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Subject:Translating Message into Other Languages From:Amy Brown <AMYB -at- IPRAX -dot- COM> Date:Wed, 7 Aug 1996 11:01:12 -0500
Conundrum: I tend to write messages and warnings in "friendly" terms;
i.e. complete sentences which address the user directly.
For example: "The file you have created is 2 MB in size
and will occupy 2 diskettes. Do you wish to save the file to
diskette?
The CTO advised me yesterday to abbreviate messages
and warnings to facilitate their translation into other
languages.
For example: "The file size is 2 MB. 2 diskettes required."
I'm not sure that abbreviating messages will ease the
translation process. Also, terse messages can make for a
chilly interface.
Has anyone else faced this particular puzzle? If so, how did you resolve
it?
Amy Brown
amyb -at- iprax -dot- com
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