Copy fails to copy all selected in Paratext 8.0 Linux

Question

I am using in ParaTExt 8.0 Linux. When I select a whole paragraph from the Handbook to paste into a note only part of what I selected is copied. My work around is to select the paragraph in ParaTExt 7.5 Linux copy and paste where there is no problem. But this will not be a long term solution. Is this a bug?

Answer 1

In Paratext 8.0, you are restricted to copying 200 (I think) characters at a time in resource texts. This is not a bug.

Comments

It would be nice if Paratext told you: “I’m sorry, this is a restricted resource. Copying is limited to small amounts of text”

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Why is there this restriction? I can find most of the versions online and copy much more than 200 characters. We have this awesome program for translators that puts all of the resources in one program, but then we have restrictions that are not encountered by online sites. I use the Handbooks a lot and have to copy parts longer than 200 characters for notes and for email discussions with colleagues and consultants. What are the publishers afraid of? They have been so generous to give it to us translators and then they put a big limit on it…

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One elegant solution would be a feature where you can link to a certain location in a resources instead of copying text from one PT project to another.

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Would it work for you to copy from Handbooks in Translator’s Workplace
(TW)? Logos TW is nice in that it includes reference information (author,
title, page number, etc.). It’s maybe a bit of a kludge, but I haven’t
found any restriction copying from TW in Logos to Paratext (though I’m
still using PT 7.5 and not 8.0; kind of glad about that now, since I do
copy and paste a fair bit from commentaries into my Notes).

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I do copy now from TW most of the time, but the Handbook for Numbers is not in TW.

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anon776938:

Why is there this restriction? I can find most of the versions online and copy much more than 200 characters.

It is mostly a result of people posting on this site various ways to copy a resource from Paratext 7 so they can use it in Paratext 8 (illegally). The first response was to limit the view to a chapter, but people continued to point out they could still copy the entire resource if they took the time to copy each chapter.

The Paratext product owner decided it’s best to just make it nearly impossible to do this type of copying, so the restriction to only copy 200 characters at a time was added.

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anon329004:

So the request for all the translators who also prepare sermons in their locale that we would be increase the 200 character limit,

This limit was suggested by my management. I can go back to them and ask for a larger limit if someone can describe the need in terms of translation requirements. We did not tell the people that are providing resources that we planned on supporting sermon preparation with their texts.

It is simple for us to make the limit bigger. The problem is that if someone takes advantage of a big limit to do something a resource owner does not like, we may lose access to the resource. And if word gets out that this happens regularly we could lose access to lots of resources.

One “bad” thing about allowing copying resources from Paratext is that you can copy them in a format that is suitable for typesetting … that is less true on the web.

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Is there a concern that one might copy a Bible translation or the UBS Handbooks and publish them? Has that happened with Bibles or the kids of resources that are in PT? Is there a way to make it so that copying text only copies the text and not the SFM’s if that is the difference from copying from online sites? Thanks for looking at this!!!

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I first raised this question because as reviewer I wanted to share the
excellent comments of the Handbook on a particular translation issue
with the translators. I had been doing this in Paratext 7 where there
was no such restriction. One project I am involved with is still using 7
as they are almost finished and it did not make sense to migrate.
However the other project I am involved in as reviewer migrated to 8 and
it was then that I noticed the restriction. I can’t see how you could
change it using an arbitrary number of characters and get it right for
my purposes. If it were restricted to the comments on one verse in the
Handbook or one verse in another resource, this would be usable.
anon290504
The Translation Trust

Answer 2

I almost started a new topic, but then I saw this one.
I was to prepare a sermon the other day and I wanted to cut and paste to my sermon notes from PT 8 Resources. This included one “vernacular” which for me was a Trade Language as a Resource (our trade language is under revision at the moment). But there is this extreme limit off 200 characters on anything you select, which sometime barely covers a verse. You can highlight a large text, but it instantly shrinks to the 200 chars when you actually copy.

I realize that royalties and such might an on issue here, but even the NIV Zondervan would easily allow me to cut and paste whole sections of their work, for a sermon prep and I would not be in violation of their normal copyright agreements.

So the request for all the translators who also prepare sermons in their locale that we would be increase the 200 character limit, which I can imagine is an easy change in software for PT 8. To say, “go to the Internet” sort of defeats the purpose of an off-line tool, which is PT 8’s strength.
-B