Maintained by: Webmaster mailto:webmaster@atlasti.de

Product: ATLAS.ti for Windows 4.2 (build 58, 59)

By David Leiser. The short answer is "Yes". You can analyze Hebrew texts, using for instance Word in the way outlined in the general instructions use large enough font (say 12pt or preferably rather more) and save your text as Text only with Linebreaks (wording varies slightly according to versions). You can also use codes and memos in Hebrew, typing from right to left.
To do so, you must select an appropriate font (such as Arial) and the appropriate script (Hebrew). This must be done for every type of object (PD, Lists, Codes, Memos etc)
There are several minor limitations and difficulties.

The first is not yet important, but may become so in the future XML export does not work with the current sheets provided by Thomas Muhr, as the Hebrew characters will be transformed into various accented symbols. This can be solved, and I did some work on this under the guidance of Thomas (thanks, Thomas!) As I have no current use for XML, I did not pursue this further.
A second drawback is that when you open your files in Atlas, they are left aligned. This is annoying to a surprising extent. Nothing to be done about this for now, save waiting for the next version, and perhaps lobbying Thomas...

The one serious limitation is on screen marking of PD. In some informatic sense, the program does not realize the text is Right to Left (Windows handles this part, not Atlas). Accordingly, if you intend to select, and color, say, the first 3 letters of a line, it is the last 3 letters that will be selected.

Solutions

With some practice (perhaps also the use of a pocket mirror?) this can be done anyways, but is a major pain, and worth bothering with only is unusual cases.
You can use the search or auto-coding function to code just what you want.
Do nothing - this is my option of choice. My recommendation is to make all quotations consist of one or several whole lines. Doing so finesses the problem completely, and is acceptable for most of the people almost all of the time. Indeed, while marking single words may be useful when you use colored markers, in Atlas you would normally want some context. If the grain of your analysis is fine, you may consider enlarging the fonts in the Word stage, so as to have shorter lines.

1. From the main menu choose Codes/Output/PrintCodes with Comments.

2. Via Web Publishing: This method even generates some "pretty print" formatting. However, you should have a web browser available to display and print the result:

Open the Extras/HTML Preferences
Deselect all options
In the Codes tab select Summary and Full description...
Close the Prefs dialog
Select Extras/Export/HTML
Save it to a file and display and print it using your Web browser.
If you select "Bullets" in step 3 in addition, you can even click & jump from a listed code to its comment inside the web browser.

3. Via XML (ATLAS.ti release >= 4.2.58): Codes/Miscellaneous/Export Codes (XML)
By applying one of the provided XSL style sheets you can create some nifty reports in your Internet Explorer. Check the XML folder or our XML page www.atlasti.de/xmlsample/xmlsamples.htmlfor examples.

Upgrading is recommended not only because it offers a variety of improved and added functionality, but also because it addresses problems detected.
If your current version is already on 4.2.59, there is currently no need to upgrade. To find out how to determine your current version visit the service pack web page below.

Despite the attempts to define standards, a multitude of different "dialects" for graphic formats creates confusion. Do not use "progressive encoding" when creating JPG files. Use "standard encoding" instead. Existing images should be converted by loading them into a graphic program like "Paint Shop Pro" (shareware) and storing them with the correct encoding type selected.

Symptom: A HU which previously loaded fine does not load anymore. An error message "Key is missing: String ('CONTINUE')" is displayed.

Cause: After merging a (source) HU which contains new user defined relations these are not made persistent within the target HU. Saving this result of the merge does succeed. However, loading does not.

Solution: Install upgrade to build 61.

To upgrade your current version of ATLAS.ti, please visit our web site and follow the instructions from the service pack download page: www.atlasti.de/srvpck.shtml

ATLAS.ti currently runs under Windows only. However, add-on cards and emulators for the Mac like VirtualPC work well. All you need is a running Windows 95/98/Me/NT 4/Windows 2000/XP system on your Mac. Of course, with a hardware solution (card) the software will run faster.

To get an impression how it runs on your system download the demo and give it a try.

As ATLAS.ti does not attempt to replace system related files, installation and running ATLAS.ti under Windows 2000/XP (W2K) does not create special problems. However, it is recommended, that you have the latest upgrade installed.
Please note, that W2K itself contains a large number of bugs which have not yet been addressed.

To upgrade your current version of ATLAS.ti, please visit our web site and follow the instructions from the service pack download page: www.atlasti.de/srvpck.shtml

Symptom: although a document has been assigned to the Hermeneutic Unit, has already been worked with (coded, etc) and it is displayed in the list of primary documents, it cannot be accessed anymore. An error is displayed: 'not found'. But relax: this situation is not severe and can easily be rectified.

Cause: The original location of the missing primary document has changed since its assignment or the HU has been moved to another place (another computer?) where it cannot "see" the Primary Documents anymore.
It is important to understand the relation between a Hermeneutic Unit and the assigned primary documents which resembles the linked resources in the World Wide Web. The Hermeneutic Unit does not include any PD but refers to a primary document through the file name and path of the latter.
So whenever contents of the PD are needed (for display, to be searched, autocoded, word crunched, etc) it first loads the primary document from its location. This location is registered within the HU at the time the PD was assigned.
What is the consequence of this concept? First, a complete project is not a single file, but the HU plus all the primary documents it refers to. More important, especially in multi-user contexts, such "shared" PDs can be used my more than one HU without the need to copy any primary documents. Quite naturally, any PD needed during your work (if you are only creating network views, you dont neccessarily need the PDs) must be accessible.

How can an attempt to load a primary document fail?

The primary document was deleted.
The primary document was renamed.
The primary document was moved to another location, eg. from a:\interview1.txt to c:\textbank\interview1.txt.
The location is not available because
the files are on a remote server and the LAN connection is not currently up
the primary documents were originally assigned from a removable media, like floppies, ZIP, Jazz or CD-ROM drives and the media is not in its drive.
the Hermeneutic Unit was carried to another computer where either the original folders are missing or the primary document files had not been carried along.

Solutions: in general you have to take care that all references from a HU can be resolved. To prevent such a situation, whenever you need to copy your project as a whole, use Extras/Copy Bundle. This procedure collects and copies the HU along with all primary documents (and outsourced memos which are another species of external files the Hermeneutic Unit might need).
When you find that a PD cannot be loaded, you can

Check the current reference by selecting the primary document ignoring the error message and select Documents/Miscellaneous/Change Path from the main menu.
If you find, that the path and/or file name has to be modified to refer to the correct file, do so.

During original assignment, the complete path and filename is registered. There are a few useful "tricks" to make this assignment more flexible:

When you remove the path prefix from the complete reference (e.g. d:\my texts\interview1.txt ==> interview1.txt), ATLAS.ti will always search for this primary document in the standard Textbank directory.
When you put an > before the file name (no path!) it will search for this PD in the same directory the HU resides in (you can also use Documents/Miscellaneous/Use HU Path for the same result). Of course you have to save the HU after such modifications.

The most flexible method of making primary documents available on different machines, networks, etc is to create an external mapping file, which maps non-existing paths or paths in which the PDs cannot be found to alternative locations.
This method has the great advantage, that it does not need any modification of the original references within the HU. This approach allows an unaltered HU to be carried to different work places with different directory structures and drive names.
You only have to create a map file for each computer you are working at. Since build 58, a comfortable mapping tool is available.

Find additional information in the full manual on the CD or the online help system under Miscellaneous/Pack & Go, Primary Document Mapping and The Textual Level/Primary Document Management. In addition read the description of the new PD mapping tool in file www.atlasti.de/downloads/manadd.pdf which is either on your CD (or available after installation from the Scientific Software folder) or part of the service pack.

To create a code family that is the negated version of another code family do:

Open the code family browser (CFB).
Open another code family browser (this should not be possible, but well, lets make the best of this "feature").
Select the code family to be inverted in CFB 1
Create a new code family ("rest-of-XXX") in browser 2.
Select in CFB 2 exactly those codes which you see in the non-members list of CFB 1.
Assign these codes to the new family

If the size of the rest-category is not very large, this is a feasible method.

Do the following:

Select the quotation to merge.
Choose Quotations/Miscellaneous/Merge Quotations
Select one or more quotations to be merged

If you do not see a menu item Merge Quotations you get a free upgrade from our web site at www.atlasti.de (Service Pack section)

We are working on this very complex topic, as splitting a code is not simply creating two new names. The links between codes, between codes and quotations, codes and memos, codes and families, network views etc., the codes comments must somehow be distributed among the split parts of the original code. Offering an easy user interface for this purpose is a bit of a challenge.

To split codes manually without a nice tool you could do as follows:

Open a focused network view on the code to be split (C1).
Import it's neighbors. You should not have masses of other codes, memos, code families, and quotations connected to this code, otherwise it is getting to cumbersome.
Select all codes, memos, families and quotations of C1, which are to be associated with C2.
Select Links/Link Nodes from the NWE's menu
Click C2 (you might have to enter the relation type upon the relinking of code neighbors)
Select Links/Cut Links from the menu (all relevant nodes were still selected).
Click on C1. You have now redirected some original links from C1 to C2.
Look into C1's comment and copy all or parts into C2's comment.
Repeat steps 3 to 8 for C2 or any other new codes to be split-codes of the original.
Delete C1

The method above allows full control over the split process, but agreed: it would not be bad if it was a bit less awkward... Better try this method on a few examples before messing up the real work.

Symptom: When trying to work with multimedia files (audi, video) an error occurs or nothing happens.

Cause: ATLAS.ti uses the standard multimedia in ATLAS.ti works by accessing the standard Windows Media Control Interface (MCI). The problem with this standard is that some vendors install their software in a way that sometimes interferes with the correct settings of this interface. There are other programs which use this interface like PowerPoint and the MCI Media Player (NOT the Windows Media Player!).

Solution: Please have a look at article www.indezine.com/products/powerpoint/ppmultimedia.html about problems with PowerPoint's MCI access. These problems are almost identical to situations where ATLAS.ti cannot play MM files correctly. We have also prepared some information concerning MP3 file access in www.atlasti.de/mp3problems.htm.

To upgrade your current version of ATLAS.ti, please visit our web site and follow the instructions from the service pack download page: www.atlasti.de/srvpck.shtml In case of no success:

Contact our support line.

Select File/Output/Print with Margin from the main menu. If you do not have such an option, please upgrade your version of ATLAS.ti.

To upgrade your current version of ATLAS.ti, please visit our web site and follow the instructions from the service pack download page: www.atlasti.de/srvpck.shtml

To assert some influence on how a a document with margin is printed you should be aware of the settings you can modify:

First of all you can set the fonts for both the text area and the margin. You can also select the group of annotation objects to be displayed/printed.
Then you can change the printing to be done in landscape if the the margin needs to be wide to display all objects.
Change the number of objects by setting a filter. This can clean up the margin rather well (only makes sense if you do not need all the codes to be displayed).
A very effective setting is via Extras/General Preferences/Printing. If you switch off Auto Space Margin then you can control the relative width of the text and the margin via the splitter bar between them. With Auto Space switched on (default) the splitter is ignored and ATLAS.ti tries to create a best solution which is not always what you want. Note: this last option also handles the situation of too long lines which may shift the margin outside the printable area. Switching off Auto Margin solves this problem.

Symptom: when creating an output of quotations, it differs from the original formatting in the primary document.

Cause: By default, quotations are reformatted (all line breaks are removed and empty lines converted to line breaks) for output.

Solution: To specify otherwise, check Quotations/Output/Set Print Mode. This "switch" toggles between formatted and unformatted output of quotations.

Symptom: when creating an output of quotations, an error occurs: "Runtime Error: textPane not understood, see error.log file".

Cause: A primary document, a quotation is referring to, is not available. Although this should create an empty or dummy content for affected quotations, this should not generate an error. This was handled in version 4.2.

Solution: Make sure that all primary documents referred to by the Hermeneutic Unit are available (network down? floppy not in disk drive?). In addition, upgrade ATLAS.ti.

To upgrade your current version of ATLAS.ti, please visit our web site and follow the instructions from the service pack download page: www.atlasti.de/srvpck.shtml

Symptom: When running ATLAS.ti under Windows NT or Windows 2000/XP everything runs slower.
Cause: the current implementation of "bubblehelp" for toolbars does not work properly under NT
When you run SYSMON, you can watch that 100% processor capacity are used.
Workaround: in the main menu Views section disable Display Tooltips

Symptom: When running ATLAS.ti under Windows NT for some time, the display of infos by double clicking on objects in the margin area (hyperlinks etc) does not work anymore. After terminating and restarting the ATLAS.ti session everything seems to be fine again.

Cause: There is a conflict between screensavers, NT and ATLAS.ti. You will note, that this problem happens only AFTER a screensaver was activated.

Solution: in the main menu Views section select Refresh Screen after you notice this problem.

ATLAS.ti stands for "Archiv fuer Technik, Lebenswelt und Alltagssprache". Translated: archive for "technology, the life world and everyday language". The extension "ti" (pronounced TEE EYE) stands for text interpretation.
Project ATLAS (1989-1992) of Technical University of Berlin is the "birthplace" of a first prototype of the software.