CatScribe Docs

#Getting Started

This guide explains the shortest path from installation to a reviewed first translation, and gives you a working map of the app.

CatScribe works best when you treat translation as a workflow, not a single button. The basic flow is:

Import -> Chunk -> Translate -> Review -> Refine -> Export

#Before You Begin

Know which workflow your file belongs to — they are separate screens with separate rules:

Content Screen Accepted files Size limit
Short text snippets Quick Translate Pasted text 8,192 characters
Books and documents File Translation PDF, DOCX, EPUB 50 MB
Subtitles Subtitle Translation SRT, VTT (UTF-8) 5 MB
Video with subtitles Subtitle Translation MP4, MKV, AVI, MOV, WebM 500 MB

These limits are enforced — files above them are rejected at upload. Settings shows the same summary under "Upload limits": "Documents up to 50MB · Subtitles up to 5MB · Videos up to 500MB."

For your first run, prepare:

  • A small source file: one chapter, a few pages, or a short subtitle file.
  • Your source and target languages.
  • Optionally, a few glossary terms for names, places, or technical vocabulary.

#First Launch Setup

The first time you open CatScribe, a setup wizard runs:

  1. Welcome — pick the interface language and theme.
  2. Privacy — consent choices for usage analytics, crash reports, and diagnostic logs. All telemetry is opt-in and off by default; you can also accept the terms here.
  3. "Choose Translation Engine" — pick which local engine to set up:
    • "Argos Translate" (badge "Recommended") — "Open-source translation with Python. Installed automatically on first launch."
    • "MarianMT / NLLB" — "Fast, high-quality neural translation. Built into the app—no extra services to install."
  4. Installing — the wizard sets up the engine and any language packs you selected. It can also offer optional installs such as COMET quality scoring and AI subtitle detection.

The engine you pick here becomes your Preferred Offline Provider — the engine that runs whenever "Offline Translation" is selected. You can change it later in Settings.

Depending on the release you installed, downloading language packs on first run may require an internet connection. See Installation for details and download sizes.

#The App At A Glance

The sidebar has three groups. A guided tour of all of this is available anytime from the top bar's start-guide button.

#Workspace

  • Translations — your job history: progress, status, output files, and the Pause / Resume / Retry controls.
  • Glossaries — create term lists that keep names and terminology consistent.
  • Providers — install and manage local AI models (the screen itself is titled "AI Models"), see your hardware profile, and check Ollama / LM Studio status.

#App

  • Settings — one searchable page with category chips: All, General, Translation, Providers, Cloud, Performance, Advanced, Diagnostics, About.
  • Support — send a bug report, feature request, or feedback ticket directly from the app.
  • About — version, credits, privacy policy, and terms.

#Simple And Advanced Modes

The top bar's rightmost button toggles the global interface mode. New installs start in Simple mode, which keeps engine choices minimal: one "Offline Translation" option (the app runs your configured local engine behind it) plus "Google (Free)". Advanced mode lists every engine individually — "Argos (Local)", "LibreTranslate (Local)", "MarianMT (Local)", "NLLB (Local)", and "Google (Free)".

Nothing is lost by staying in Simple mode. The engine actually used is always shown next to the Offline Translation option ("Currently using"), and you can change it under Settings → Providers → "Preferred Offline Provider".

See Simple vs Advanced Mode for details.

#Auto Mode

Separate from the global interface mode, File Translation and Subtitle Translation each have a per-job "Auto Mode" toggle (OFF by default). With Auto Mode ON, the form collapses to just Quality + Source Language + Target Language (+ Output Format for documents), and CatScribe picks the engine, chunk size, and AI refinement layers for you based on the quality level and your hardware:

  • Fast — speed first; base translation only.
  • Balanced — recommended for most translations; adds AI validation and rewrite.
  • Maximum (documents) / Max Quality (subtitles) — adds a technical review layer; highest resource usage.

See Auto Mode for what each preset decides.

#Your First Run, Step By Step

  1. Install CatScribe by following Installation.
  2. Complete the First Launch Setup wizard and let the engine install finish.
  3. Sanity-check the engine in Quick Translate: type a sentence, pick languages, click "Translate now".
  4. Open File Translation, upload a short document, choose languages, and click "Start Translation".
  5. Watch progress in the "Translation Progress" panel, or from the Translations screen.
  6. Review the result chunk by chunk in the CAT Editor.
  7. Open the exported file and confirm formatting survived.

The full walkthrough with every screen and button is in First Translation.

#Mental Model

CatScribe is closer to a translation workstation than a simple web translator. It helps you:

  • Break long content into reviewable chunks.
  • Keep terminology consistent with glossaries.
  • Fix individual segments without retranslating the whole project (see Chunk Overrides).
  • Refine rough output with AI while keeping human review in control.
  • Work offline: local engines never send your text anywhere.

#Improve Early Quality

  • Add key names and fixed terms in Glossaries before translating, and attach the glossary group to the job.
  • Translate chapter-sized batches instead of the whole book at once.
  • Use the CAT Editor to compare source and target text side by side.
  • Use Improve With AI for segments that are accurate but awkward.
  • Re-run only affected chunks after glossary or editing changes.

#What Next