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Subject:Re: Translations From:Bill Burns <BillDB -at- ILE -dot- COM> Date:Fri, 7 Nov 1997 10:17:27 -0700
Tom Lange has some questions about localization:
> What do you do to reduce or control your translation costs?
>
We try to leverage as much information as possible from existing
documentation that has already been localized. However, there's a
certain point (theoretically, at least) at which leveraging previously
localized text no longer provides any cost benefit. We also create
boilerplate text for shared information, and track components along
product lines.
> Do any of your companies still use a limited word set for
> controlling
> translation costs. If so, how do you implement and control the
> word
> set and how large is the word set?. How did you obtain or develop
> it?
>
We use a translation glossary, which basically standardizes the
terminology we use for common features. We add to that glossary, as
needed, with our clients' permission.
> What other methods do you use to control translation costs?
>
Make sure you use tools that provide adequate filtering capabilities.
Locking up your legacy data in an inflexible proprietary format can
drive up your localization costs because it reduces the amount of data
you can leverage. Even if you can get the text out of a file for
translation, you still have costs associated with DTP.
Train your writers how to write for international audiences (i.e.,
avoiding idioms, humor, jargon, or cultural-specific references).
Eliminate text in graphics as much as possible. (It should be added
using text callouts that can be localized easily rather than included in
the graphic itself, which then requires a separate round of development
for each language.) Make sure to choose tools that work for all the
languages you need to localize for, or at least choose tools that can
work together so you can cover all the languages. You don't want to
select a tool for multimedia that works well for EFIGS only if you also
have to localize for eastern European languages as well.
Hope this helps.
Bill Burns
Senior Technical Writer
ILE Communications Group
billdb -at- ile -dot- com
