Creating interlinear bilingual texts for language learning in MS Word (or like)

Ver 1.2

Every now and then, when learning a new language (Chinese, Japanese or like), I resort to the usual hack: using Google (Microsoft, Sogou, Baidu, [insert your fav MT engine here]) Translation to save on looking up individual words.

However, the usual pop-ups with original or translated texts


are a tad unwieldy when reading them on e.g. e-paper readers with slow refresh rates.

That is why I reconsidered static interlinear texts for this purpose.
While there are ready plug-ins for Word, LateX or otherwise:


I found them limited or clumsy.



Amazingly, instead of using dedicated software, the task can be done with most versions of word-processing software, that is with MS Word, LibreOffice Writer and their ilk.


Here is a sample procedure I have come up with:

* Find an original article, e.g. this Wikipedia one: Heer_(Bundeswehr)

* Use Google (Baidu, etc.) to translate it

* Select all and paste the original from the browser into e.g. MS Word, warts and all, resulting in Doc A

* Select all and convert the original text to table (Insert -> Table -> Convert Text to Table)

* Paste the translation into a separate Doc B

* Convert also the translated text to a table (Insert -> Table - Convert Text to Table again)


Here is the trick to quickly convert it into an interlinear doc:

* Insert a separate Column 2 into Doc A, to the right of the existing Column 1

* Paste the translated single column from Doc B into this second empty Column 2


You should get a bilingual table.

* Sanity check if the cells match, delete reduntant cells, shifting it up:

* Mark second column as e.g. light blue:

* Convert whole new table to text (Layout -> Convert Table to Text):
 

* Replace Font color: Auto  ^p with ^11 for better spacing:



You will get a nice interlinear doc that you can read without JavaScript or similar tricks:


Can you think of streamlining it further? Hints welcome in the Comments below!