[Tshwanelex-l] Public beta 64-bit Windows versions of TLex and tlTerm

[David Joffe]

We're pleased to announce release of the first public beta 64-bit 
Windows versions of TLex Lexicography Software and tlTerm 
Terminology Software (both in tlTerm Standalone, and as part of TLex 
Suite.)

Of course, the macOS line has already been on 64-bit for some time - 
this starts to bring the advantages of 64-bit to the Windows 
versions also.

Why 64-bit? The main advantage is it allows us to load extremely 
large dictionaries or terminology databases into memory all at once 
(eg larger than typically 2-4GB), such as the very large IATE EU TBX 
(termbase exchange) terminology data, or massive historical 
dictionaries.


(If you don't have requirements for working with such massive 
datasets (eg around 2GB or larger), then the 64-bit version won't 
bring any benefit to you, and in that case you can rather just stay 
on the 32-bit version for now. This is only of relevance and use for 
users with requirements for 'extremely large datasets'.)


To try out the new 64-bit version, just upgrade the usual way (eg 
via Help / Check for Updates or download the latest Setup from our 
website's Downloads section), and grab a version .2663 or higher.


Then after installation, under your Windows Start menu you should 
find *extra* additional new shortcuts (alongside the normal ones 
that invoke the 32-bit versions) that invoke the new 64-bit beta 
versions of TLex or tlTerm (i.e. so under your Windows Start menu 
you'll find TWO shortcuts for TLex (one labelled 64-bit), and two 
for tlTerm (one labelled 64-bit) ... the normal one that runs the 
current stable 32-bit official line, and then an extra shortcut that 
runs the 64-bit beta version. They are both installed together into 
the same installation folder - there is no 'separate release' for 
32-bit and 64-bit versions - just one big Setup that installs both 
versions together. They can both be run at the same.

You'll see on the application Start Page a new indicator that shows 
if you're running a 32-bit or 64-bit version.


(We've been able to support huge datasets in the past of course, 
e.g. Enciclopedia Catalana, via effectively loading in only subsets 
of the data at a time that you're working with; this new 64-bit 
release line though allows the entire dictionary or terminology 
database to be loaded at once, which brings various advantages, and 
also allows us to load e.g. the IATE EU TBX flies fully and readily 
into memory, which are very large +/- 2GB XML files. This would be 
very useful for eg translators wanting to use the IATE EU 
terminology, say, as a reference while translating.)


New how-to video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffBswOXncfM
"HOW-TO Load large IATE EU TBX Terminology into tlTerm Terminology 
Software or TLex (64-bit)"


Please try it out and report any problems with the 64-bit version to 
me via email. Some users may get errors about missing .dll files if 
they try run the 64-bit version - if this happens to you please 
email me and let me know (and the exact error message).


64-bit mini-FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions):

Q: What is the difference between 64-bit and 32-bit?

A: Due to technical limitations, a 32-bit application is limited in 
the amount of system memory it can use to a maximum of typically 
between 2GB and 4GB of RAM (system memory). This is not a problem if 
you work with datasets that are smaller than this, but it becomes a 
problem if you need to work with datasets larger than this (e.g. 
IATE TBX terminology files). 64-bit applications do not have this 
memory limitation, and can use effectively as much system memory as 
you have on your system. This is the only major practical difference 
between the 32-bit and 64-bit versions, i.e. the ability to use much 
more system memory.

Q: Should I use the 64-bit version or the 32-bit version?

A: If you need to load very large datasets that require more than 
around 2GB of system memory to load (e.g. IATE TBX terminology 
data), then you should use the 64-bit version.

If your project requires Lua scripting, then for now on Windows you 
must use the 32-bit version, as the 64-bit version does not yet 
support Lua scripting. This will be fixed in future.

If your data is smaller than that (and you don't use Lua for your 
project), then it doesn't matter whether you use the 64-bit version 
or the 32-bit version.

Recent versions of macOS only support 64-bit.

Q: Are my project files compatible between the 64-bit and 32-bit 
versions?

A: Yes, they use exactly the same file format (and the same ODBC 
relational database schema). So you can work in a mixed 
32-bit/64-bit environment (i.e. where some users use 32-bit, and 
others use 64-bit) and safely exchange data files and collaborate. 
If you save changes in the 32-bit version, you should be able to 
load that file in the 64-bit version, and vice versa.

Q: How can I tell how much memory my project requires?

A: On Windows, you can see approximately how much system memory your 
project uses by pressing Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open the Task Manager, 
selecting to view the 'Details' tab, and looking at the memory usage 
column of this application's process.




Finally, if you use ODBC, then some notes for ODBC users:
1. The 32-bit and 64-bit versions each use a separate cache, so 
doing 'Reset cache' in the 32-bit version will only clear the 32-bit 
cache, and likewise in the 64-bit version. (So this should allow in 
theory for you to be logged in both at once with the 64-bit and 
32-bit version, as the caches should not interfere with one another, 
though you should use different usrenames in this case.)
2. The Windows ODBC configuraton system itself maintains two 
different set of ODBC datasources for 32-bit applications and for 
64-bit applications, so you'll have to re-configure an ODBC 
datasource for 64-bit. Install the relevant 64-bit ODBC driver, then 
go to Start menu and search 'ODBC' and Windows 10 should show you an 
option 'ODBC datasources (64-bit)'.


 - David