How to create a filter template in XTM UI and apply it to a project.
In case of any more complex filters, do not hesitate to contact our XTM Support team and provide the details. By requesting our help, make sure you follow the guidelines specified in this article: How to request a new configuration or a change of an existing one?
Additionally, learn about possible configuration levels from this article: How can a source file be processed and what are configuration levels?
XTM wordcount vs other CAT tools
We do not really take into consideration other CAT tools and how they treat words in particular. As was mentioned at the beginning, other CAT tools treat some of the words, formulas, etc. differently than we do at XTM. Copied elements, merged cells, semicolons between words, and commas can also be counted by every such tool differently.
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XTM Wordcount for Asian languages
XTM allows a user to take full control over the word count for Asian (Chinese-Japanese-Korean) languages. To alter the character per word ratio, please, go to (administrative privileges required!) Configuration → Settings → Translation → Metrics → Metrics calculations.
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