Ways to open a client's translation file
A client sends an SDLXLIFF or an MQXLIFF and you do not have their tool. There are four kinds of answer. Here they are side by side, including where xliff.ai is the wrong one.
| Question | xliff.ai | Upload converters | Browser CAT platforms | Desktop CAT tools |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Where the file goes | Stays on your computer | Uploaded; kept for hours | Uploaded to the platform | Stays on your computer |
| Account | None | Usually none | Required | Licence |
| Install | None (a browser tab) | None | None | Windows install |
| Edit, confirm, export | Yes | Mostly view or convert | Yes | Yes |
| Trados and memoQ files | SDLXLIFF and MQXLIFF, written back byte for byte outside your edits | View or convert | Often imported, sometimes exported in another flavour | Native to their own tool |
| Memory and glossary | Your TMX and termbase, kept in your browser | No | Yes, on their servers | Yes |
| Machine translation / AI | With your own key, sent only to the provider you choose | No | Built in | Built in or add-on |
| Team work | No — one person, one file at a time | No | Yes | Yes, with a server |
| Cost | Free | Free | Free tier or subscription | Paid licence |
When xliff.ai is the right choice
One person, a file from a client's Trados or memoQ project, and a confidentiality clause that rules out uploading it. You translate or review, confirm, check, and send the same file back with its statuses, comments and match rates where they were.
When it is not
A team working on the same job at the same time needs a server, and xliff.ai has none by design. A full project — packages, many files, a shared memory — belongs in a CAT tool. And the round trip through real Trados Studio and memoQ has not been run yet; the bytes are tested, the vendor applications are not. See how it works.