The Memory of Knowledge: An Analytical Study on Translators’ Perceptions and Assessment of CAT Tools with Regard to Text Genre

Abstract

The use of the computer-aided translation (CAT) tools has been skyrocketingover the last two decades in the translation industry. Therefore, it has becomenecessary to measure user satisfaction based on two dimensions: text genre andyears of experience using such tools. The study aims at investigating veterantranslators’ perceptions about their best practices to get the best out of CATtools, some solutions to mitigate some issues and suggestions to optimize thefunctionality of this software. Furthermore, the study aims at highlighting themost frequent advantages and disadvantages and displaying translators’perception of the most highly-ranked linguistic issue in each text genre. It alsoanalyzes translators’ perceptions of the most influential factor that determinesthe effectiveness of CAT tools. This study is significant because it is based onhands-on experience and gives translators a broad overview on the feasibility ofthis software and brings attention to the functionality needed to be optimized byCAT developers. For the purposes of this descriptive study, a survey wasdistributed among a sample of English <> Arabic professional translators fromdifferent fields of specialization and with different years of experience using CATtools. The study found out that translators’ years of experience using CAT toolsdoes not affect their satisfaction with such tools while the field of specializationhas an effect on how translators are satisfied with CAT tools. Years of experiencematter when it comes to providing solutions and suggestions. Based on theattained findings, a number of solutions and suggestions are presented