Language | Technology | Business The telenovela goes worldwide The localization industry in Latin America: Argentina Instructional design principles for serious games Managing change across cultures Customer-loyalty strategies for LSPs Localizing casual games

01 Cover #84 925 DC EXP.indd 1 11/6/06 10:48:59 AM 02-03 ads #84.indd 2 11/1/06 8:52:12 AM `Tis the Season... This is a time for family and friends, not increased license fees and deployment hassles. Freeway is free, no budget required, or costs to justify. And it is web-based so TMs are synchronized in real time and upgrades are instant for everyone. There is no software to load or versions to manage. Where will Freeway take you? Find out how easily your translations can flow when your team www.GetOnTheFreeway.com is on Freeway. Enjoy smooth skating in 2007! GET ON THE FREEWAY today. FAST • CONNECTED • FREE

02-03 ads #84.indd 3 11/1/06 8:52:58 AM MultiLingual #84 Volume 17 Issue 8 December 2006

Editor-in-Chief, Publisher: Donna Parrish Managing Editor: Laurel Wagers Translation Dept. Editor: Jim Healey IN THE GLOBAL MARKETPLACE, Copy Editor: Cecilia Spence News: Kendra Gray, Becky Bennett Illustrator: Doug Jones Production: Sandy Compton Cover Photograph: Doug Jones Webmaster: Aric Spence Assistant: Shannon Abromeit Intern: Callie Welch Advertising Director: Jennifer Del Carlo Advertising: Kevin Watson, Bonnie Merrell Editorial Board Jeff Allen, Henri Broekmate, Bill Hall, Andres Heuberger, Ken Lunde, John O’Conner, Mandy Pet, Reinhard Schäler Advertising [email protected] www.multilingual.com/advertising 208-263-8178 Subscriptions, back issues, customer service [email protected] www.multilingual.com/subscribe With business moving at lightning speed, you need Submissions, letters the expertise of a partner experienced at navigating the [email protected] evolving global landscape. Our three decades of quality- Editorial guidelines are available at focused, advanced solutions have resulted in long-standing www.multilingual.com/editorialWriter client relationships. While other localization companies Reprints: [email protected] have come and gone, Merrill Brink International continues to lead with service and technology developments that MultiLingual Computing, Inc. keep our clients right where they want to be – ahead of 319 North First Avenue, Suite 2 the competition. Put us to the test and benefit from Sandpoint, Idaho 83864-1495 USA expertise that makes a world of difference. [email protected] www.multilingual.com

© MultiLingual Computing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. For reprints and e-prints, please e-mail [email protected] or call 208-263-8178. MultiLingual (ISSN 1523-0309), December 2006, is published monthly except Apr-May, Jul-Aug, Oct-Nov for US $58, interna- tional $78 per year by MultiLingual Computing, Inc., 319 North First Avenue, Suite 2, Sandpoint, ID 83864-1495. Periodicals postage paid at Sandpoint, ID and additional mailing offi ces. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to MultiLingual, 319 North www.merrillbrink.com First Avenue, Suite 2, Sandpoint, ID 83864-1495. Translation | Localization | Internationalization | Globalization 4 e-Learning | Custom Solutions

04 Masthead #84.indd 4 11/1/06 8:55:01 AM u ti in ua M l L g December 2006l Language | Technology | Business #84 Volume 17 Issue 8

QUp Front QFeature Articles Q 6 www.multilingual.com Q Language Focus Q 7 Post Editing 37 The telenovela goes worldwide QNews — Carlos Contreras 42 Spanish for the US: Q 8 News What fl avor do we want? Q 20 Calendar — Beatriz Bonnet QReviews QBusiness 22 Lingotek — reviewed by Ignacio 45 The localization industry Garcia & Vivian Stevenson in Latin America: Argentina Up Front 26 The Unicode Standard, Version 5.0 — Charles Campbell — reviewed by Richard Gillam 62 Localization World: Bonjour, Montréal! Q Columns and Commentary — Laurel Wagers 65 Customer-loyalty Off the Map — Tom Edwards 29 strategies for LSPs 32 World Savvy — John Freivalds — Emilie Achard & Joseph Gomes 34 Step by Step — Kit Brown 69 Managing change across cultures 90 Takeaway — Teddy Bengtsson — Erik Granered 73 Controlling the workfl ow Q81 Buyer’s Guide in translation projects — István Lengyel 89 Advertiser Index QIndustry Focus About the Cover 49 Instructional design This 50-piece gambling stick principles for serious games game with deerskin pouch — Valerie Hainley & Jaime Henderson is from the Haida tribe of 53 Localizing casual games Vancouver Island on the Pacifi c coast of Canada. — Frank Dietz The creatures inscribed 56 Games: quality, localization around each maple stick are mythical and familiar and the world market animals from the Haida — Pearse Finegan culture. From the collection of the McCord Museum, Montréal, Québec. Q79 Basics

www.multilingual.com December 2006 MultiLingual 5

05 Contents #84.indd 5 11/1/06 10:58:24 AM on the web at www.multilingual.com

e-Books

GEORGE BELL’S MONUMENTAL INDEX OF CHINESE CHARACTERS WITH ATTRIBUTES, including Unicode references, is now available Free downloads on CD in fully searchable pdf format. NEED ONE OF OUR GETTING STARTED Index of Chinese Characters With Attributes GUIDES? Any or all can be downloaded contains characters found in the Xiandai Hanyu for free at www.multilingual.com/gsg. Choose Cidian (XHC), a dictionary in com- screen-quality pdfs for slower connections or mon use in China. English print-quality fi les for best reproduction. We translations of entries in encourage you to view and share these re- Index of Chinese Characters the XHC and the Ci Hai, With Attributes sources which have proved invaluable for In fully searchable pdf format and including Unicode a larger all-Chinese clients, novices and professionals in need of A quick and dictionary, have been easy index refresher courses. We have extra printed (FPSHF
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3PV[FS copies of some of these guides. If you are in- Rouzer as necessary terested in receiving printed copies, please to complement the def- contact [email protected] initions found in the dic- MultiLingual Press fi © George E. Bell • All rights reserved OUR RESOURCE DIRECTORY 2006 AND tionary sources acknowl- EDITORIAL INDEX 2005 can be down- edged in the bibliography. loaded at www.multilingual.com/resource Directory at no cost. This is a handy way to This publication, an invaluable resource for stu- fi nd information published in MultiLingual dents of Chinese, is available from MultiLingual in 2005 and a great list of resources for Press at www.multilingual.com/eBooks your language and technology needs.

How to use www.multilingual.com

GO TO the home page to see daily news updates and links to new website content as well as current job postings. RESEARCH past articles by looking through our list of online articles at www.multilingual .com/featuredArticles FIND a technology or service by searching our database of over 1,600 industry resources at www.multilingual.com/industryResources KEEP UP TO DATE with current industry news at www.multilingual.com/news PLAN your travels by checking the calendar of events at www.multilingual.com/calendar

6 | MultiLingual December 2006 [email protected]

06-07 Web & PE #84.indd 6 11/1/06 9:02:26 AM Laurel Wagers Post Editing

Games, fun, Spanish. Seriously.

Games, we are reminded, are for fun, for profi t and often for learning. When I tried to trim a Sim City budget, I learned quickly that if you underfund the highway department, you spend all your time patching streets. Zone for heavy industry, and pollution problems arise. The Sims who keep the city going start to leave. Setting the game speed Gto “African Swallow,” I can watch that little city thrive or decay onscreen — decades or centuries whisking by in minutes. It makes an impression. It’s a micro-mini version of the computer simulations being used to predict the where and how of global warming, population shifts and other world changes. Meanwhile, on a handheld translator I can play Hangman in nine languages — including Spanish, French, Czech, Portuguese, Russian and Hungarian — to pick up or reinforce vocabulary. Other people are deep into complex role-playing games, and some of those players are earning real-world money by acquiring virtual goods, skills and even “real estate” that they sell to other players. Because the game structure is an effective way to deliver information and to help users learn skills, games are being developed and used in a multitude of social, political, SEASON’S GREETINGS military and medical situations worldwide — such as America’s Army; the United Nations AND BEST WISHES World Food Programme’s Food Force (see MultiLingual September 2006), which is being TO ALL OUR FRIENDS translated into a bevy of languages; the forthcoming PeaceMaker (www.peacemaker game.com, www.impactgames.com); A Force More Powerful (www.aforcemorepowerful .org, www.afmpgame.com); the medical game Re-Mission (www.hopelab.org), in English, French and Spanish. In Darfur Is Dying (www.darfurisdying.com), the player takes the role of a Sudanese refugee trying to survive in a camp. The Serious Games Initiative (www.seriousgames.org) provides information and resources to link the game industry and projects that use games in education, training, health and public policy. Its branch sites are Games for Change, Games for Health and Serious Games Japan (in Japanese). In this issue’s focus on games we look at the variety in the gaming world, from the role of instructional design in serious games with Valerie Hainley and Jaime Henderson, to the localization of casual games with Frank Dietz, and the business and development of the game industry and of computer game localization with Pearse Finegan. Spanish, one of the world’s most-spoken languages, has many facets. In this issue Carlos Contreras describes the Latin American entertainment phenomenon, the telenovela, which has spread in translation around the world and is hitting the United States like a storm this television season (Ugly Betty, Fashion House and others). Beatriz Bonnet describes some of the issues in Spanish localization for the United States; and Charles Campbell offers insight into the development of the localization industry in Latin America with an emphasis on Argentina. Teddy Bengtsson’s “Takeaway” also addresses localization in Argentina. In business news, we take a quick look at the fun and learning at Localization World Montréal; Emilie Achard and Joseph Gomes describe strategies for building customer loyalty; Erik Granered explains how cultural differences affect attitudes toward change; and István Lengyel illustrates workfl ow in translation projects. Tom Edwards looks at China content issues; Kit Brown addresses ways to work well in multicultural teams; and John Freivalds provides insight about deal-making. A reminder: the 2007 Resource Directory is coming up soon — are you listed? This is our last issue of 2006. It’s been a great year at MultiLingual, and we look forward to sharing 2007 with all of you. ¡Salud! :

www.multilingual.com December 2006 MultiLingual | 7

06-07 Web & PE #84.indd 7 11/1/06 9:03:00 AM trademark. Used as the name of the infor- InformationWeek has recognized Convergys Announcements mation technology system developed for for its development of its natural language the management of translation agencies, understanding applications that offer open- McElroy used as project the XTRF trademark constitutes the prop- ended or conversational user interfaces for management case study erty of Lido-Lang Technical Translations. speech-based customer care applications. McElroy Translation, a provider of Lido-Lang fi rst designed, developed and Also contributing to Convergys’ recognition localization and translation services, implemented the XTRF system at its own was its patented user interface for web-based was used as a case study to illustrate offi ce and currently offers other companies self-care, as well as its patented method and the importance of organizational cul- a license for its usage. systems for database conversions. ture in Harold Kerzner’s latest book, Lido-Lang Technical Translations Convergys Corporation www.convergys.com Project Management Best Practices: offi [email protected], www.lidolang.com InformationWeek

News Achieving Global Excellence, pub- www.informationweek.com/iw500 lished in July 2006. Project man- Moravia makes Deloitte agement is shown to be an integral Fast 50 list in Central Europe Rubric gains IPMA certifi cation component of strategic best practices Moravia Worldwide, a globalization solu- Rubric, a localization services provider, for continuous improvement. tions provider, has been named as one of has announced that its project manager, Jo Kerzner is senior executive director the 50 fastest growing companies in Cen- Clayton, has received Level-D certifi cation with International Institute for Learn- tral Europe. Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 from the International Project Management ing, Inc. and professor of systems competition in Central Europe recognizes Association (IPMA) via Rubric’s membership management at Baldwin-Wallace College. technology companies that own proprietary in the Association for Project Management McElroy Translation Company technologies that contribute signifi cantly to (APM), which Rubric joined earlier in 2006. [email protected] their operating revenues or devote signifi - The IPMA competence baseline tests for the www.mcelroytranslation.com cant proportion of revenues to research and knowledge and experience expected from the development of technology. The ranking the managers of projects, programs and Janus obtains ISO 9001 certifi cation in the Technology Fast 50 program is based project portfolios. Rubric is contributing to Janus Worldwide, Inc., a provider of trans- on overall revenue growth over a fi ve-year the APM’s “Body of Knowledge.” APM is the lation, localization and desktop publishing period. Launched in 2000, the Central Euro- largest independent professional organiza- services along with linguistic consulting, has pean Technology Fast 50 program is part of tion of its kind in Europe, with over 14,500 recently obtained an ISO 9001:2000 Inter- a global effort led by Deloitte to identify the individual members and 350 corporate national Quality Certifi cate. The audit was leading growth and technology companies members. conducted by Bureau Veritas Certifi cation. all over the world. Rubric [email protected], www.rubric.com Company activity areas including translat- Moravia Worldwide ing, localizing, desktop publishing and lin- [email protected] Welocalize number 350 on guistic consulting were subjected to audit. www.moraviaworldwide.com Deloitte & Touche Fast 500 Janus [email protected], www.janus.ru Welocalize has announced that it ranked InformationWeek ranks Number 350 on Deloitte’s 2006 Technology GALA announces new Convergys in Top 100 Fast 500, a ranking of the 500 fastest growing 2007-2008 board members Convergys Corporation, a customer care, technology, media, telecommunications and The Globalization and Localization Asso- human resources and billing services pro- life sciences companies in North America. ciation (GALA) has announced that the vider, made it to the Top 100 on the Informa- Rankings are based on percentage revenue membership has elected the following two tionWeek 500 list of innovators worldwide. growth over fi ve years, from 2001 through members for two-year terms on the GALA board: Arancha Caballero (TSG, Spain) and Kim Harris (text & form, Germany). Board William Bright, linguist, 1928-2006 members Christiane Bernier (Lionbridge, Canada), Matthias Caesar (Locatech, Ger- As reported by The New York Times, William Bright, a renowned linguist who spent more many) and Stephen Ryan (Moravia, USA) than half a century inventorying indigenous languages, died October 15, 2006, in Louisville, will continue to serve their terms through Colorado, at the age of 78. At his death, Bright was professor adjoint of linguistics at the the end of 2007. The current board and University of Colorado, Boulder. He was also emeritus professor of linguistics and anthropo- incoming board members have already logy at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he taught from 1959 to 1988. begun working on the transition, which will Among the languages on which Bright worked were Nahuatl, an Aztec language of Mex- offi cially take place on January 1, 2007. ico; Cakchiquel of Guatemala; Luiseño, Ute, Wishram and Yurok, languages of the Western The Globalization and Localization Association United States; and Lushai, Kannada, Tamil and Tulu, languages of the Indian subcontinent. [email protected], www.gala-global.org His books include American Indian Linguistics and Literature (1984), A Coyote Reader (1993), 1,500 California Place Names: Their Origin and Meaning (1998) and Native Ameri- XTRF trademarked can Placenames of the United States (2004). His other books include The World’s Writing In September 2006, the Offi ce for Systems (1996), which he edited with Peter T. Daniels, and the International Encyclopedia Harmonisation of the Internal Market in of Linguistics (1992), of which he was editor-in-chief. From 1966 to 1987, Bright was the Alicante, Spain, announced the offi cial editor of Language, the fi eld’s fl agship journal. publication of the CTM-4946554 XTRF

8 | MultiLingual December 2006 [email protected]

08-21 News #84.indd 8 11/1/06 9:05:38 AM News

2005. Welocalize grew 370% during this Technology Council, which acknowledges period. In addition to ranking on Deloitte’s high achieving and innovative companies Technology Fast 500, Welocalize ranked each year. The judges were impressed by the number 18 on the Maryland Technology innovative work of NCS to further not only Events Fast 50, which is a ranking of the 50 fast- the company and the clients it serves locally est growing technology fi rms in Maryland. and internationally, but also the Pittsburgh, Overall, companies that ranked on the 2006 Pennsylvania, region as a whole. Technology Fast 500 had growth rates rang- NCS Enterprises, L.L.C. ing from 210% to 48,948% over fi ve years, [email protected], www.ncs-pubs.com with an average growth rate of 2,147%. Welocalize [email protected] Lido-Lang celebrates anniversary Managing Global Websites www.welocalize.com October 10, 2006, marked Lido-Lang and eCommerce Conference Technical Translation’s fi fteenth anniver- Lionbridge Japan country sary. Important milestones of the compa- manager named director of JTF ny’s history include the 1991 registration MANAGEMENT Lionbridge Technologies, Inc., a provider of business operations; launching of its of globalization and offshoring services, fi rst website and e-mail communication has announced that Mark Attaway, country in 1994; transformation of the company manager of Lionbridge Japan, has been into a general partnership registered with ROUNDTABLE named a director of the Japan Translation the KRS (National Court Register) in 2004; Localization Federation (JTF), a public-interest corpora- awarding of a BSI certifi cate for the ISO Management Roundtable tion authorized by the Ministry of Economy, 9000:2001 quality assurance system in Trade and Industry and Japan’s leading 2005; and the implementation of the XTRF translation industry trade association. JTF’s program for the comprehensive manage- objectives are to research and investigate ment of translation agencies in 2006. the state of the Japanese translation Lido-Lang Technical Translations industry, hold workshops/training courses, offi [email protected], www.lidolang.com support and nurture the development of Internationalization translators, and contribute to the develop- Changes Roundtable ment of Japan’s economy by promoting the translation industry at translation-related Basis Technology acquires international conferences. Translingual Technologies Lionbridge Technologies, Inc. Basis Technology, a provider of enter- [email protected], www.lionbridge.com prise software solutions for multilingual text retrieval and analysis, has acquired ANTHEA receives seventh the intellectual property assets of Trans- Seminars consecutive ISO 9001 certifi cation lingual Technologies LLC, a two-year-old ANTHEA Languages, a multilingual com- startup that has developed algorithms for munication services and solutions provider, making foreign-language content acces- has received ISO 9001:2000 certifi cation for sible to monolingual English speakers. Its the seventh consecutive year. ANTHEA was technology incorporates such techniques one of the very fi rst translation/localization as statistical parsing, automatic grammar Certification Program companies to obtain ISO 9001 certifi cation. construction and exploitation of large, The audit was performed by Bureau Veritas unannotated corpora. Certifi cation. ANTHEA Languages services As part of this transaction, Scott Miller and solutions include technical and com- has joined the fi rm as chief scientist. Prior mercial translation in over 40 languages, to founding Translingual Technologies, software, e-content and multimedia local- Miller spent more than ten years at BBN ization, desktop publishing and language Technologies, most recently as division sci- Localization World and communication training. entist, where he developed several statisti- ANTHEA Languages cal-named entity tagging algorithms. [email protected] Basis Technology Corp. www.anthealanguages.com [email protected], www.basistech.com The Localization NCS Enterprises is Tech 50 fi nalist ABI adds to Asia-Pacifi c presence NCS Enterprises, L.L.C., a company spe- ABI Research, which has had research and Institute cializing in localization, cultural adapta- sales presences in Asia for a number of years, 4513 Vernon Boulevard, Suite 11 tions and multimedia development, has is adding an offi ce in Singapore to expand Madison,WI 53705 USA been selected as a Tech 50 fi nalist in the its expertise and strengthen its relationships Phone 608.233.1790 service provider category by the Pittsburgh with clients, both those in the Asia-Pacifi c Fax 608.441.6124 www.localizationinstitute.com [email protected] www.multilingual.com December 2006 MultiLingual | 9

08-21 News #84.indd 9 11/1/06 9:10:25 AM News

region itself and those elsewhere with an addition of two veteran business develop- its operations and staff. Glyph’s new loca- “eye” on the Asia-Pacifi c market. ment professionals to the US team and a tion brings the company physically closer to The new operations center, located in new US-based anchor client all in the last many of its core customers, in keeping with Singapore’s fi nancial and business district, eight months. The company also launched the company philosophy of striving for per- gives the company a strategic location to its new website in September 2006. sonal contact with its clients. The centrally address not just the Singaporean market, Experienced localization and sales profes- located offi ce was also selected to support but wider Asia-Pacifi c markets. sional Angela Corrigan recently joined the Glyph employees’ desire to improve daily ABI Research North America business development team in Dublin to access to collective public transportation. www.abiresearch.com focus on European business. Originally a This approach to global energy conserva- software developer, Corrigan is looking for- tion is in keeping with Glyph’s corporate milengo expands with Global ward to re-establishing old and building new social responsibility mission. Project Management Center relationships under the VistaTEC banner. Glyph Language Services milengo Inc., owned by sixteen techni- VistaTEC [email protected], www.vistatec.ie [email protected] cal translation and localization companies www.glyphservices.com located in information technology markets Translations.com opens that span Western, Central and Eastern new California operations Real Idea locates offi ce in Singapore Europe, Latin America and Asia, has hired Cas- Translations.com, a provider of language Real Idea USA Inc., a localization/testing sius Figueiredo to head a new milengo Global and technology solutions, has opened two service provider, has opened a new offi ce Project Management Center. An industry new California offi ces. The offi ces in Irvine in Singapore. The new location was selected veteran with over ten years of experience, and San Jose will function as a client service in order to fulfi ll regional market demands Figueiredo worked as senior project manager location and a technology development and ensure the stability of the services the at Lionbridge Technologies. He also brings an center, respectively. The new facilities will company provides in Eastern Asian and Indic engineering background as a software devel- allow the company to better serve its exist- languages. Together with recent signifi cant oper, technical reviewer and content creator. ing client-base of companies in the tech- growth of Real Idea offi ces in Beijing, Tai- A full-service company, milengo performs nology, industrial and life sciences verticals, wan, Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong, this new technical translation, software and website as well as provide reach for developing new expansion will help facilitate an aggressive localization, desktop publishing, engineer- business relationships in the areas. growth period for the latter part of 2006 ing, testing and other consulting services. Translations.com [email protected] and 2007. Real Idea is in the process of set- milengo, Inc. [email protected] www.translations.com ting up new offi ces in other regions where www.milengo.com continuing localization requests from cus- Glyph has new Seattle headquarters tomers determine the need. VistaTEC ready for growth Glyph Language Services, Inc., a provider Real Idea USA Inc. [email protected] VistaTEC, a globalization and information of customized language services for web- www.realidea.com technology services provider, has seen its based software and life sciences companies, ninth fi scal year close in the black. Growth has relocated its headquarters to the historic CPSL strengthens presence in Spain is on the minds of the new management Mottman building near Seattle’s Pioneer CPSL, a translation, localization and lan- team due to high client retention, the Square to accommodate strong growth in guage consultancy and professional events

Localization manager feeling the pressure… Starting this month, all press releases have to Sorry, got a second? be translated into 5 Whoa! I hope my vendor languages and delivered can meet these deadlines and still in 24 hours. provide the quality we require…

Looking for a company that has global presence yet is scalable and fl exible enough to handle all types of projects? milengo maximizes its global structure of 16 offi ces spanning Asia, Latin America and Europe to ensure all projects are completed on time and with the quality you need. Make milengo’s structure of in-house and in-country professionals your competitive advantage.

www.milengo.com BRAZIL | CHINA | CZECH REPUBLIC | FINLAND | FRANCE | GERMANY | HUNGARY | ITALY JAPAN | KOREA | NORWAY | POLAND | PORTUGAL | SLOVAKIA | SPAIN | TAIWAN | USA

10 | MultiLingual December 2006 [email protected]

08-21 News #84.indd 10 11/1/06 9:11:33 AM News

organization, has moved its Madrid opera- articles and documents to an online portal, European Economic and Social Committee & tions to larger premises. Strong growth in check their progress at any time and receive European Union Committee of the Regions. the company motivated the move. Over its them back in accurate Norwegian in time to ETC will be outsourcing Arabic, Croatian and fi ve years of existence, the Madrid offi ce distribute the articles to the general public Turkish language pairs to Avrasya. has nearly tripled its workforce. The new ahead of competing media houses. Avrasya Translation Management center is now fully up and running and will Clay Tablet Technologies [email protected] be carrying on with its current commercial [email protected], www.clay-tablet.com www.avrasyatranslation.com work in Europe and the United States. Alberti Santos joins the company as its Microsoft buys Colloquis for UK government appoints new business development manager for natural language technology thebigword as translation provider the Spanish market. Santos studied mar- Microsoft has announced the acquisi- Leeds-based language company thebig- keting and communication technologies tion of Colloquis, a developer of natural word has been appointed as one of the core in the United Kingdom and has devoted language processing technology. Microsoft suppliers of translation services to the UK his career to developing the businesses of plans to use the technology to build web- government’s Home Offi ce. Under a frame- several companies in the translation sec- based customer service applications that work agreement awarded on September 18, tor. In addition to expanding CPSL’s client mimic human-to-human conversions, both 2006, thebigword will be providing transla- portfolio, Santos will also consolidate its for its own use and for use by its custom- tion services to the Home Offi ce for four large accounts in the Madrid area. ers. Colloquis has sold its natural language years. The same services will be made avail- CPSL [email protected] processing technology to some of the big- able to other central and local government www.celerpawlowsky.com gest customer service organizations in the institutions and wider public-sector bodies United States, including Cingular Wireless, during this period. The new framework Collaboration Comcast, Cox Communications, Time Warner agreement provides for the continuation Cable and Vonage Holdings. Microsoft plans of the existing work thebigword carries out rola integrates Language Weaver to incorporate the technology as Windows for various government departments and software, becomes reseller Live Service Agents in its Customer Care agencies, including the Immigration and Language Weaver, a software company Framework application and plans to use the Nationality Directorate, HM Prisons and HM developing enterprise software for the Windows Live Service Agents to serve its Revenue & Customs. automated translation of human languages, Xbox customers. thebigword [email protected] has gained rola Security Solutions, a Ger- The Colloquis technology will comple- www.thebigword.com man security company, as an integrator ment other self-service capabilities that and value-added reseller for its automated Microsoft is planning to release to gamers Star Alliance chooses Sajan’s GCMS translation system. during during the latter part of 2006. Sajan’s GCMS has been chosen as the on- rola is integrating Language Weaver trans- Microsoft Corporation [email protected] demand language translation management lation technology into its investigative and www.microsoft.com technology for Star Alliance. Sajan’s GCMS security application, rsCASE, to enable auto- provides language translation services and mated translation of foreign text in cross- Avrasya Translation management technology to support the border crime operations and as a defense subcontracted by ETC Brussels many languages offered by Star Alliance, measure against terrorist threats from abroad. Avrasya Translation Management, a trans- an airline alliance, which has also selected rola has signed an agreement that allows the lation and localization company, was recently Sajan’s Authoring Coach for use in all company to use all existing Language Weaver chosen as a subcontractor for ETC Brussels, content creation. Authoring Coach offers translation modules and future ones as devel- which was awarded one of the 2006-2007 content creators interactive access to a oped. This functionality will aid investigating tenders coordinating translations for the central repository. Sajan offers ISO-certifi ed offi cers to quickly translate foreign language material, from sources such as e-mails or telephone monitoring data, into English or German, assess its relevance, and then esca- Been getting some ghastly late suspicious data to a translator analyst for further review. results in your medical Language Weaver translations? [email protected] www.languageweaver.com At Nova Language Services, our teams specialize in medicine, pharmacy, chemistry and veterinary UN group selects Clay Tablet medicine, meaning that we deliver top-quality results. A division of the United Nations (UN) has selected Clay Tablet Technologies, a provider

of translation workfl ow software, to help www.nova-transnet.com with its content translation. Clay Tablet’s Rosetta Trans-port translation portal, used Còrsega 371, planta 5, in concert with a local translation partner, 08037 Barcelona SPAIN Tel: +34 93 412 65 00 will allow UN employees to submit English

www.multilingual.com December 2006 MultiLingual | 11

08-21 News #84.indd 11 11/1/06 9:11:50 AM News

services fused with its single platform solu- 50,000 English words and 100,000 Iraqi- materials contain personal information and tion to centrally manage and streamline Arabic words. billing statements, which means K Interna- the entire translation workfl ow process, IBM Corporation [email protected] tional has to comply with security proce- from authoring to publication. This solution www.ibm.com dures that will protect the data from being requires no software to buy or install. stolen or lost. Sajan, Inc. [email protected] K International awarded contracts K International plc www.sajan.com K International has announced the receipt [email protected] of two recent contracts. First, the company www.k-international.com IBM translation software has been appointed as one of two core tested by US military in Iraq suppliers of translation services to the UK AnyCount selected by CDT IBM has announced that the US Joint government. The agreement is based on a The Translation Centre for the Bodies of Forces Command will deploy IBM’s research framework arrangement between local and the European Union (Centre de traduction multilingual automatic speech-to-speech central governments and is to run for a des organes de l’Union européenne — CDT) translator system, also known as Mastor, to total of four years. Services include transla- has purchased a site license of AnyCount — help US forces serving in Iraq better com- tion (148 languages), transcription, braille, the text counting software from Advanced municate with local security forces and Iraqi voice-overs, multilingual design of leafl ets, International Translations, which simplifi es citizens. Mastor combines work on auto- proofreading, subtitling and typesetting. the count process and produces reliable matic speech recognition, natural language K International has also been appointed count results in words, line, characters or understanding and speech synthesis. Over as the sole supplier of commercial transla- other custom units. the past few years, IBM has also worked tion services to Nationwide Building Society. Established in Luxembourg, CDT is the closely on Mastor with the US Defense The agreement is to run for 12 months with translation agency for a large number of Advanced Research Projects Agency. When the option to extend the duration. The European agencies and offi ces governed used in Iraq, Mastor will act as an auto- contracted services include the translation by European public law. It provides its mated bidirectional, English-to-Iraqi Arabic of fi nancial information from Western Euro- services to the Council of European Union, translator capable of translating more than pean languages into English. The translated European Court of Justice, European Cen- tral Bank, European Ombudsman, European Court of Auditors, European Investment Bank and many others. Advanced International Translations [email protected] www.translation3000.com

KERN chosen to translate for German supermarket chain KERN AG, a language services provider, has signed a framework agreement with one of Germany’s largest supermarket chains as of September 2006. KERN faces the challenge of translating the supermarket’s non-food related texts at very short notice to enable it to carry out its international purchasing process. Services offered by KERN AG include translation and interpreting in all world languages, interpreting and simultaneous interpreting systems, software, multimedia and website localization, terminology man- agement, multilingual desktop publishing, as well as language training in various languages for both private customers and businesses. KERN AG Headquarters [email protected], www.e-kern.com

Transparent Language wins contract Transparent Language, Inc., a provider of language-learning solutions in over 100 languages, has been awarded a contract !ËˆË -!#ËˆË -2.. .ˈË#! #!ˈË. #2ˈË0#:# 9"1,Ê"
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of Transparent’s CL-150 Technology Matrix World. Your Language. service possible and Jean-François Richard, founder of Bridge- for Critical Languages Product. CL-150 is a will provide the interpreters. AT&T will oper- Term, has joined Terminotix. As sales director, suite of software applications and content ate the network and will be responsible for he will be responsible for developing the designed to support language teach- the routing of calls through the service’s toll- Canadian, American and European markets ing and learning in a variety of settings, free number 888-855-0811. and will manage the integration of LogiTerm from classroom use to fully independent Language Line Services, Inc. products with other software. Richard has learning. Prior to this award, Transparent [email protected] extensive knowledge of the translation tools Language software was already being used www.languageline.com market, having helped a number of language for language training by a number of spe- services departments increase productivity. cial operations units and by special forces People He also designed SynchroTerm, a bilingual students at the US Army John F. Kennedy term extraction software application cur- Special Warfare Center and School at Fort MultiCorpora appoints rently used by a wide range of translation Bragg, North Carolina. director of sales for Europe service providers. SynchroTerm is now avail- Transparent Language, Inc. MultiCorpora R&D Inc., an independent able through Terminotix. [email protected] software vendor, has appointed Jean-Pierre Terminotix Inc. [email protected] www.transparent.com Pesch as the director of sales for its newly www.terminotix.com created subsidiary, MultiCorpora Interna- Translations.com preferred tional Inc., located in Brussels, Belgium. Eurotexte strengthens language support provider Pesch is fl uent in Dutch, French and English management team Translations.com, a provider of language and has a good knowledge of German. He Eurotexte, the fi rst translation provider and technology solutions, has partnered has 18 years in sales and marketing in the in France to earn ISO 9001:2000 certifi ca- with Griffi th Laboratories, privately held sectors of technology and translation ser- tion, has added two new members to its manufacturer of food ingredients, as vices. Pesch was the former sales manager management team. Emilie Achard recently the localization agency of record for the at Telelingua, and prior to that, he partici- joined Eurotexte as marketing manager. company’s initiative to expand multicul- pated in the market strategy for the launch Achard’s responsibilities include setting tural content, including text on its website. of the fi rst WASP (Wireless Application strategic priorities and supervising market In addition, Griffi th Laboratories will roll Service Provider) services in Europe. research, communication campaigns, event out its website into French, German, Ital- MultiCorpora R&D Inc. organization and sales support. ian, Simplifi ed Chinese, Spanish and Thai. [email protected] José Luis Cadiz has also joined Eurotexte Griffi th operates in all major markets and www.multicorpora.com as the company’s Mexico City offi ce man- has facilities in more than 20 countries. ager. Cadiz, who has lived and worked in Translations.com [email protected] Terminotix hires sales director Africa, America, Asia and Europe, has spent www.translations.com With more than 15 years of experience in more than ten years in the language indus- the fi eld of computer-assisted translation, try. As manager of Eurotexte’s fi rst regional Language Line Services and AT&T team to connect diverse population Language Line Services, a provider of over-the-phone language interpretation, has introduced Your World. Your Language., a nationwide telephone-based service connecting limited English-speaking con- sumers to banking, insurance, telephone, internet, utility and other vital business services in their native languages toll-free within their local Metropolitan Statistical Area. AT&T Inc. will play a major role in the initiative, providing the network and serv- ing as a telecommunications partner. When limited-English-speaking custom- ers call the Your World. Your Language. service, they will be able to choose their preferred language and service. A Lan- guage Line Services interpreter will then connect the customer with the requested provider, and service is completed through a three-way conversation. The Your World. Your Language. service will help customers in eight languages. Language Line Services developed the patent-pending technology that makes Your

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offi ce in the Americas, he will build a new Speech Manager, including TextEdit, Pre- production infrastructure. view, Acrobat Reader, Proloquo and Apple- Eurotexte [email protected] Works, as well as a number of educational www.eurotexte.net titles. Infovox iVox can also be used with Tiger’s integrated screen reader technology ProZ.com appoints executive vice called VoiceOver. The product functions on president of marketing and sales both Mac PowerPCs and Mac Intels. ProZ.com, an enabling and sourcing The languages currently available are platform for language professionals, has American and UK English, French, German, announced the appointment of Michael Italian, Dutch, Flemish, Spanish, Portuguese, Kidd as its executive vice president of Danish, Norwegian and Swedish. Acapela marketing and sales. Previously a business offers a wide selection of male and female unit vice president for TRADOS, Kidd brings voices for each language. expertise in delivering high-volume online Acapela Group www.acapela-group.com technology solutions as well as in building brands for market leaders. In the newly- Transware Ambassador 6.8 created position, Kidd will be responsible Transware Inc., a translation and local- for spearheading ProZ.com’s new focus ization provider of media-rich content, to more quickly and effectively connect has launched Ambassador 6.8. The latest the unique language skills needs of hiring version of its globalization content man- organizations and outsourcers with the agement system improves upon earlier company’s network of more than 160,000 editions by offering customers a customiz- translators, interpreters and linguists. able workfl ow engine that can connect to ProZ.com [email protected] internal content or document management www.proz.com/employers system software, customizable word count analysis, side-by-side review functionality CILT director joins at fi le and segment level with full com- multilingual policy team ment threading and management, and a The director of CILT, the National Centre new reporting engine. for Languages, Isabella Moore CBE, has Transware [email protected] been invited to join a high level team of www.transwareinc.com experts advising the European Commission on the next stage of its policy on multi- Lingoport Globalyzer 2.3 lingualism. The group will meet regularly Lingoport, Inc., a developer of globaliza- throughout next year, covering a broad tion software and services, has released spectrum of topics including languages Globalyzer 2.3 to help companies make and research, new technologies for trans- their software ready to meet the demands lation and interpretation, and strategies to of world market customers. Globalyzer 2.3 promote language learning. updates further enable a company’s soft- The group recognizes the United King- ware to support worldwide language, locale dom’s strength in assessing the impact of and cultural formatting requirements so a lack of language skills on individual busi- that the software will perform gracefully in nesses and the economy as a whole. Moore any target market. Globalyzer 2.3 includes will present a paper on that topic to the added programming language internation- group in December 2006, drawing on the alization support, a pseudo-localization results of a Europe-wide survey of export- module called PseudoJudo, expansions to ing businesses that CILT is currently carry- an earlier version’s fi ltering capabilities and ing out for the European Commission. the ability to distribute detailed reports CILT, the National Centre for Languages using Excel with automated exporting and [email protected], www.cilt.org.uk formatting. Lingoport, Inc. [email protected] Products www.lingoport.com Acapela Infovox iVox for Mac OS X Voxonic develops voice Acapela Group, a speech technology technology for translation services group, has announced the release of Infovox Voxonic, Inc., a New York-based technol- iVox, a solution developed jointly with the ogy fi rm, has developed proprietary software, distribution partner AssistiveWare. Infovox which allows for multiple language transla- iVox allows Acapela voices to be used in all tion. The ability, via technology, to translate applications compatible with the Mac OS X languages offers benefi ts to a wide array of

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industries including entertainment, politics, Hebrew and could be easily made available text can now be justifi ed, allowing lines of business, sports and other forms of technol- for any other language as needed by device copy to have the same length while being ogy. Possibilities include hearing a favorite vendors. vertically aligned on both the right and left singer’s upcoming album in Spanish in the IMAGiNET Software sides of the text block. artist’s voice; American executives having [email protected] Monotype Imaging, Inc. the ability to conduct meetings with their www.imaginet-software.com www.monotypeimaging.com Japanese counterparts; and French movies that can be viewed in English. Additionally, Monotype Imaging creates TEMIS launches Luxid politicians can gain cultural relevancy with WorldType Layout Engine 2.1 TEMIS has launched Luxid, its latest solu- specifi c groups despite language barriers, for Monotype Imaging’s WorldType Layout tion serving the information intelligence example, a US mayor or governor addressing Engine, a software library for enabling the needs of business corporations. Luxid brings an audience in German. composition, positioning and rendering of answers to the challenge of information By using a 10-minute sample of a voice, multilingual text on a variety of displays, discovery and knowledge extraction from Voxonic’s technology can replicate a spe- now supports all the major written lan- unstructured data. Luxid was designed from cifi c voice in any language, breaking it into guages of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri the ground up on UIMA3, the new standard “phonemes” that compose the voice. A sec- Lanka and Nepal. The additional capabili- applicative framework for unstructured ond actor, fl uent in the desired language, ties allow manufacturers and developers of analytics created by IBM. Luxid supports comes in and records a lyric or speech, devices such as cell phones, set-top boxes twenty languages: Czech, Dutch, English, while mimicking the speaker’s vocal pat- and printer control panels to increase French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Ital- terns. The Voxonic technology aligns the penetration in high-growth South Asian ian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, two, resulting in a 99% level of accuracy in markets. Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Finnish, the original speaker’s voice. The new version of WorldType Layout Swedish, Norwegian Bokmal and Danish. Voxonic, Inc. [email protected] Engine builds upon Monotype Imaging’s TEMIS [email protected] www.voxonic.com existing South Asian capabilities, which www.temis-group.com covered the Devanagari and Perso-Arabic Connexor MMD Version 5 writing systems. Nine additional scripts nCore nScript 1.3 available Connexor Oy, a provider of information are now supported, including the Bengali, nCore Ltd. has released version 1.3 of the management and semantic technologies Telugu, Tamil, Gujarati, Kannada, Malay- nScript text rendering and editing software and software, has introduced Machinese alam, Oriya, Gurmukhi and Sinhala writing designed and optimized for mobile phones Metadata Version 5 (MMD), an industry- systems. Other new features include the and other embedded devices. This software strength information management solution. ability to position text in nonrectangu- component enables the development of MMD demonstrates Connexor’s expertise in lar regions, thus enabling words to fl ow user interfaces in complex languages such semantic technologies for knowledge inten- around objects and images or allowing as Arabic, Chinese, Hindi and Malayalam. sive sectors such as government, defense such elements to fl ow with text. Blocks of The new version of the nScript software and intelligence, life sciences, media and research. MMD is a text analytics and metadata extraction solution that extracts informa- tion in ten different languages and shows the main information content in unstruc- tured text. Connexor Oy [email protected] www.connexor.com

IMAGiNET LM 5.0 for Windows mobile devices IMAGiNET Software, a provider of mobile and embedded software technologies and a subsidiary of CIT Global, has released its new Language Mobile 5.0 (LM 5.0). LM 5.0 is a localization product line for multilin- gual user interface on Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PCs and Smartphone devices. It provides full translation of Microsoft Windows Mobile User interface to national language — all icons, menus and dialogs of built-in applications will be translated — and fully complies with Microsoft localization standards. LM 5.0 is available for Arabic, Persian, Turkish and

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supports two new Asian scripts — Bengali Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacifi c, thereby to cover all of its language pairs, including and Marathi. In addition, the software sup- enabling mobile handset manufacturers to bidirectional English with Arabic, as well as ports new essential features required for design intuitive and interactive user inter- Persian, Pashto, Indonesian, Tagalog, Turkish, mobile phone development such as true faces using natural handwriting as a text Chinese, and Korean into English. The next visual cursor movement in a bidirectional input method for a wide range of messag- phase will be to adapt it to bidirectional textfl ow, phone number grouping, bor- ing and personal information management English with German, Spanish, French, Pol- dered text and inverted text. applications. ish, Italian, Russian, Portuguese, Ukrainian, nCore Ltd. ncore@ncore.fi , www.ncore.fi In addition to MyScript Lingo, a set of 16 Hebrew and Dutch. language packs developed for applications AppTek [email protected], www.apptek.com Lingo 4.0 Terminology requiring recognition of natural cursive Management System handwriting, Vision Objects now provides MultiCorpora introduces Lexicool.com, a directory of online bilin- MyScript Letra, a pack of resources specifi - TEXTBASE TM concept gual and multilingual dictionaries and glos- cally designed for mobile devices. MyScript At the Localization World conference saries freely available on the internet, has Letra also recognizes handprinted and iso- held in Montréal, October 16-18, 2006, developed Lingo 4.0 Terminology Manage- lated characters in 70 different languages. MultiCorpora introduced its latest update ment System, a new release of its Windows- Vision Objects of MultiTrans 4, showcasing its new TEXT- based terminology tool for translators and [email protected] BASE TM concept. This concept merges localizers. Lingo 4.0 improves upon earlier www.visionobjects.com MultiTrans with the main functions of versions by allowing users to create and conventional translation memories (TMs). manage large multilingual dictionaries in AppTek’s TranSphere HMT Among the most important features of any language combinations and to search scores best on ‘noisy data’ MultiTrans 4 are an automatic alignment through several dictionaries simultaneously. AppTek’s machine translation (MT) system function and a user-friendly translation The program is fully Unicode compatible, scored best on “noisy data” in the most agent that can contextually process not can import and export XML (TMX) and can recent National Institute of Standards & only such formats as Word, WordPerfect be used with any Windows word processor. Technology evaluation, according to the test and PowerPoint, but also XML, HTML, DITA Lexicool.com [email protected] results published in the September 2006 and InDesign with an add-on XLIFF Editor. www.lexicool.com workshop. The hybrid MT system tested This version also makes it possible to inte- — TranSphere HMT — was the culmination grate various TM formats, which facilitate MyScript available for 70 languages of a hybridization effort by AppTek to bring resource sharing with users of other solu- Vision Objects, a provider of handwrit- together both of its platforms under one tions. In addition, MultiTrans 4 establishes ing recognition and text input methods for application. AppTek’s scientists utilized its concordances with previous translations pen-based user interfaces, has announced rule-based engine to augment and enhance at the subsegment and paragraph level. the support of 70 Asian, Cyrillic and Latin- the newly acquired statistical MT platform. It also includes a new multilingual termi- based languages addressing markets in the AppTek plans to adapt the hybrid approach nology module that meets the stringent requirements of Canada’s Department of National Defence. MultiCorpora R&D Inc. We are serious about [email protected] your success. www.multicorpora.com Sisulizer 1.1 offers new .NET software localization support McElroy can address your business Sisulizer Ltd. has released Sisulizer 1.1, objectives at all levels of responsibility, a Windows application that lets software from global strategic planning to developers localize applications into mul- resource management to the most tiple languages. The latest version of Sisu- lizer offers a new generation of support for technical details of localization. .NET applications. With built-in support for Unicode and RESX, .NET is an ideal environ- ment for creating applications that are easy to localize. In addition to support for unlim- ited strings and languages, the Professional Edition and Enterprise Edition support McElroy Translation visual HTML localization, local database localization, translation validation, pseudo- Call us for more information. translation support, spell-checking, the free US & Canada: 800-531-9977 Translation Edition, integrated translation International: +1 512-472-6753 memory (TM), and the ability to import www.mcelroytranslation.com comma-separated fi les, localized fi les, local database information and data from other

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localization tools. American industries, business, energy, explo- country with a population of over 47 million The Enterprise Edition also supports sives and related items, genetic disorders, people, the report outlines its growth follow- Visual JSP, ASP and PHP localization, the health, safety and environmental data. It also ing years of strict racial segregation under ability to import from a server database and offers a newly designed website with easier apartheid. to do server database localization, shared navigation among taxonomies and classifi ca- Conversis, Ltd. [email protected] TM on the database server, a command- tion schemes; a new A-Z index for browsing; a www.conversisglobal.com line tool, and an interface to third-party new search function; up-to-date information TMs such as TRADOS. A limited Personal about taxonomy references, resources, latest OASIS OpenDocument XML.org Edition of Sisulizer supports the translation news and events; and links to professional The OASIS international standards con- projects required when localizing software associations and organizations for solutions sortium has introduced a new website — for mobile computing platforms. Sisulizer to a company’s taxonomy needs. http://opendocument.xml.org — designed 1.1 runs under Windows 2000/XP/2003. Factiva www.factiva.com to serve as the offi cial community gather- Sisulizer Ltd. & Co. KG ing place and information resource for the [email protected], www.sisulizer.com Multilizer supports for Turbo Delphi OpenDocument Format. An international Multilizer, a developer of globalization standard approved by OASIS, ISO and IEC, SDL Trados Synergy 2006 technologies, has announced support for OpenDocument enables users of vary- integrated with SDL PerfectMatch Turbo Delphi and Turbo C++. Support for ing offi ce products to freely exchange SDL International, a provider of global Turbo Delphi means that developers can documents. information management solutions, has now migrate to this latest Delphi version All OpenDocument XML.org pages are redefi ned the management of translation and be sure that localization can continue accessible by the public, and readers are projects with the launch of SDL Trados without any breaks or major modifi cations. encouraged to contribute content. In addi- Synergy 2006. Designed for departmental Multilizer’s binary-localization technol- tion to technical and educational back- translation teams and language service ogy designed for visual component library ground material on the standard, the site providers, SDL Trados Synergy 2006 software is intended to ensure that there allows readers to share news, events, prod- empowers teams to manage translation will be tiny or no changes required in local- uct and services listings, information on projects and ensure total visibility of all ization when developers decide to take the project elements across their entire trans- move to the new compiler. lation supply chain. Key features include Multilizer [email protected] real-time dashboards, automated project www.multilizer.com preparation and management, and shared multiple translation memories, and it is Resources fully integrated with SDL PerfectMatch technology. The PerfectMatch technology Resources for translators is designed to accelerate the delivery of Horacio R. Dal Dosso is an Argentine global content by removing the need for English<>Spanish Certifi ed Public Translator lengthy human review times within the specializing in business, international trade, translation supply chain by automating in- information technology, telework and legal context translation management. texts. He has created an Excel spreadsheet SDL International [email protected] of more than 600 useful web addresses for www.sdl.com translators, mostly in Spanish. Translators will also fi nd information in English, French, Factiva enhances German, Italian, Portuguese and other lan- Taxonomy Warehouse guages, sorted into more than 35 categories. Factiva has enhanced its Taxonomy The resources can be found at www.hdosso Warehouse — a community directory and .com.ar/recursos.htm information source for taxonomies, thesauri Horacio R. Dal Dosso [email protected] and classifi cation schemes. It provides enter- www.hdosso.com.ar prises and academic and government orga- nizations with the information needed to Conversis research reports categorize internal and external data collec- on Sweden, South Africa tions and answer search queries with speed Conversis, a translation and localization and precision. TaxonomyWarehouse.com company, has released two country reports lists more than 650 taxonomies arranged in for its Cultural Commentaries: “A Closer 73 subject domains, produced by nearly 300 Look” section on its website. The fi rst one publishers in 40 languages and helps answer focuses on Sweden and addresses the over 10,000 user queries per month. Factiva Scandinavian country’s social democracy also offers a taxonomy consultancy. and prosperous economy. The Taxonomy Warehouse enhancements The second report focuses on South Africa, include the addition of more than 100 new addressing the region’s changing political and taxonomies, including alternative medicine, economic climate. Examining South Africa, a

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deployments, case studies, testimonials and in the 1983 edition of the Xiandai Hanyu to the turnkey, English language version of recommendations on books, white papers Cidian, plus about 200 characters from the AdMarket product, Accipiter also offers and other useful resources. OpenDocument other sources, with English translations by a customizable, private-label version that XML.org is sponsored by IBM, Intel and Sun Joy Zhao Rouzer to complement dictionary can operate in multiple languages. Microsystems, Inc. defi nitions. Characters are written large to Accipiter Solutions, Inc. OASIS [email protected] simplify recognition of the strokes that [email protected], www.accipiter.com www.oasis-open.org are used in identifi cation. The four-corner indexing system, according to the author, Common Sense reports on global Index of Chinese Characters is more effi cient than the radical indexing online consumer buying preferences With Attributes available system used in Chinese dictionaries. Independent research fi rm Common Index of Chinese Characters With Attri- MultiLingual Press Sense Advisory has released a new report butes by George E. Bell is now available in www.multilingual.com/ebooks outlining global online consumer buying fully searchable PDF format on compact disc preferences such as most people prefer to from MultiLingual Press. The index, which Accipiter’s AdMarket goes global buy online in their own language and, in includes Unicode identifi ers, is a revision Accipiter Solutions, Inc., an online adver- fact, the majority of people in some coun- of the book Alphanumeric Identifi cation tising technology innovator, has launched tries will pay more for a product with infor- of Chinese Characters. Like its predecessor, the European version of AdMarket, its mation in their own language. In the report it is intended to simplify the identifi cation self-serve, pay-per-click (PPC) advertis- “Can’t Read, Won’t Buy — Why Language and learning of Chinese characters and to ing solution that allows web publishers Matters on Global Websites” (September provide English translations for those which to operate their own text-link advertising 2006), the fi rm analyzes the online global in themselves have meaning — making it marketplaces. Following the launch of the buying preferences of more than 2,400 a valuable resource for English-speaking US-based version in May 2006, this latest consumers from eight non-Anglophone people who are studying Chinese for busi- release from Accipiter offers its European countries in Europe, Asia and South America. ness or academic use. customers a solution capable of accom- Specifi cally, the research was conducted to The book includes the characters found modating multiple currencies. In addition assess online language preferences and its subsequent impact on purchasing decisions. Factors including nationality, English-lan- guage profi ciency, brand and the ability to conduct transactions in foreign currencies were included in the study. The survey, which included Brazil, China, France, Germany, Japan, Russia, Spain and Turkey, was completed in July and August 2006 by a company specializing in con- sumer panels around the world. All surveys Good Growth were conducted in the offi cial language of each country. The detailed analysis was Takes Care conducted by Common Sense Advisory, and the data collection project was underwrit- ten by Wordbank, Lionbridge and Idiom Technologies. Organizations doing business interna- tionally; interested in building a business case for website globalization, targeted marketing and product localization; or providing the tools and services for e-com- merce will benefi t from downloading the report. A summary of the fi ndings is avail- able on the Common Sense website or at any of the underwriters’ websites. Common Sense Advisory, Inc. [email protected] www.commonsenseadvisory.com

viaLanguage focuses on California health care segment www.moraviaworldwide.com viaLanguage, a language translation and localization services provider, has responded AMERICAS EUROPE IRELAND CHINA JAPAN to the growth in the California health care segment. Combining its expertise in health

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care-specifi c language translation with a built-in search engine aims at simplifying the Intel World Ahead Program, an initiative specialized focus on health plan providers the search process for job seekers, thereby in which Intel plans to invest more than $1 and hospitals, the language services provider enabling them to target specifi c locations billion globally over the next fi ve years to has expanded its presence in the California and positions in the industry. accelerate access to computers, the internet market. Adaptive Globalization Ltd. and technology for people in developing California’s diverse population forces [email protected] communities. health plan providers and hospitals to pro- www.adaptiveglobalization.com Working with the Brazilian government vide services and care that is not only lan- and business and education offi cials, Intel guage-specifi c, but culturally-specifi c as Intel brings internet and its collaborators installed a state-of- well. In response to increasing immigrant to remote Amazon city the-art WiMAX network for a primary populations, Senate Bill 853 will make it Intel Corporation has created a wireless, health care center, two public schools, a mandatory for health care providers to high-speed internet network for residents in community center and Amazon University. meet guidelines for translating materials Parintins, a town on an island in the Amazon Intel also donated and installed telemedicine into multiple languages in order to more River, to access vast resources of medical, equipment at the health center and com- fully meet the needs of their patients and educational and commercial knowledge puter labs at the two schools where students membership base. through computers. The project is part of and teachers can regularly connect to the viaLanguage [email protected] www.vialanguage.com

ACP Traductera gets closer to French clients ACP Traductera s. r. o., a Central and East- ern European language service provider, has announced the localization of its websites to French in addition to English, German, Czech and Slovak. ACP Traductera provides translation and localization services for for- eign investors in the region and for global language solution providers. ACP Traductera [email protected] www.traductera.com

Language resources from Technolangue — EurADiC project The European Language Resources Asso- ciation (ELRA) has added language resources from the Technolangue — EurADiC project (www.technolangue.net/article.php3?id_ article=203) to its catalog. New resources Are you hoarding consist of the following monolingual and bilingual dictionaries: French Monolingual hidden treasure? Dictionary, English Monolingual Dictionary, German Monolingual Dictionary, Spanish Monolingual Dictionary, Italian Monolin- gual Dictionary, French-English Bilingual Dictionary, French-German Bilingual Dic- How many assets lie dormant in your corporate tionary, French-Spanish Bilingual Diction- treasure vault in the form of translation memory ary, and French-Italian Bilingual Dictionary. ELRA/ELDA [email protected], www.elda.org data? Services We can help you to make the Adaptive Globalization launches new website and job search engine most of those hidden assets. Visit Adaptive Globalization Ltd., a localiza- tmmarketplace.com to discover tion and translation recruitment fi rm, has THE TRANSLATION launched its new website designed to assist how. MEMORY BROKERS localization and translation profession- als in keeping up to date with the latest job opportunities around the world. The

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outside world for the fi rst time. 4.1 of its Fonix VoiceIn Standard Edition Employers, its new advanced linguist sourc- Intel Corporation www.intel.com automatic speech recognition technology. ing and applicant tracking solution, for the This release includes improved recogni- fi rst time publicly at Localization World in TranslateMedia’s Corporate tion rates, particularly in noise-saturated Montréal, October 16-18, 2006. Translations Services platform environments, and the new Speech Analysis ProZ.com for Employers provides lan- TranslateMedia, a digital document trans- Module, which enables developers to create guage service providers and end clients lation provider, has announced the launch applications that provide feedback to end with access to the world’s largest network of its Corporate Translations Services plat- users to improve pronunciation of foreign of more than 160,000 translators, inter- form. This proprietary web-based platform words and phrases. The Speech Analysis preters and linguists. Key benefi ts include incorporates personalized client document Module is available in US and UK English, reduced time-to-engage or hire; world- uploading facilities along with project man- Canadian and European French, Castilian and wide location-based search; precise fi lter- agement and translator administration tools Latin American Spanish, German, Japanese, ing resulting in a manageable number of — all via browser. A fl ash presentation about Swedish, Italian and Korean. Fonix VoiceIn highly targeted resumes for vendor man- this platform is available at www.translate 4.1 targets a variety of speech recognition agers or project managers to review; and media.com/clients/tech_corporate.aspx applications that are available from original tools to enable dispersed sourcing teams TranslateMedia equipment manufacturers, system integra- to view, save and manage online the best [email protected] tors and application developers. translators for a given project. www.translatemedia.com Fonix Corporation [email protected] ProZ.com [email protected] www.fonix.com www.proz.com/employers Fonix VoiceIn 4.1 available Fonix Speech, Inc., a wholly-owned sub- ProZ.com showcases new way to sidiary of Fonix Corporation specializing source language professionals in embedded speech interfaces for mobile ProZ.com, an enabling and sourcing portal Want more news? devices, handheld electronic products and for language professionals, has announced www.multilingual.com/news systems and processors, has released version that the company showcased ProZ.com for

November 30th Internationalization International Trade, Translation and Terminology & Unicode Conference (IUC30) November 25, 2006, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. November 15-17, 2006, in Washington, D.C. USA. English Lab, [email protected], www.english-lab.com.ar Object Management Group, Inc. [email protected] CM Pros Fall 2006 Summit www.unicodeconference.org/ml November 27, 2006, in Boston, Massachusetts USA. Content Management Professionals, [email protected] Terminology Congress November 2006 www.cmprofessionals.org/events/summit/fall2006 November 15-17, 2006, in Antwerp, Belgium. Lessius University College Antwerp Translation and Censorship [email protected] November 27-28, 2006, in Lisbon, Portugal. www.lessius-ho.be/vt/Terminologiecongresnovember2006.htm Portuguese Catholic University, [email protected], www.tradcens.net Calendar Translating and the Computer 28 IWSLT 2006 November 16-17, 2006, in London, UK. November 27-28, 2006, in Kyoto, Japan. ASLIB, [email protected], www.aslib.co.uk/conferences ATR Spoken Language Communication Research Laboratories [email protected], www.slt.atr.jp/IWSLT2006 Translation and Confl ict II November 17-19, 2006, in Salford, UK. Semantics 2006 School of Languages - University of Salford November 28-30, 2006, in Vienna, Austria. www.esri.salford.ac.uk/seminars/forthcoming/translation_confl ictII University of Innsbruck, [email protected] www.semantics2006.net Interactive Media November 19-24, 2006, in Zurich, Switzerland. 13th Web Site Globalization ASCONA III, [email protected] November 29-30, 2006, in Boston, Massachusetts USA. http://virtualinstitute.eti.unige.ch/InteractiveMedia International Quality and Productivity Center, [email protected] www.iqpc.com/cgi-bin/templates/singlecell.html?topic=233&event=11233 TAUS Executive Forum November 23-24, 2006, in Brussels, Belgium. Online Educa Berlin 2006 TAUS, [email protected] November 29-December 1, 2006, in Berlin, Germany. www.translationautomation.com/tausMeetings.php ICWE GmbH, [email protected], www.online-educa.com

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08-21 News #84.indd 20 11/1/06 9:18:32 AM Calendar

December March WorldSummit Europe 2006 Transadaptation, Technology, Nomadism December 4-6, 2006, in Dublin, Ireland. March 8-10, 2007, Montréal, Québec, Canada. Idiom Technologies, Inc. Université Concordia, [email protected] www.idiominc.com/wseurope2006 http://etfran.concordia.ca/conf07 CISSE 2006 TAUS Summit December 4-14, 2006, online. March 15-16, 2007, in Taos, New Mexico USA. Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers, www.cisse2006.org TAUS, [email protected] www.translationautomation.com/meetings.php Language Standards for Global Business From Chaos to Order — An Inventory DCCA 2007 December 14-15, 2006, Vienna, Austria. March 19-22, 2007, in Irbid, Jordan. Global Meeting Services, [email protected] Jordan University of Science and Technology www.internationalization-conference.org/lsgbVienna [email protected], www.cis.just.edu.jo/dcca2007 January Localization World Shanghai 40th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences March 20-22, 2007, in Shanghai, China. January 3-6, 2007, in Waikoloa, Hawaii. Localization World, [email protected] Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences www.localizationworld.com/lwshanghai2007/cfp.htm [email protected], www.hicss.hawaii.edu April Tenth International Symposium on Social Communication January 22-26, 2007, in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba. Critical Link 5 X Simposio Internacional Comunicacion Social April 11-15, 2007, Sydney, Australia. [email protected] Critical Link 5, [email protected], www.criticallink2007.com Welocalize and Transco Merge Expanded BPO Capability in China

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08-21 News #84.indd 21 11/1/06 11:41:24 AM 22 eiw.nd22 Reviews.indd 22-28 Reviews.indd 22 22 tics is fi According tothedesigner, theholygrail ofcomputationallinguis- | W TM, it’s allabout howyou slice it. database can’treturn amatch.So,intreating atextwithnormal a segment,butifit’s astatistically small partofthatstring,our of matches. Thus, wemight have perfectlyusable materialwithin powerful incertainapplications, butare limitedby thefuzziness equivalences betweenstrings, typicallysentences. Thesetools are segmented by separators, andahumanuser establishes formal1:1 ory (TM)employs ablunt-instrument approach: parallel textsare tors inapurely statistical exercise. Conventional translation mem- how humans “see”language,buthowcomputers do. various alphabets, this is anuncannilyaccurate descriptionnotof leaving asidethenumberofdiscrete characters intheworld’s period, thecomma,twenty-twoletters ofthealphabet.”Now, they mightbe,are madeupofthesame elements:thespace, the lar genius concludingthat“all thebooks, nomatterhowdiverse attempt toelucidateitsnature andpurpose,withoneofparticu- knowledge. Thelibrarians wholive anddieinthis textualuniverse and confi nite repository ofallpossiblebooks, whosecenter is everywhere MultiLingual we’re allears. translators willfi of thatheoffers anavailable publicindexfrom which mance gains “as highas800%”),welisten. Andifontop allows formuchfi as Logoport,butalso uses anext-generation enginethat Hunt tells us thatLingotekis notonlyasweb-enabled the peopleandresources tomakeitwork.WhenTim port works, webelieve himbecause weknowthathehas Enter TimHuntandhis languagesearch engine(LSE)concept. TM versusLSE In Computers crunch textsby using theseessentiallyvisual separa- Reviews When RoryCowanfrom Lionbridgetells us thatLogo- The Library ofBabel nding “thesame words inthesame contextwiththesame nes are nowhere —anendlessexpanse ofsearchable eebr20 [email protected] December2006 nd usable matchesfrom dayone,then Introducing anewweb-based‘languagesearchengine’ Reviewed byIgnacioGarcia&VivianStevenson Lingotek ner-grained textre-use (withperfor- , Jorge Luis Borges writesofaninfi - Word, RTF,OpenOffice,HTML,XHTMLandExcel. File formatssupported(atthemomentofreview): Format (rtf)andPowerPoint(ppt). Microsoft Word(doc),Excel(xls),RichText (JRE) 1.5/5.0.OpenOffice.org2.0.xrequiredforaligning LingoAlign Requirements:JavaRuntimeEnvironment Mozilla Firefox1.5.x,Opera9.0andInternetExplorer6.0. Technology requirements:Supportedwebbrowsers: Add-ons: PrivateIndexes,$5permonthindex. Basic $29.99permonth. All languages.Englishinterface. Lingotek done itand,ifwebelieve thehype,withgreat success. Itcan’tbe translators andmanagementoflinguistic resources. Lionbridgehas It allmakesforgreater collaboration betweenworldwideteams of mail address? That’s web-basedtechnology:software asaservice. was doneby a mainframe andallyou neededwasabrowser ande- Now, whatifnoneofthateven mattered? Whatifallthecrunching software investments, your upgrades andupdatesdisk space? Firefox orOpera? Processor powerandRAM?Whataboutyour with it. one hastowonderhowready theworldandLingotekare todeal have Borges intransports ofdelight.It’s abigWeb2.0vision, and the shelves ofared-shifted multilingualcyber-archive thatwould implementation invitesthee-translator communitytohelpstock Lingotek solutiondelivers. Notonlythat,Lingotek’s web-enabled meaning,” andthis, heclaims, is exactly whathis paragraph-based Pause amoment.Windows orLinux?PCMac?Explorer or University ofWestern Sydney. translation technologyatthe Ignacio Garciaisateacherof freelance translatorinAustralia. Vivian Stevensonisa 110 :03 AM 9:20:37 11/1/06 9:20:37 AM Reviews

simple, since main players such as SDL, the market leader in transla- translation editor — impressive and very interesting for control tion technologies, are still on the client-server model — Web 1.5 if freaks. you like. If Lingotek has done a Logoport, that would be a major So, we begin as a project manager and create a small project achievement on its own. which we assign to ourselves as translators. We specify languages, Lingotek says it has, but with web deployment as just an added noting the system does not remember “favorites.” The transla- feature. The linchpin is its LSE, promoted as a Google-like engine tion editor, the LSE, opens, with its Source, Target and Resources capable of searching terabytes of multilingual text to return not windows, and within the Resources, the Hits, Format Tagging and fuzzy matches but words, phrases, sentences and entire para- other tabs (Figure 2). graphs of useful information. With the particular fi le we’ve uploaded, the work window looks And unlike Logoport, Lingotek is all about sharing. Developed much like any TM suite’s. Pre-translation is not available, how- on Linux, it has XLIFF as its native format. Some digging shows ever, and matches are not automatically entered in the target text that the company has recently come under the wing of the major window. Nevertheless, drag-and-drop from Resources to Target software developer Novell — which, like IBM and Sun, is a big works fi ne. There are no fuzzy matches, just highlighted sentence open source/standards advocate. Furthermore, while traditional fragments. These “hits” are returned from the paragraphs already TM suites come with empty databases, Lingotek comes with a translated in the workfi le, plus the program’s databases. The pub- “public index” — a ready collection of paragraph-aligned bilingual lic index is not overly useful, offering mostly noise words such as texts to be grown by users in the course of their work. Again, what articles and prepositions, and best hits are not necessarily offered Lionbridge keeps to itself, Lingotek offers to all. It’s brilliantly fi rst. The blurb claims the software is “meaning-based,” but when seductive. But does it work? we translate some exotic recipes, we get paragraphs of geopoli- tics. It’s not hard to see where they’ve seeded their database from. But this apparent fl aw is consistent with the software’s rationale. Babel, if you will, is in its infancy and responds with baby talk. The more we give it, the smarter it gets. On the plus side, there are no irritating format codes or painting. We’re still impressed. The glow fades when we try to export the results. We can- not download the translated fi le. We try to delete all and start anew, but no go. The site gets messy. By chance — as usual — we fi nd that Download and Delete work fi ne in Firefox; the problem was with IE and Opera. We let Lingotek support know, and they got back at us — they’re responsive. The most striking issue we found with this product was the lack of source context: the translator cannot access the whole document, only individual paragraphs in sequence. And within those paragraphs there’s no layout — formatting is opaque. In a feature that agencies will doubtless like, a des- ignated translator can’t subcontract work to other colleagues; it all needs to go through the project manager. The Dashboard, showing user’s clients, projects and So, while Lingotek talks up the superiority of its paragraph- translators working for him or her and the jobs to do. based segmenting, in a sentence-based offering such as Logi- term the document where that sentence resides (including Getting started formatting) is still just a click away. Now, some might say that’s First impression is excellent. From the webpage (www.lingotek more context-rich (and “meaning-based”) than just getting one .com) you simply click Free One Month Trial, enter a valid e-mail (unformatted) orphan paragraph at a time. address and nominate a password, and you’re in. Recall that since This seems puzzling. The product information says context is there’s no program to download and install, it’s your browser and king when searching the program’s databases, yet it is notably internet service provider that count rather than your processor and missing in the editor. And, as any pro knows, you’re hampered operating system. That said, we had the best results with Firefox in sifting resources if you can’t contextualize your source. True, and worst with Opera, with Internet Explorer (IE) somewhere in project managers could arrange for translators to access the origi- between. The fi rst page (Dashboard) is very intuitive (Figure 1). nal document externally to Lingotek, and format-heavy docu- Creating a project is easy — you simply upload your workfi le. ments could be worked on with two screens, but this seems a There is a neat twist, however. Lingotek offers a reversible hier- clumsy way of addressing the problem. Indeed, we would expect archy whereby users are enabled as both translators and project next-generation translation tools to give us a WYSIWYG view of managers from the same login. In “normal” mode the user is source and target, similar to that of localization tools, but that’s both project manager and translator, but can also assign a job to not what Lingotek does. another enabled e-mail address. In this regard the system imple- On refl ection, this contradiction appears to be inherent in ments a virtual translation agency and allows for the tracking of the program’s very concept. We must expect that its centralized client, project manager, translator, delivery time and completion indexes (public and private) will eventually contain certain things progress. Not only that, the assignee has no direct access to the best kept from prying eyes; accidents will happen, too, and pres- source fi le, only to the context-free paragraphs afforded by the ently we can’t see anything preventing a user from goofi ng and

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running a sensitive project through the public database. So, if someone could sneak in and fi nd interesting strings and from there maybe reassemble a document — you get the idea. Thus, everything is kept fragmented, with only the project manager for each job having the power to put Humpty Dumpty back together. Here, Lingotek has neatly made a context vice into a security virtue. Pros and cons Since we can’t access Logoport, we can’t tell how Lin- gotek stacks up against the other web-based solution. Lingotek is conceptually simple, but did not always behave as expected. We had issues in assessing the product’s func- tionality and implementation because the application is still evolving. Fast. Much work has been going on since its launch in mid-August, and glitches we might fi nd one week — such as an inability to add a new document to a project — can disappear the next. That said, we were still unable to import/export fi les in batches. For large jobs, it’s possible to assign the same The LSE: the Hits tab shows hits from public and private indexes. document to more than one translator, but since source context is so scant, how to ensure that team members can fi nd required from the translator in identifying source language “hits” where to start and fi nish? For now, the solution seems to be the with their target language strings in the Resources window and creation of individual fi les beforehand, but it would seem neater deciding whether these are useful for the job at hand. Lingotek’s to partition the project somehow instead. We miss some kind of private index facility would presumably help the LSE offer fewer control over the imported or generated databases in the “private “scattergun” matches, and indeed this appeared so. When using index” where users can upload their own aligned material for our own private database, Lingotek did fi nd shorter previous restricted access. Lingotek accepts TMX (open standard) and TTX strings inside new, longer ones, which would be outside sensible (TRADOS standard) memories but does not export into them. Its match criteria for conventional TMs. databases remain in the background, dirty and unedited. But, of We don’t know exactly how the algorithm works, but it is course, this need not be a problem if searches are truly discrimi- reminiscent of the “Canadian” model — namely what LogiTerm nating and productive. calls “bitext” databases or what MultiTrans calls “text-based TM,” Lingotek’s main claim effectively centers on its LSE’s ability relying on equivalent continuous character-strings rather than on to mine a paragraph-aligned corpus of “meaning-based” text sentence segments and fuzzy matching. For all the LSE’s vaunted for re-use. When we used the “public” database, the LSE turned power, however, it still returns those irritating “noise” words (the, up results, but not overly relevant ones. Non-trivial input is also a, to and so on) which LogiTerm manages to skip. No Complications. No Side Effects. www.fxtrans.com

Medical translations you can trust.

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at the time. Had enough? Cancel your subscription. Want out? Your public contributions live on regardless. Can it deliver? Only if you help it. How Web 2.0 is that? For those reasons, there seems little point in quibbling about technical glitches, of which we found several — espe- cially since many of them disappeared quick-smart. As a concept, Lingotek is big, bold and beautiful. As we reviewed it, we constantly found ourselves challenged: “Don’t ask if I’m ready for you. Are you ready for me?” The answer is yes and no. As designer Tim Hunt himself advises, TM projects account for only a fraction of what translators do. We can vouch for that because as work- ing translators we respect and use TM but often get more productivity from voice recognition software. Anything less than a 100% match means time spent in comparison and contrast, and we found that same drawback when trawling through Lingotek’s windows of “meaning-based” hits. So, while Lingotek offers a new way of slicing texts, until computers can read the way people do, TM in its vari- ous guises will remain an adjunct to plain old hard work. The LSE: the Format Tagging tab and the handling of formatting. Meaning is, for the moment, still the domain of humans. Another missing element is terminology management. While In terms of computational solutions, though, Lingotek gets Lingotek’s antecedent was suggestively named TermSeek, the you thinking. Sure, the real decisions still fall to human transla- program only offers a glossary feature — or will offer rather since tors, but on the basis of ever increasing and improving resources, that offer is still in the pipeline. Lingotek offers something exciting and different. Is it enough? In Conceptually though, Lingotek impresses from the get-go. competition with standard, stand-alone TM, maybe not. Take the “public index,” for instance. By default (literally), all But imagine, if you will, not a search engine such as Google or translators working with the tool will also be working together Lingotek’s LSE, but a metasearch translation engine harnessing the in building the ultimate multilingual database — freely available power of various algorithms and approaches: a Dogpile of TMs. and ever more useful with increasing contributions. It follows the Imagine opening a translation project and having various engines steps fi rst taken by LogiTerm’s Transearch, which is restricted to offer you cascaded windows of graded solutions, from TRADOS- French-English and parliamentary and legal language, and by Type 1:1 segments to Lingotek strings, with hits from both public Wordfast’s “very large translation memory” (VLTM), whose con- and private multilingual repositories. When you talk web-enabled, tents are presumably biased toward the usual suspects — that why not go all the way? Now that sounds like the future. is, major-language institutional and governmental material. The That’s the real beauty of it — with its visionary concepts about Lingotek vision is much more universal. And while candidates for the storing, administration, searching and growing of multilingual the Transearch and VLTM databases undergo some kind of quality information, Lingotek can’t help but make you think. It feels like control, Lingotek lets it all hang out. the harbinger of a coming revolution, but you wonder if it’s ready Lingotek’s big, down-and-dirty ideal can only work if its LSE itself. Indeed, in this review we had the sense that the software’s does. In that case, it’s just a matter of growing that public archive, release had been rushed — to somehow get out there with the with any shortcomings down to the willingness of the global fi rstest (if not exactly the mostest), warts and all. translation community to pitch in. Sneaky, and neatly resonant Will Lingotek still be a player in fi ve years or ten? Right now, we with web philosophies such as Wikipedia and eBay, it’s point- feel this is something in its infancy. As to its future, we recall the less questioning if it works because it only works if you believe. famous riposte attributed to Michael Faraday, who, when asked But can Lingotek really supersede strictly managed, synchronized if his discoveries concerning electricity were of any use, replied, multilingual TMs? We can’t see it (our failing?) for corporations “What use is a newborn baby?” Lingotek gives the same sense of producing periodic content updates because they’re already latent potential. The claims about the LSE seem plausible because geared to producing TM-friendly texts to exploit abundant legacy given the right (private) index material it does deliver — although material full of sentence, terminology and format matches. After the wheat-to-chaff ratio could improve. Nevertheless, we still all, there’s a defi nite historical momentum there. And even if Lin- query the “meaning-based” assertion — logically enough, since gotek can attract big players, don’t expect to see its proprietary until artifi cial intelligence comes along, all developers can really stuff on its public index any time soon. However, for non-repeti- offer is some improved algorithm for crunching Borges’ letters, tive, less controlled text, who knows? Given enough believers, in commas, spaces and periods. coming years we could be talking “T-Bay” or “Trikipedia.” Interested? You don’t need much time or money to try it for yourself. And since upgrades occur continually in response ‘The washup’ to worldwide user feedback, the program and features you fi nd One thing is clear: Lingotek has to be assessed not as a product tomorrow will surely be much more advanced, powerful and func- but as a service. Whatever its functions appear to be today, they tional than those we’ve reviewed today — especially if you (we) can be altered tomorrow. There is no major license investment — a stay involved. And if it doesn’t work, on our own heads be it. monthly fee of US$30 buys you whatever functionality applies Clever. M

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The Unicode Standard, Version 5.0 Reviewed by Richard Gillam New improved edition is worth the investment

By now, probably no one reading this magazine hasn’t at least heard of Unicode. In its fi fteen-year history, need, the chances are overwhelming that Unicode has it, and if it doesn’t, Unicode has become the character encoding standard no other encoding standard in rea- of choice in new applications. It’s the default encod- sonably wide use is going to have Bing of HTML and XML; it’s the fundamental character it, either. This comprehensiveness type in programming languages such as Java, C# and makes it possible to represent text Javascript; and it’s the internal character encoding in in any language or combination of the Windows and Macintosh operating systems. Virtu- languages without having to worry about specifying which character ally all Unix fl avors include support for it, too. Unicode encoding standard your application is to computing in the twenty-fi rst century what ASCII or document is following — and was to computing in the twentieth century. without having to worry about The Unicode Standard, changing that encoding standard Version 5.0. In October 2006, the Unicode Consortium released the new- The Unicode Consortium, in the middle of your document or est version of the standard, Version 5.0, published in hardcover Addison-Wesley going without characters because by Addison-Wesley. The fi rst thing the reader notices is that Professional, October you can’t change encodings. this is a large book, weighing in at over 1,400 pages. Yes, the 2006. Hardcover, 1,472 Naturally, this comprehensiveness new version contains a lot of characters — just under 100,000, pages, $59.99. poses implementation challenges that in fact — but the actual code charts make up less than a third have to be addressed. For example, of that page count. If you haven’t looked through previous many of the world’s writing systems have complicated two- versions, you may be asking what can possibly take up the rest dimensional ordering properties that don’t map well onto a linear of that space. progression of numeric codes, and many can be analyzed into Two things set the Unicode standard apart from other char- “characters” in different ways. Different encoding decisions may acter encoding standards. One is the sheer size and compre- need to be made for different scripts, yet you still have to be able hensiveness of its code assignments. Those 100,000 character to mix them in a document and have things work sensibly. Many assignments cover all of the characters in all of the writing characters have similar appearances, leading to potential security systems for all the languages in common business use today, as issues that have to be addressed. You also can’t infer much about well as all the characters needed for many minority languages a character from its position in the code space or its appearance and obsolete writing systems, and a whole host of mathemati- in the code charts. There are too many characters for that, with cal, scientifi c and technical symbols. Whatever the character you more being added all the time. Because of these and many other issues, the Unicode standard and its accompanying Unicode Standard Annexes (“UAXes” for Richard Gillam is the author of Unicode short) go far beyond any other character encoding standard in Demystifi ed: A Practical Programmer’s Guide to describing just how those 100,000 character assignments get used the Encoding Standard; a frequent presenter at the together to represent real text and how software should carry out Internationalization and Unicode Conferences; and various processes on the characters. For example, since you can’t a former columnist for C++ Report. He works on the infer things from a character’s position in the encoding space, the Global Name Recognition team at IBM. standard includes a very large database of character properties that

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lay out in tremendous detail such things as whether a character For starters, Unicode 5.0 includes 1,369 new character assign- is a letter or a digit, which other characters (if any) it’s equivalent ments, and 1,273 character assignments from Unicode 4.1 are to and so on. Because there are more character codes than can be appearing for the fi rst time in book form. These include addi- represented in a single 16-bit word, the standard defi nes differ- tions to the Latin, Arabic, Ethiopic and other repertoires for vari- ent representation schemes (Unicode calls them “encoding forms”) ous minority languages; new scripts such as Glagolitic (an old that optimize for different situations. Because Unicode allows many script for Slavic languages still used in some liturgical settings); characters to be represented in more than one way, the standard Buginese, which is spoken by 2.3 million people in Indonesia; defi nes processes for dealing with the equivalences. Many other and Phags-Pa, an ancient script used for Chinese and Mon- complexities and challenges are also addressed in the standard. golian; a large collection of cuneiform characters; and various smaller additions. Chapter by chapter Perhaps more important than the new characters, various The fi rst two chapters of the book lay out the purpose and technical specifi cations have been changed and added. The goals of Unicode and give an overview of the whole standard. conformance section has been completely rewritten and tight- They lay out the Unicode design principles, give a quick tour of ened up. The standard now includes a collection of stability the encoding space, briefl y explain the UTF-8, UTF-16 and UTF- guarantees, dictating just what can and cannot change in future 32 encoding forms, give an overview of the com- versions of the standard. Various architectural plicated issues of writing direction and combining improvements for representing Biblical Hebrew characters, and give a brief summary of Unicode’s In addition to and other scripts have been incorporated. The conformance requirements. the technical standard now includes “normative name aliases,” Chapter 3 gives Unicode’s formal conformance a way to fi x typos in the character names while requirements. Chapter 4 goes through each of the changes, the maintaining the guarantee that character names character properties specifi ed in the Unicode Charac- never change. A new specifi cation called “IICore,” ter Database and explains how they work. Chapter 5 text of the new which enumerates the 10,000 “core” Chinese goes on to provide a grab bag of guidelines and tips book has been characters that are in common modern use and for implementing various aspects of the standard: should be included in Chinese fonts, has been handling missing or unimplemented characters, signifi cantly defi ned. Finally, new information on security converting between Unicode and other standards, issues has been added. dealing with numbers, rendering characters on the revised. Even more important, the UAXes are included screen and enabling users to edit them, searching in the book for the fi rst time. These annexes and sorting, avoiding security pitfalls and so on. are separate specifi cations for various processes, Chapters 6 through 16 go through the encoding space one sec- such as the ordering of bidirectional text, locating text element tion at a time, explaining the structure and history of each writing boundaries and using Unicode in program-language identifi ers. system, the encoding philosophy that Unicode’s designers fol- They’re published as separate documents because their content lowed in encoding it, and any unusual characters or other special is relatively separable from the main body of the standard and features implementers need to know about. Chapter 6 provides an they change a little more frequently, but they’re full-fl edged overall introduction and discusses punctuation. Chapter 7 covers parts of the standard itself. Conformance to Unicode implies the European alphabetic scripts. Chapter 8 covers the right-to-left conformance to the annexes, if they’re relevant to what you’re scripts used in the Middle East. Chapters 9, 10 and 11 cover the doing. Up until now, they’ve only been available online or on Indic scripts used throughout South and Southeast Asia. Chapter the CD that comes with the book. Now, they’re printed in the 12 covers the various writing systems used in East Asia, including book itself. the Chinese characters. Chapter 13 covers various other scripts In addition to the technical changes, the text of the new book that didn’t neatly fi t into the other categories; Chapter 14 cov- has been signifi cantly revised. The introductions start out with ers archaic and obsolete scripts; Chapter 15 covers the symbols; “Why Buy This Book” and “Why Upgrade to Unicode 5.0” sections and Chapter 16 covers the invisible formatting codes and other — a huge improvement over previous versions. The explanatory special-purpose code assignments. text in the early chapters includes more information on imple- The code charts themselves appear, along with full lists of char- mentation “gotchas,” and some less-important material has been acters, in Chapter 17, and Chapter 18 provides a radical-stroke removed from the introductory chapters and relegated to appen- index for the Chinese characters. Several large indices, a compre- dices in the back. Many of the character-block descriptions have hensive glossary and numerous appendices round out the book. been rewritten or extensively revised. The Unicode standard is nothing if not thorough, not only in Finally, there’s the most noticeable change: the size of the book the repertoire of characters it includes, but also in its specifi ca- itself. Each successive Unicode book has been bigger than the tion of how they work and how various text processes should preceding one, and Unicode 4.0 was a behemoth. The Unicode work. The designers of Unicode have also worked harder than the 5.0 book is actually smaller. It has roughly the same number of authors of most data-processing standards to produce a standard pages as the Unicode 4.0 book, but the pages are quite a bit that is easy to read and provides a wealth of background informa- smaller. This should make it easier to carry around and to fi t on tion and implementation advice. the shelf with the other computer books. The book is smaller because it no longer includes the code charts for the Chinese What’s new and different and Korean characters; they’re only available in PDF form on the So far, I could have been saying all these things about any accompanying CD. An abbreviated version of the radical-stroke version of the Unicode standard. What’s new about Unicode 5.0? index for the Chinese containing the IICore set of characters is

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22-28 Reviews.indd 27 11/1/06 9:23:46 AM Reviews

still printed in the book, but the full radical-stroke index has also that topic comprehensively and then incorporates all the UAXes been moved to the CD. directly into the text as chapters. I’d also like to see the formal conformance requirements moved Recommendations for future versions from the middle of the process-oriented material. If you’re read- While every version of the standard is better than the previ- ing for understanding, they get in the way. Perhaps they should ous one, this one still doesn’t fully address some long-standing be moved to the end or between the process-oriented chapters complaints of mine. The biggest is the organization of the pro- and the script-oriented chapters. cess-oriented chapters near the beginning of the book. Certain Finally, there are still sections that could benefi t from more key processes, such as case mapping and folding, handling com- illustrations. For example, with many spots in the script-oriented bining characters, string comparison and handling numbers, get chapters where a particular character is discussed but not shown, signifi cant treatments in several different locations, each of which you have to go to the code charts to see it. In newer discussions repeats material from the other places, but treats the topic from of characters, the character in question is shown, but older discus- a slightly different angle. Everything is cross-referenced, but it’s sions haven’t always been updated. still kind of scattered. I’ve also never really gotten the rationale for keeping certain The bottom line topics in UAXes rather than incorporating them into the main So, should you go out and buy this version if you have one of body of the text. It seems to be that the UAXes generally cover the older ones? Absolutely. Even if you don’t care about the new process topics that are relatively self-contained. Still, it’s unclear characters, the explanations are better, there have been important why other processes that look separable are in the main text. updates and additions to the architecture, many more potential Unicode normalization is in a UAX, but the processes that normal- implementation pitfalls are covered, and the book itself is easier ization depends on — decomposition and accent-mark reordering to carry around. If you’re coming to Unicode cold, you’ll defi nitely — aren’t. Bidirectional reordering is in a UAX, but case mapping is want this book, but might still benefi t from one of the “introduc- in the main text. It might make sense to go to a more process-ori- tion to Unicode” books out there. ented organization scheme, moving information on each process And if you’ve never heard of Unicode but are still reading this that one might perform on text to a separate UAX that covers magazine, well, what’s keeping you? M

28 | MultiLingual December 2006 [email protected]

22-28 Reviews.indd 28 11/1/06 9:24:42 AM 29 Column | ts ts 11/1/0611/1/06 9:26:32 AM 9:26:32 AM cial MultiLingual uences external perception. uences external perception. cial laws and rules in any country Off the Map Off the nd most interesting about the situation in nd most interesting cially discourages certain forms of content certain forms of content cially discourages cial and street realities Offi One aspect that I fi to digital content One key and oft-cited example pertains Tom Edwards is owner and principal consultant of Englobe, a and principal consultant of Englobe, a Edwards is owner Tom Seattle-based consultancy for geostrategic content management. spent 13 years at Microsoft as a geographer and as Tom Previously, its senior geopolitical strategist. China is the stark contrast that exists between the reality of “the that exists between the reality China is the stark contrast offi of the government’s as opposed to the reality street” infl policies, and how this difference The disparity between the offi but in China new, and what happens in everyday life is nothing and readily the gulf between them is particularly pronounced noticeable for even the casual tourist. that government has clearly stated on record While the piracy. China has one is that the reality it is opposed to such practices, for software, in the world rates of the highest content piracy Information technol- movies, games and other such products. within China ogy (IT) and entertainment companies operating which they the outset that this market in from fully realize dynamic to thrive and succeed has a counter-productive desire undermining their ability to do so. The dynamic that is severely expense of but at the capitalistic and entrepreneurial, is surely both the government and the legitimate businesses producing despite this well-known situation, the the original content. Yet market potential coupled with a currently sheer size of China’s such companies — even economy is enough to attract rampant at a net loss and possibly re- if it means potentially operating with profi quiring them to subsidize their Chinese operations in other locales. Thus, despite such issues, China has certainly become “the place to be” in terms of business; and while the government offi being distributed, any tourist knows you can buy virtually from or other such items on the street any movie, game, software for almost nothing. c ags. ags. The challenge of China The challenge c issues that are most most c issues that are

Up until this point in this column, my focus my focus Up until this point in this column, issues that are common to the globalizing busi- common issues that are names to maps and fl geographic ness — from concerning the Beyond the one thematic entry challenges of video game particular geocultural the to provide content, my intention has been to some of the introduction with a solid reader aspects of content develop- challenging more will no doubt be additional ment, and there which pertain to a particular entries in the future industry or type of product. In this issue, I’d like to initiate another format for this has been rather exclusively on content-specifi has been rather www.multilingual.com December 2006 Tom Edwards Edwards Tom

column, which is to focus on individual geographic markets markets column, which is to focus on individual geographic and highlight a few of the locale-specifi pertinent to content. I can think of no better locale to start off Republic of in long form, the People’s this series than China or, China (PRC). For those who have ample experience in this lo- affairs, cale or even for those who stay informed of its current superpower As a regional the choice of China will be clear. developing and rapidly most robust and one of the world’s economies, China also is one of the most challenging markets With tight a content perspective. in which to do business from in September on the media (such as the declaration controls outlets operating on foreign 2006 placing additional controls freedoms within the country), internal scrutiny over personal over sev- of its sovereignty and a perpetual reinforcement geopolitical disputes, China makes the development and eral quite challenging. distribution of content within its borders the complexities of the subject So, while I cannot fully explore within this space, I would like to highlight a couple of key content environment. China’s points regarding U 29-3129-31 C Edwards #84.indd 29 C Edwards #84.indd 29 Column

aspects, in coordination with the Selected content challenges in China Ministry of Culture (MOC). The relation- ship between GAPP and MOC has in These few examples illustrate some geocultural issues that have either occurred itself been a point of some confusion as in the recent past or represent ongoing sensitivities with the government. These is- to who ultimately has the authority to sues and many others like them can be serious traps for businesses trying to operate control imported content, that is, which safely in China. agency foreign companies need to most satisfy. In 2005, a new directive called “Measures for Strengthening the Regulation of Imported Cultural Products” was issued which further reinforced China’s commitment to regulating such “harmful content,” but it hasn’t been entirely clear where the actual “tipping point” exists between acceptability and rejection. An offi cial in the MOC reinforced this ambiguity in 2004, saying that China “will import some foreign online games whose contents accord with Chinese national conditions and bring positive effects to young people’s mentality” (BBC News, June 1, 2004). While the obvious themes of pornography, violence and profanity are not permit- ted, other aspects of content pertain- The Hearts of Iron video game was banned by ing to cultural nuances may or may not China in 2004 for displaying both Taiwan and be found acceptable depending upon Tibet as separate political entities. (above) which specifi c offi cial reviews the Image © Pan Vision AB. content, which city in China (Shanghai is known to be somewhat more liberal The offi cial PRC map of the South China Sea or at least open-minded than Beijing, at right is a device to suggest the country’s for example) and so forth. This under- sovereignty over the entire sea. standably leaves many game developers perceiving the submission of content to the GAPP review as quite an unpredict- able exercise, and two similar games might emerge with quite different results. In fairness, the ESRB game rating review in the United States, the PEGI review in Europe and the CERO review in Japan have all had their share of unpredictability, but they’ve demon- strated far more consistency over time and have made it easier for developers to anticipate more precisely what will The fl ag of Taiwan and the fl ag of Tibet are symbols unwelcomed by or will not be approved. China’s government because they represent local independence. Clear policy on some issues Where China excels in terms of clarity Another aspect that can be equally government often applies to any ques- on content policy is in defi ning its posi- challenging is an apparent inconsistency tionable content, particularly “cultural tion on a few selected geopolitical and that sometimes prevails when attempting products” not originating in China. A cultural issues, some of which have been to verify the real degree of sensitivity of good example of this concept in practice previously mentioned in this column. some issue in content. Some geopolitical applies to video games and their accept- These are issues for which China has issues in China are very straightforward, ability within the market. clearly shown preference or restriction such as the Taiwan issue. Other issues, The General Administration of Press and for which the government has taken however, can be quite diffi cult to discern and Publication (GAPP) agency has the swift action against businesses on a when they fall under the very broad mandate to review game content and number of occasions, amply demonstrat- heading “harmful content,” which the make determinations on the “harmful” ing consistency:

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Cartography. The Chinese government exclusively. I’ve still seen some websites business in China from a content perspec- is defi nitely known for maintaining using the former British version of the tive, and much remains unknown about strict policies in regards to the depiction Hong Kong fl ag, almost ten years after the where the true line of sensitivity remains. of its geographic and territorial sover- transition took place. But in practice it’s always recommended eignty as expressed in maps. The gov- Culture. Various cultural practices in to err on the side of caution — as in most ernment expects that all of its declared China can have varying degrees of sen- countries. This condition will continue for territories be shown as wholly “China,” sitivity, but perhaps the two most worth some time as this dynamic and rapidly including the island of Taiwan; the mentioning in terms of government reac- evolving market continues to fi nd a path to disputed Spratly and Paracel Islands (all tion would be Tibetan Buddhism and the compromise (or not) between encouraging of the South China Sea area is claimed); practice of Falun Gong. economic development and international the disputed Senkaku Islands; the Aksai The issue of Tibet’s sovereignty and business while trying to maintain a bench- Chin portion of the Jammu and Kashmir the displacement of its spiritual leader, mark for what it defi nes as its core culture. dispute; and a portion of India’s state the Dalai Lama, is a well-known cause Fortunately, China’s policy is clear and of Arunachal Pradesh. In addition to outside of China, and much international uncompromising on at least some geo- these areas, both Hong Kong and Macao sympathy has been focused on the issue. cultural issues, and that certainly helps need to be displayed clearly as “Special Within China, Tibet (Xizang in Chinese) content developers in avoiding at least Administrative Regions” of China — not of course remains wholly integrated with the most glaring and problematic sensi- as their former colonial entities. This the PRC state, and the practice of Tibetan tivities. If a company can avoid treading typically means showing them with the Buddhism, while tolerated for a histori- on those known areas, this removes a S.A.R. designation after their names to cal cultural practice, is not tolerated if greater part of the overall content risk emphasize the point. practiced in conjunction with the political and leaves only the smaller uncertainty Flags. The fl ag of Taiwan is most movement in regard to the status of Tibet. by content type and/or industry that defi nitely sensitive in almost any context Falun Gong (also known as Falun Dafa), might only be resolved through a long- if displayed within China. Actually, the on the other hand, is a religious practice term — and patient — interaction with use of any symbol of Taiwan national- that is approached with zero tolerance China’s government. M ism — most notably the fl ag but also the by the government and has been an use of the name “Republic of China” for ongoing point of human rights contro- Resources Taiwan — almost guarantees govern- versy in the international community. ment backlash because its use could be Nevertheless, within China, any content Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the viewed as a company harboring sympathy in relation to Falun Gong (even news People’s Republic of China website: www towards Taiwan’s cause and a passive stories) is a quick invitation for govern- .fmprc.gov.cn/eng/ljzg endorsement of its independence. Also, ment response. Ministry of Foreign Affairs — The after the political incorporation of Hong Republic of China (Taiwan) website: Kong and Macao into the PRC in 1997 and Err on the side of caution www.mofa.gov.tw 1999 respectively, new fl ags were devel- Again, it’s possible here to only scratch The Government of Tibet in Exile oped for both regions and should be used the surface of the complexities of doing offi cial website: www.tibet.com

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29-31 C Edwards #84.indd 31 11/1/06 9:27:42 AM 23 riad 8.nd32 #84.indd Freivalds C 32-33 CFreivalds #84.indd32 32 I | know-how. Thedealergraciously wantsto ing foracompanysuchasyours withyour government ofSandistaninPetrolina islook- projects, thedealerwilltellyouthat whatever. Orifyouhavethoughtofother of settingupahigh-techtraining centeror the badfrom thegood. cash. Mostdeals,however, are onthelevel. You justhavetosort people tohelpthemlaundermoney—theultimatecommodity, sort oranother. Ihaveeven been contactedbyRussianbusiness- petroleum, from hemptousedautomobilesorcontracts ofone deal, thepromotion dealandthetechnicaldeal. works quickly. There are usuallythree kindsofdeals—thetrading or sheoperates alone,thedealertriestoconvinceyouthatheorshe huge multinationalandgovernmentbureaucracies. Andbecausehe it isalsorefreshing toseeanindividualhustlingaloneinera of Column MultiLingual The promotion dealermayhavelearnedthatyouare thinking The trading dealcaninvolveanycommodityfrom grain to In onesenseitistiringtobeconstantlybombarded withdeals,yet say here intheUnitedStates. are —thosewho“crawl outofthewoodwork,”aswe be globalsavvy, youhavetoknowwhothesepeople start, “Mr. Freivalds, howdoyoulikeAmerica?”So,to it. EventhoughIspeakfl fi loans, fi to helpLatviagetUSgovernmentmoney, World Bank of the36,000lobbyistsinWashington, D.C.,offering since Irepresent Latvia,Igetcallsfrom more thanone Argentina, MoscoworMadrid.IntheUnitedStates, deals. ThiscouldbeKazakhstan orCuba,Lebanon one sensesthatIama“foreigner,” Igetoffers todo number ofdifferent businesses,and,wheneversome- that youare inthecountrytomake.Ihavebeena by someoneofferingadeal,helpingyoumakesale rms inIraq ormeetingswithtopoffi If youare inglobalbusiness,youwillbeapproached World Savvy nancing for imports, contracts for Latvian nancing forimports,contracts forLatvian eebr20 [email protected] December2006 Let’s makeadeal uent American English, they uent AmericanEnglish,they cials, you name cials, youname country, Latvia. the marketingrepresentativefor his native marketing communicationsfi John Freivaldsis managingdirectorofthe which moviesyoulikedattheCannesfi table oftencoversucharcane topicsashowpoloplayers are rated, bottle knowingthatIwaspickingupthetab. Conversations atthe dinner. Adealeroncegrabbed thewinelistandordered anexpensive do that,sotheytrytoexhibitgoodtastewhenyoutakethemout to or theBurjalArab inDubai.Dealers usuallydon’thavethemoneyto at theUniversity ClubinWashington, D.C.,theDorchester inLondon ful ontheinternationalscene.Ifyoucanafford it,youthrow parties name ofthefi always acoat(SavilleRowpreferred) andsilktie(Hermès).The image. Nobusinesscasualforhimeveninthehottestcountries, the dealerwillexplainthatyoushouldtrusthimorher. antees success.Ifyoufailtounderstand howheorshewillsucceed, or shewantsbuiltinEquatorina—heneedsfundsandguar- run forthehillswhensomeonesaysthisisa“win-win”situation. is legitimate,butthedealermightbribesomeonelateron.Iusually get bothsidestogetherforasmallconsideration. Theconsideration mistress ofan infl could getatechnicaldealtogothrough becausehissecretary wasa fl in acertaincountry. There alsoseemstobeaplethora ofgenerals the otherside,howheisrelated toimportantgovernmentoffi met handedoutbusinesscards withhisnameononeside—and Greek are best,althoughFrench will do.OneMiddleEasterndealerI and Dubaiare hot,asare Panama CityandHongKong. International, basedinGibsonCity, Mississippi. International.” ThebestIhaveseenwasafi — “InternationalDevelopmentSolutions”or“DevelopmentSolutions development ying around inthedealerworld.OneIheard ofsaidhe Having proper socialgraces isanimportantpartofbeingsuccess- To pulloffany ofthesedeals,thedealermustestablishaproper Finally, inatechnicaldealthedealercomestoyouwithhe An accentisofparticularvalue.BritishEnglishgreat; Arabic and Also vitalisthedealer’s headquarters location.Thesedays,Qatar rm JFA and is rm JFAandis or rm isquiteimportantandusuallyhas solutions uential general. went totheCantontrade fairandhowhard it that is being sold back and forth. The product that isbeingsoldbackandforth. Theproduct ber, regardless ofthebusiness,it is information apart from theothers isinformation.Remem- is togetpartsforyourMercedes. But the thing that sets the good dealer But thethingthatsetsgood dealer somewhere inthetitle.Maybeallthree John Freivalds lm festival, whether you lm festival,whetheryou rm calledYollusbusha international cials cials 110 :95 AM 9:29:55 11/1/06 9:29:55 AM , Column

or service is just a medium for that DEALER’S DICTIONARY where he once lived. He is accused of information — what’s the price, swindling people out of US$160 million. who is the competition, who infl u- Dealer’s Choice How They Are What They He dressed impeccably, knew his wines ences the purchase. Many dealers Of Words Explained To You Really Mean and single-malt Scotch and convinced are honest and fair, and they can Dealer knows someone Knows another the US powers-that-be that the invasion I have contacts. be helpful in providing a business- to put deal through. dealer. of Iraq was correct and would be effort- person with the information and less. “You will be greeted as liberators, and Friend of his contacts he or she needs in making I’m “in” with a Knows “touchable” fl owers will be strewn at your feet.” He partner’s cousin a sale. Others just get in the way “high” govern- bureaucrat who makes also knew what the Americans in power who works on and make you cynical. ment offi cial. purchase decisions. wanted to hear. One of the people who the 27th fl oor. I had several chances this year to supported Chalabi was heard to say, “I like become a “language dealer.” I had Information that will Information his style.” The Americans bought into his Inside written so much about the military help you outbid supplied by thinking that they would be greeted as information. language market, which is near competition. competition. liberators, and you know the rest. To show US$1 billion annually, that people Professionals who will His driver will you how far off Chalabi was from the Make my staff started calling me and asking if work night and day to take you to bank mainstream, he only got 1% of the vote available to you. I would help them connect with put deal through. to cash checks. in the parliamentary election. Chalabi the right people in the US Depart- represented himself (he did all this to get If you had more His mother’s ment of Defense. I took some nice Successful deals have his family’s land back) and no one else. time, we could house where he lunches in Washington, D.C., but I enabled me to buy But dealers such as Chalabi will con- go to my country goes when the country home. decided I was not in that game. In place to relax. money runs out. tinue to exist. Some deals they promise D.C. you have to wear a suit all the go through — and what the heck, they time and one of those blue-striped sometimes bring intrigue and excite- shirts with a white collar. know what is going on. So, in Freivalds’ case ment to an otherwise dull transaction. An After one lunch a company asked me at least, the more English you speak, the less African once approached my old boss about to, however, I used the health club at the I will trust you. getting US$38 million back from a failed University Club, and while I was there I met So, in recent times who is the ultimate business transaction; we actually calculated an interesting dealer in the steamroom. dealer? It would have to be Ahmed Chalabi. how much space $38 million in $100 bills The commodities he specialized in were Regardless of your views on the war in Iraq, would take up. Forever hopeful, we traveled “problems.” If you had one, regardless of you have to give it to Chalabi’s chutzpah to Tokyo to meet this guy and hired Kroll what it was, he would fi nd a way to fi x it. for being perhaps one of the chief reasons Associates (probably a competitor to Global The company is called Global Options and the United States invaded Iraq. Options), which provided us with Japanese has one of the scariest websites I have ever Frank Rich of The New York Times and bodyguards complete with sunglasses, in seen (www.globaloptions.com). other opponents of the Iraq war fre- case the money was actually there. It never Global Options can respond to ”any crisis quently commented on the unusual access arrived. big or small, whatever it takes. We have and attention given Chalabi by the Bush But as one international businessman attorneys, crisis communications specialists, administration, though he hadn’t lived in told me on a fl ight out of Almaty, Kazakh- former senior policy advisors, even com- Iraq for two decades before the invasion. stan, “Look, I know most of the people I mandos.” Yeah, my deal didn’t go through, Chalabi spoke fl uent British English, having just met who claim they are the President’s so I’ll ask them to send commandos. lived in London for 20 years with numerous cousins are not going to be able to put the The dealer’s chief goal is to make you questionable business dealings. He will be deal through. But one day it will happen, believe he or she “knows.” Part of the trick arrested if he ever goes back to Lebanon, and then I can retire.” M in reaching this goal is the use and misuse of certain key words. The accompanying dealer’s dictionary provides a look at dealer semantics and their reality, which I have experienced on a number of occasions. American businesspeople are particularly susceptible to dealers. Americans have a legal system that says you are innocent until proven guilty. In other cultures you are guilty until proven innocent, so you need introductions from people they know before they will deal with you. Another problem Americans share is that they do not speak foreign languages and therefore rely on and trust people who speak English perfectly. But when they do that with me and I am in their country, I wonder whether they are re- ally part of that country and whether they

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32-33 C Freivalds #84.indd 33 11/1/06 9:37:49 AM Step by Step Kit Brown

Working on

Column multicultural teams

The world today is rife with examples of the conse- This column is the eighth in a series exploring the relationship quences of miscommunication, lack of intercultural between the client company and the localization vendor. I hope that understanding, and misinterpreting behavior based they provide you with practical information that you can apply im- on one’s own worldview. In business, too, examples mediately to your business. Parts of this column are based on a book, T Managing Virtual Teams Using Wikis, Blogs, and Other Collabora- abound of failed deals and projects, angry customers, tion Technologies, authored with Char James-Tanny and Brenda or lawsuits that resulted from misunderstanding. Wal- Huettner, scheduled for publication Fall 2006. Mart posted signifi cant losses this quarter in Germany because it failed to understand what Q Above the waterline: About 15-20% of its German customers wanted. The US culture is readily visible. These characteristics automobile industry is rapidly facing include things such as language, ethnicity, a crisis because it has failed to build dress, laws, art, architecture and other at- tributes that are immediately obvious when cars that adequately meet upcom- meeting a person from a particular culture or ing international emissions and gas when you set foot in a particular locale that is mileage standards. A medical-device representative of a culture. Q At the waterline: About 5% of culture is company in the United Kingdom on the edge of one’s awareness. These are things might be sued because patients died that might not be obvious until they are pointed when the doctor pushed the wrong out, but most people are conscious that they button during a cardiac bypass op- exist and can generally adapt their behavior ap- propriately. Examples include table manners, level eration. The list goes on. of formality, personal space, hierarchy and so on. Q Under the surface: About 75-80% of Such issues can arise within project teams a culture lurks below the surface of most as well, particularly when team members come people’s awareness. These characteristics are From www.sevencolors.com from disparate cultures, with which other team (used by permission) the deeply ingrained attitudes, beliefs, preju- members have little experience or knowledge. dices, expectations and so on that comprise an Such issues prompt the oft-heard lament, “Can’t we all just get individual’s worldview. In many cases, even people who are self- along?” The answer is a resounding “Yes,” with education, effort, aware and thoughtful have diffi culty articulating and explaining patience and a sense of humor.

Cultural iceberg Kit (M. Katherine) Brown is the principal of Comgenesis LLC, a As with the icebergs that fl oat on the ocean, it is not the obvious, technical communication services and consulting company. visible differences that get even experienced people into diffi culties She has 16 years of experience writing and consulting for the when working with other cultures, but the nuances that lurk below medical, biotechnology, environmental and computer industries, the surface of most people’s conscious awareness. The iceberg is a as well as several years working as a consultant in the common and apt analogy for describing culture. localization industry.

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these attributes, precisely because they are interactions can range from the simple some of his or her hobbies. Celebrate birth- so deeply ingrained. These attributes are such as checking in at the beginning of days and other personal milestones. If pos- typically intrinsic to the culture, the things a meeting to an off-site teambuilding sible, plan an exchange, where some team that “everyone knows,” such as level of event. Be creative. One team always col- members travel to work in another team independence from family that is appropri- lected tchotchkes when traveling and sent member’s offi ce for a couple of weeks. ate, rules for contract negotiation, methods them to team members, for example. Be considerate. Incorporate national for resolving confl ict and so on. If you have Be proactive. The biggest complaint in and religious holidays, as well as vacations ever had the experience of fi nding yourself project post-mortems is communication. It in your project planning. When scheduling feeling very uncomfortable in a seemingly is impossible to over-communicate. Follow conference calls, rotate the time so that innocuous situation with someone, chances conversations with an e-mail summarizing no one is always having to get up early are your discomfort resulted from differing agreements and action items and ask the or stay up late to participate. Promise cultural expectations or beliefs. recipient to confi rm that he or she under- only what you can comfortably provide, stands. Identify potential challenges and but always suggest alternatives if you are Creating a team culture opportunities and plan as a team for the unable to meet a request. If you make a The challenge for managers of multi- possibilities. Check in regularly with team mistake or social faux pas, apologize im- cultural teams is to build an atmosphere members. This helps maintain the team con- mediately and make amends. of camaraderie, mutual respect, effective nection and keeps remote team members communication and productivity despite from feeling isolated. Perform random kind- Conclusion differing worldviews and physical environ- nesses for members of the team. In most social situations, you get what ments. Managers can facilitate such an Provide a centralized repository for you give. If you approach a situation with environment by doing the following things: project information. If you have team an open mind, a friendly attitude and a Budget for an in-person initial meet- members in Asia, Europe, South Pacifi c and genuine desire to understand and work ing. The cost of getting everyone together North America, you have maybe an hour or with the other person, the other person for a few days at the beginning of a big two of overlap each day. Place project-re- will respond in kind. When inevitable project will be saved many times over with lated information on an intranet site where misunderstandings occur, have a sense of fewer confl icts and better communication. everyone can access it 24/7. Incorporate humor about them and patiently work Shared experiences and goals are the fast- other collaboration technologies, such as through the misunderstanding. Encourage est ways to build rapport within a team. instant messaging, wikis and blogs. your team to stretch beyond individual If you cannot afford to meet in person, Facilitate rapport-building. Hold a Cul- comfort zones and to learn about and ac- allow time during the initial meeting for ture Day, where everyone can bring food, commodate cultural differences, while re- everyone to introduce himself or herself music, history and other information about membering that, at our core, we are more and talk about his or her role on the his or her native culture. Build a “face book” alike than different — we all want food, project. Be creative about teambuilding where everyone sends a picture and writes a shelter, clean water, and for our children activities that can be done virtually. short description about his or her job and to be better off than we are. M Facilitate an open discussion about team expectations. During the initial meeting, after some teambuilding time, ask team members what kind of team they want to be and what they want the work environment to be like. This helps identify what they expect from themselves, from each other, and from you. Encourage members to speak freely by using active listening and by incorporating suggestions into the team guidelines. Be explicit with rules and expectations. One challenge to working with other cul- tures is that the rules are generally implicit — that is, “everyone knows to do X not Y.” However, in multicultural teams, behavior X might not be the same in situation Y for everyone. Making these expectations explicit in the beginning helps to alleviate potential confl icts. Encourage social interaction. People tend to be more productive when they feel a connection to their teammates. Fun, social interaction builds that connection and encourages proactive communica- tion with the other team members. Such

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34-35 C Brown #84.indd 35 11/1/06 9:34:24 AM 36 TEK ad #84 36 11/1/06 9:35:36 AM Language Focus

The telenovela goes worldwide Carlos Contreras

Hundreds of millions of viewers — not just in Latin America, but in Russia, China, Eastern Europe, Africa, HSouthern Asia and more recently in the United States — are captivated by telenovelas. A seriated melodrama, the telenovela is the quintessential Latin American television genre. Typically 100 to 150 one-hour episodes long, it has a defi ned “start” and “fi nish” — a main difference between this genre and an American soap opera. The tele- novela follows the structure of and shares narrative elements with a typi- cal literary novel, using suspense to keep the interest of the viewers who La Hija del Jardinero (The Gardener’s Daughter), a 2003 telenovela follow the romantic escapades of char- made in Mexico, stars Mariana Ochoa and Carlos Torres. acters, defying social injustice in their quest for a traditional happy ending. Its archetypal pieces from the late seventeenth century. Most modern scholars agree, however, that its precursor is defi nitely the radionovela nature has resonated across the world and beyond or radioplay broadcast that had its debut in Cuba in the late cultures, thus creating a global phenomenon. 1930s and early 1940s. During that time, many adventure and romantic programs began airing to an audience with an insa- The origin of the telenovela can be traced back to seriated tiable thirst for the episodic nature of the show, tuning in day literature such as the French feuilleton or even popular theater after day to follow the convoluted storylines. Historians point out that one particular Cuban industry contributed to the success of the radioplay: cigar manufactur- Carlos Contreras is chief technology offi cer ing. In most tabaquerías, there was always a lector or reader of The Kitchen, Inc., a TM Systems Company, on the work fl oor whose task was to read to the workers who which has produced as many as four telenovelas, could not lift their eyes from the mechanical task of rolling or 80 episodes a month, at one time, into tobacco leaves. Lectores would read anything from newspapers as many languages, and has experienced the to books and plays, but seriated novels became the most popu- challenges described in this article. lar and remain so to this day. Radio was a perfect vehicle to

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37-41 Telenovelas.indd 37 11/1/06 9:37:07 AM Language Focus

La Venganza (Revenge) was produced in Colombia in 2002.

complement the role of the lector and one channel based in Havana was pro- Mexico, Venezuela and Brazil. By the that explains the fact that early radio- ducing 15 telenovelas a year, and televi- end of the 1980s, other markets such as novelas were broadcast during the day sion stations in Mexico, Puerto Rico and Colombia, Chile and Argentina gained and not during typical television prime- Venezuela were basing their prime-time prominence, and the industry saw the time hours. schedule on this kind of production. beginning of the process of internation- The genre continued to grow, and by Simultaneously, the end of the “Golden alization with distributors tapping into the early 1950s, radio stations from all Age” of Mexican cinema also contrib- big libraries and making inroads into over Latin America were airing romantic uted with a huge stream of creative and Spain and then dubbing their produc- stories that always presented the audi- fi nan cial resources to fuel the boom of tions to English, French and many other ence with a plot twist at the end of each the telenovela, with many silver-screen languages. episode that sparked interest in the next names performing roles in popular Nowadays, a mature industry sees the chapter. telenovelas and armies of screenwriters, trend of regional productions, where a The transition to television was only grips, gaffers, actors and so on making multinational cast expands the appeal natural. The fi rst seriated love story to the transition as well. of the product and makes it even more air on Latin television was Senderos de The 1960s and 1970s saw the consoli- of a Latin American phenomenon. The Amor (Paths of Love), which opened in dation of the genre and the emergence emergence of South Florida, with its October 1952. By the end of the decade, of several production hubs, mainly in huge Latin population and available production resources, has had an impact in the trend and has propelled Miami to its current status as “the new Mecca for telenovela production.” The Latin population in the United States has kept its fondness for the genre, and Hispanic networks now include telenovelas in the core of their program- ming grids. The extremely high rating numbers have not passed under the radar of mainstream television networks that seek to replicate the appeal of the genre to the general English-speaking audience. Many telenovela productions are in the pipelines of most of the US networks today, easily tapping into the natural resources of the large fi lm indus- try in Hollywood. Production of a telenovela In many aspects, telenovelas are no dif- ferent from a traditional television produc- tion. From a size perspective, telenovelas are major productions by Latin American television industry standards, sometimes reaching multimillion-dollar budgets.

38 | MultiLingual December 2006 [email protected]

37-41 Telenovelas.indd 38 11/1/06 9:38:38 AM Language Focus

Projects take months from the origi- nal idea to the shooting of the fi rst scene, but one of the key features for the high audience response to a tele- novela is that most of them are still in production as they air, sometimes only days ahead, so scripts are adapted with feedback from the viewers. Popular char- acters and subplots rise to the center of the drama, even to the point of com- pletely changing the main story. This, of course, puts a lot of pressure on writers, cast, editors and crew, and tight produc- tion schedules are a trademark of the telenovela industry. A musical theme song generally accom- panies a telenovela and typically rises to the top of the local and regional pop charts. Some actors also double as singers, which helps to reinforce the popularity of the genre. Telenovelas are the daily prime-time Luna, La Heredera (Luna, the Heiress) was made in 2004 with a multinational cast. staple for viewers all across the continent. As such, their infl uence is enormous and Escrava Isaura (Isaura, the Slave, based on the life of people in the slums sometimes spans to other areas, including Brazil, 1976), the story of a white slave of the big city, with heavy references of domestic politics. Because of its nature, based on the abolitionist novel of Ber- corrupted government offi cials, drug- there is always a heavy social and political nardo Guimarães, a classic of Latin related crime and urban violence. Some element to a telenovela, and sometimes American literature, played in almost even argue that it was a contributing the stories are used as hidden vehicles to 100 countries, captivating hundreds of factor in the impeachment of the local convey political messages — to the extent millions of viewers in China alone after government that year. that some of them have been banned by its initial run in Brazil. Café con Aroma de Mujer (Coffee governments, have jump-started political O Salvador da Patria (Saviour of the With the Scent of a Woman, Colombia, careers or have infl uenced in one way or Fatherland, Brazil, 1989) tells the story 1994) depicted the day-to-day life in the another a political outcome. of an illiterate peasant who rises to “coffee belt” in Colombia, through the Traditionally, the telenovela story become a union leader and then presi- love between a beautiful peasant and a revolves around characters from con- dent of Brazil. Many argue that it has plantation owner. trasting social backgrounds who fall in helped the political career of Luis Ignacio More recently, Yo Soy Betty, La Fea love and must fi ght against social con- “Lula” Da Silva, current president of the (Ugly Betty, Colombia, 1999) includes ventions and injustice to fi nally reach South American country. feminist undertones and deals with issues happiness. Writers always try to create Por Estas Calles (On These Streets, such as discrimination in the workplace. plots that are close to the reality of the Venezuela, 1992) took the social com- Its main character struggles in the glam- local society, especially that of the lower- mentary to the extreme with a story orous fashion industry setting, hoping to income population. More often than not, however, the telenovela hits chords that resonate in other cultures, worlds apart in terms of language, religion and eco- nomic situation. Themes can range from the tragic to the historical or nationalistic, to urban or controversial: El Derecho de Nacer (Right to Life), one of the early references for the genre and based on a Cuban radio- novela, portrays a conservative family whose daughter bears an illegitimate child who, raised by the family’s maid, becomes a doctor and must tragically face his past. Versions of this telenovela were made in Venezuela (1949), Puerto Rico (1960), Brazil (1964, 1978, 2000) and Mexico (1982).

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37-41 Telenovelas.indd 39 11/1/06 9:39:02 AM Language Focus

rise to the top of the corporate ladder. The original Betty aired in markets. It is reported that during the war in Bosnia, there was almost all of the Latin American countries and was later dubbed an unoffi cial cease-fi re during broadcast of Escrava Isaura. in many languages. Several new versions and adaptations are After the European telenovela “boom” came the expansion being broadcast today or are currently under production in to Asia. Again, Escrava Isaura, for instance, was viewed by Mexico, the United States (Ugly Betty on ABC), Germany, Italy more than 450 million people in China on a daily basis. The and so on. Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and many other countries in the region now follow the daily adventures of their Latin heroes Telenovelas in international markets as well. When Latin American programming distributors began mak- One of the last territories to be conquered by the telenovela ing forays into the international arena in the late 1980s and phenomenon is Africa — countries from Senegal to the Ivory early 1990s, with the introduction of their telenovela produc- Coast to South Africa. An article from UNESCO reported that, tions to European markets, it was by all accounts a high-risk during Ramadan of 1999, mosques in the capital of Abidjan bet. Conventional wisdom at the time had advanced praying hours to allow the local the telenovela as a niche product with little, population to sit at 7:30 p.m. for the broad- if any, international appeal. cast of the Mexican production Marimar, One of the fi rst success stories was in Telenovelas are not starring international pop star Thalía. the Spanish market. In this case, language only about drama. The biggest television programming was not an issue, and dubbing was not market in the world, MIPCOM, which takes involved, although sometimes it was dif- A signifi cant comedy place each October in Cannes, France, has fi cult for the European viewer to fully created a dedicated “mini MIPCOM program comprehend some of the subtext in the element brings with it day” and a seminar called “Telenovelas caraqueño, chilango or porteño dialect. the diffi culty of Screenings,” as well as a telenovela online Surprisingly, though, the exotic accent database that already includes hundreds of and the colorful local terms and expres- rendering jokes and international titles. sions added to the appeal of the Latin metaphors in a But the process of taking the tele- American production. And so, several novela to a heterogeneous audience is not telenovelas took Spain by storm. Titles foreign language. an easy one. Again, the telenovela is, by such as Topacio or Kassandra attracted defi nition, a localized product. Local ele- millions of viewers and for a while ments of the culture are prominent, and changed some of the day-to-day routine the language is not the least important of of an entire population. The Venezuelan title Cristal enjoyed them. Many linguistic resources are used to defi ne characters: seven re-runs in the Spanish market alone. regional accents and even whole dialects are used to empha- The telenovela then experienced an eastward expansion size social and economic backgrounds. Characters sometimes within Europe to conquer audiences in countries such as Italy, resort to jargon to mark local color. This presents a sometimes Greece, the Balkan states and several Eastern European ter- insurmountable challenge to even the most seasoned media ritories, with Russia becoming one of the biggest telenovela translator and adaptor. Even deciphering the original dialogue

A cluster of individual Spanish translation bureaus from Argentina offers translation and localization services to translation agencies, localization companies, direct clients and software developers around the globe.

40 | MultiLingual December 2006 [email protected]

37-41 Telenovelas.indd 40 11/1/06 9:39:31 AM Spanish Showcase

Spanish? We Can Make It Serious About What Makes Us Tick? Established in 1995, TSG Glotas can help you Spanish and Portuguese? • A passion for truly understanding our clients and reach out to your Spanish-speaking audience in the Idea Factory Languages is raising the standards in getting it right. different markets where you sell. Latin America. • An experienced team that delivers consistent Some of the areas we cover are: results — every day. • In-country operations in Argentina and Brazil • The knowledge that technology is desirable and • Localization • Internationally experienced management team necessary, but that it must not trump top-notch • Technical • Over 50 in-house employees talent, the right processes and outstanding client • Industrial machinery • Software localization, technical/medical communication. • E-learning translation, desktop publishing • Our values, which put quality, teamwork and • Retail If quality, cost and service are important aspects of organic growth above the latest acquisition • Healthcare your Spanish and/or Brazilian Portuguese projects, opportunity. TSG Glotas is an ISO-certified company that will select a partner you can trust. We are serious about We are Syntes Language Group — big enough work with you as your translation department. your business. Contact our CEO today at to meet your needs, small enough to care. Contact us to find out more on Spanish. If you [email protected] prefer to deal with a US contact, just let us know. Syntes Language Group, Inc. TSG — Glotas Idea Factory Languages 7465 East Peakview Avenue Zurbarán 23, 1, 06002 Badajoz, Spain Moreno 490, 7 piso Centennial, CO 80111 34-924-205605 • Fax: 34-924-205604 C1091AAH Capital Federal, Argentina 303-779-1288 • Fax: 303-779-1232 [email protected] 54-11-4343-4143 • Fax: 54-11-4345-2722 [email protected] • www.syntes.com www.tsg-global.com [email protected] • www.iflang.com

— let alone attempting to render it in a target culture — is a Undoubtedly, telenovelas have brought new life to an inter- monumental task. national language versioning industry used to the traditional Thus, teams of Latin American translators work in tandem Hollywood feature or situation comedy, with new language with experienced dialogistes in the target language to create combinations, production elements and adaptation challenges. adaptations of the original scripts. Then, as usual in the re-versioning of audiovisual content, Conclusion came the dubbing-subtitling dilemma. And, as usual, the The telenovela started out as a genuinely Latin American answer was varied, with a huge bearing on the local tradition genre. In the words of Colombian screenwriter Fernando Gaitán, of the country. Perhaps tracing back to its roots as a narrative “telenovelas are the main expression means in the continent, that can be listened to while concentrating on manual work where its penetration is stronger than cinema, printed novels — such as the case of the Cuban lector de tabaquería — dubbing and theater.” was the preferred medium for most audiences, predominantly But outgrowing its local roots, the telenovela has become a female, because it allowed domestic chores to continue during global phenomenon, arguably the most international entertain- broadcast. ment form today, with a Guinness World Record for Kassandra, Some Asian versions, perhaps because of the syntactic dis- as the television program broadcast in most countries, total- tance between Spanish and Portuguese and the local language, ing 128. In doing so, it has spawned a new multimillion-dollar veered towards subtitling. industry that employs thousands of translators, adaptors, mix- In re-versioning based on dubbing, the telenovela presents ers and voice talent, and has opened doors for other kinds of another signifi cant challenge: close shots, typical of heavily local productions to the international markets. dramatic situations, are common in Latin telenovelas. This Telenovelas are a cultural product, and they have been great increases the diffi culty of achieving credible lip-sync, a trade- ambassadors of the Latin culture to countries around the world, mark of good dubbing. So both adapters and talent had to go to which now become a window into the day-to-day life of com- great lengths to render the same emotion and content. mon Latinos, their habits and their way of life. But telenovelas are not only about drama. There is also a And ultimately, the reason for its global appeal, beyond the signifi cant comedy element that brings with it the diffi culty of exotic element and the sentimental exuberance of Latin Ameri- rendering jokes and metaphors in a foreign language. An enor- cans, could be in the universality of the way the lives of regular mous adaptation task goes into this aspect of the telenovela, people are depicted. Telenovela characters are mere humans, sometimes requiring a complete change of the elements of the closer to the viewer than perhaps in any other audiovisual joke to fi nd the closest match or equivalent. genre, and this requires no translation. M

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37-41 Telenovelas.indd 41 11/1/06 9:39:58 AM Spanish for the US: What flavor do we want? Beatriz Bonnet Language Focus

Much has been said about the size of the Hispanic market in the United States. All one settle for a defi nition that is useful for purposes of this article. has to do is read the business press and even We will defi ne the Hispanic population as those individuals who speak Spanish predominantly and who seek to communicate Mmainstream newspapers around the country and be communicated with in Spanish, regardless of country to understand that the demographics for the of origin, race or how long they may have lived in the United market loosely defi ned as Hispanic are indeed States. This population is extremely diverse and encompasses compelling. Hispanics are about 42 million natives of all the Spanish-speaking countries plus part of the US-born fi rst generation of Hispanics. It includes all races and strong, and this segment of the US population socio-economic levels, and it also includes many different cul- is growing at a much faster rate than the popu- tures and sub-cultures. lation at large. To compound the issue, not all types of communication are addressed to the entire Hispanic population in the United States. These are the numbers that speak to marketers in the United Thus, we might conclude that a one-size-fi ts-all approach would States. Consequently, the amount of resources devoted to reach- not work. What is a client to do if that is all the budget allows ing this market has increased signifi cantly. Well over 60% of all for and the goal is to reach all Hispanics in the United States Hispanics living in the United States are not fully assimilated and through mass media? Another issue that often makes things either need or prefer to communicate in Spanish or communicate even more diffi cult is the client’s request that a particular piece equally in both Spanish and English. In addition to marketing be done in a certain kind of Spanish — “Cuban Spanish,” for to these constituencies, companies and other organizations that example, or “Mexican Spanish” — or to a certain reading level would normally not be considered candidates to explicitly mar- such as sixth-grade level. ket to this segment fi nd that they have a need to communicate in Spanish, whether it be to better communicate with some of Practical steps their constituencies or to minimize risk. Health care providers, So, what is one to do when translating into Spanish for the for instance, are increasingly translating many of their materi- United States? And what about localization issues? Here are als and hiring an increasing number of interpreters in order to some practical steps to help both clients and vendors achieve a better communicate with this population. This helps in attracting successful outcome. patients to their facilities, but it is also a response to Americans with Disabilities Act mandates regarding access and part of a good risk-management plan. Likewise, many manufacturers and Beatriz Bonnet is president and CEO of Syntes service providers translate employee handbooks, benefi t guides Language Group and a veteran English<> and safety instructions in order to better communicate with their Spanish translator, editor and interpreter. She employees and to manage risk. now spends most of her time in management Given the diversity of the Hispanic population in the United and training. She writes original Spanish creative States and the diffi culty in defi ning who is a Hispanic, we will copy for the US market for select Syntes clients.

42 | MultiLingual December 2006 [email protected]

42-44 SpF Bonnet.indd 42 11/1/06 9:41:21 AM

Spanish Showcase

Machine Translation Providing Value Accuracy — Ease — Support Through Localization Large enough to lead the pack, small enough Logoscript, based in Barcelona, is a supplier of to partner with you at every stage of your growth, multilingual solutions to global enterprises. Our mission LEC has led the machine translation (MT) industry Best Choice for is to enable companies to generate value from markets since 1990. You get products and services specially around the world. designed for: Spanish Translations • Supporting customers such as SAP, Microsoft and • OEMs Holding a production capacity of 8 million MicroStrategy • Resellers • Providing software localization, technical words per month and leading the Latin-American • Corporations translations and desktop publishing services • Individuals translation market with 30 years’ experience, we • Servicing Latin America with an office in Rio de Available on desktop, servers, and by subscription. assure world-class quality standards in more than Janiero, Brazil 45 language pairs, including Spanish <> English, 30 language pairs, among which Spanish is the • Extensive experience with TRADOS, SDLX and French, and Italian. Also, all major European and Asian second most frequent language. Count on us! Transit languages. • Wealth of experience with enterprise applications and desktop solutions All your MT needs. All in one place. Language Engineering All Tasks Traduções Técnicas Rua Dona Teresa Margarida, 56 Logoscript Company (LEC) São Paulo – SP 04037-040, Brazil Gran Via Corts Catalanes, 594, 2º 135 Beaver Street, Waltham, MA 02452 55-11-5908-8300 • Fax: 55-11-5908-8308 08007 Barcelona, Spain 781-642-8900 • Fax: 781-642-8904 [email protected] 34-93-343-6380 • Fax: 34-93-343-6381 [email protected] • www.lec.com www.alltasks.com.br [email protected] • www.logoscript.com

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42-44 SpF Bonnet.indd 43 11/1/06 9:41:38 AM Language Focus

Defi ne your audience. It is very differ- found in advertising using colloquial the United States are accustomed to seeing ent to translate for a mass market audi- instead of legal Spanish and even using them (such as 1,002.35 not 1.002,35). Mea- ence than it is for a restricted audience tú instead of usted or the impersonal. surements should be left in the English who is easier to identify. If a construction Understand that the Spanish lan- system, and, ideally, the metric system company, for instance, hires only workers guage is different from English in should be added as well. Currency should who are originally from Mexico, it is easy terms of how language is used. It is stay the same ($ means dollar. Do not use to tailor the translation of a safety manual important for clients to understand that USD or US$ or U$S). Names of actual pro- just for them and write it in “Mexican the Spanish language is different from grams, plans, products and so on should be Spanish.” But if you are a consumer goods the English language in terms of how it discussed between the client and the ven- company trying to reach the widest pos- operates. To an English speaker who has dor to make sure there is agreement, and sible market and advertising through mass only a vague familiarity with Spanish, clients need to think about the repercus- media, then you will want to write in the something that is written in everyday, sions of their decisions regarding this par- most neutral Spanish possible in order to uncomplicated Spanish can often look ticular area. If a product name or tag line is appeal to all the Spanish speakers in the like it is written at a high reading level. translated, for example, are there copy- country and, most importantly, in order This often is because Spanish has for the right, trademark or other issues that should to not offend any one constituency. be taken care of? It is also useful to further defi ne the Use the right team. Avoid the tempta- audience in terms of demographic infor- It is important tion to save on costs by having the entire mation. This will affect the style used in job done outside of the United States. the translation and will go a long way for clients to understand Non-US-based translators and editors are in helping determine whether the for- that some things not suffi ciently familiar with the wide mal you (usted) or the informal you (tú) range of varieties of Spanish (even Span- should be used. that are easy to do glish!) used in the United States and with Determine the purpose of the trans- all the characteristics of the locale. Having lation. What is the purpose of this par- in English — and often a larger team that includes translators and ticular translation? Is it to inform, to sell highly desirable — editors originally from different countries or to provide instructions? This will help and a team of editors who have lived in determine the choices, not only in style are impossible to do the United States for at least two or three but also with regard to the terms used and in Spanish. years will greatly increase the success rate how to approach those terms that tend to of your project. be more regional in nature. In the case of an ad, for instance, it is important to most part Latin roots, and those same Additional factors be economical in terms of words used. Latin roots are the ones that sound more This topic could easily occupy many Shorter is usually better, so word choice sophisticated to an English speaker (pink more pages, and sometimes there is no is of paramount importance. Appropriate eye is conjuntivitis in Spanish, and there single “right” answer. Success can be time has to be spent fi nding just the right is no colloquial term, for example, which increased many times over, however, if words to use — very neutral, very direct, sounds like the more “complicated” con- the steps above are followed and if we very appealing — that can cause the reac- junctivitis to an English speaker, prompt- add a couple of additional spices to the tion the advertiser wants and that are not ing the “This is not at a sixth-grade success recipe: trust and communication. too regional in nature. On the other hand, reading level!” comment). Likewise, it is You must carefully select your team, patient instructions that are aimed to important for clients to understand that communicate early and often — espe- impart important information that must some things that are easy to do in Eng- cially during the specifi cations phase be understood and followed might call for lish — and often highly desirable — are at the start of a project or relationship the use of synonyms and the addition of impossible to do in Spanish. Typical cases — and trust your team’s opinions and words in Spanish to make sure that the are issues of gender, which in this world feedback. entire audience will understand those of political correctness that we live in Finally, clients should make a com- instructions. For instructions regarding are often avoided in English. So, it is the mitment to this market that goes beyond nutrition and diet, for instance, it would doctor or your doctor and the teacher and just one or two pieces “to test the waters.” be advisable to use two words from dif- the nurse. In Spanish, one must choose Beyond translation and localization, ferent regions to aid in understanding a gender for the doctor, the teacher and clients have to seek to understand the (to translate avocado as aguacate o palta the nurse, and this often affects the rest market, change business processes as or peach as durazno o melocotón, for of the text. Knowing the idiosyncrasies necessary, and make a commitment to example). of each language helps tailor the original partner with their Hispanic communica- Determine text type and follow the text for the intended audience so that it tions team. If approaching this market same protocol in Spanish. Regardless of becomes easier to translate and localize. is done incorrectly, it will feel like an decisions made elsewhere, certain text Address non-linguistic localization iss- expensive endeavor that produced noth- types cannot be altered to make things ues. Since the locale is “Spanish for the ing but aggravation and maybe even a more “user friendly.” A legal text must United States,” less localization is required. black eye in the public relations war. If remain a legal text. It is disturbing to see Numbers should remain as they are in done right, it is an investment that will disclaimers and other legal texts often English since this is how people living in pay for itself many times over. M

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42-44 SpF Bonnet.indd 44 11/1/06 9:42:00 AM Business The localization industry in Latin America: Argentina Charles Campbell

Latin America is a volatile and diverse region for end clients. They are exporters of managed services, with vir- of emerging economies, representing both an tually no domestic market to fall back on, and are dependent in opportunity and a challenge for the localization varying degrees on the good will and economic health of their industry. Latin America is exciting, and Argen- language industry clients for continued work. In some cases these L companies may become beholden to one or a few major clients tina is without doubt caliente. and their proprietary tools or globalization management systems, Considerable background research was conducted for this article such as Logoport or Ambassador. Many of these companies are through conversations with more than 15 well-known industry in the early stages of development, short on capital and cash leaders and by conducting several anonymous web-based surveys. and lurching from one payroll to another, growing organically as Of the 63 buyers of translation and localization services who best they can by reinvesting as much as possible — a hard road answered the main survey, a surprising 73.3% stated that Argen- to growth indeed. tina was their primary source of off-shore Spanish Eleven prominent Argentine localization com- vendors; 98.4% stated they were somewhat or highly panies answered my anonymous survey about the satisfi ed with the quality received from their Latin local localization industry. Results indicated that American vendors; and when asked whether they Latin American they felt particularly hampered by the lack of local preferred to deal with individual freelance translators entrepreneurs industry organizations, events and training oppor- or with language companies, responses were equally tunities and the scarcity of qualifi ed project man- in favor of both. Interestingly, less than 2% stated get by to some agers, localizers and localization engineers. Julieta they entrusted the entire translation, software local- Coirini of Ushuaia Solutions SA, a leading localiza- ization, DTP and testing process to a single vendor. degree with the tion fi rm based in Rosario, stated that fi nding a Different vendors clearly are preferred for different cojones factor. well-trained localization engineer in Argentina is parts of the process, and very few Latin American next to impossible. In what was certainly a clear vendors are perceived to be capable of and entrusted case of opportunities lost, at a recent conference with full service localization. organized by the Colegio de Traductores Públicos In recent years several small and medium-sized localiza- de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires, attended by well over 1,000 lin- tion players have emerged in the region, such as Idea Factory guists, not a single seminar of any substance was dedicated to the Languages, Rosario Traducciones y Servicios, spanishbackoffi ce topic of localization, and almost no emphasis at all was placed on SA, Spanish Express, Inc., Ushuaia Solutions SA and others in translation tools and technology. Argentina, and Almi International (Peru), Chilean Language In this highly atomized industry, Latin American entrepreneurs Services (Chile), and Omni Technologies (Guatemala). None of get by to some degree with the cojones factor. Weaknesses in capi- these companies grosses more than US$2 million in annual sales, tal reserves, strategic planning, and sales and marketing are offset which places them at the small end of the localization food chain in part by talent, charisma, creativity, adaptability, guts and lots when compared to industry giants in the northern hemisphere of hard work — vital ingredients for survival in this economically such as Lionbridge, SDL, TransPerfect, Welocal- and politically volatile environment. Chang- ize, Moravia and so on. ing global perceptions of the Latin American Generally speaking, Latin American localiza- market by doing a harder sell may well prove tion companies tend to localize from English into Charles Campbell, president of essential, however, if these localization com- Spanish for US, European and Asian language spanishbackoffi ce SA, is a frequent panies wish to mature and take the next step companies, and only rarely do they work directly speaker at language industry events. and provide full-service localization.

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The contrast with Universities and government in Brazil The Association of Language Companies Brazil: size does matter have pooled resources and support with (ALC), ASLIB, American Translators Asso- Brazilians often refer to their country the surprisingly strong local software ciation (ATA), Association of Translation as O maior do mundo, the biggest and industry in a manner that does not appear Companies (ATC), Localization World, Soc- best country in the world. Recent soccer to have been replicated successfully in any iety for Technical Communication (STC), disappointments aside, Brazil is without other country in Latin America to date. As The Institute of Localisation Professionals question a signifi cant player in the global such, a signifi cant proportion of localiza- (TILP), Translation Automation User Soc- localization industry and is more advanced tion taking place in Brazil is of Brazilian iety (TAUS), Unicode and numerous round in many respects than the Spanish-speak- products into other languages, rather than table events, industry experts in the ing countries of Latin America. just English into Brazilian Portuguese. In northern hemisphere often get conference With a population of 180 million people most cases it would appear that products and training event fatigue, wondering — 25 million people in the city of São Paulo are localized from Portuguese into Span- exactly which events are really worth it alone — Brazil is undeniably the giant ish and English fi rst, and then from the and which are not. The opposite is true in in Latin America, dwarfi ng both Mexico latter on to other languages. English is Latin America, however, where there are and Argentina (90 million and 35 million the universal facilitator, but localization very few home-grown training and net- inhabitants respectively). Almost every in Brazil fl ows in both directions. This working opportunities. Ulrich Henes, major multinational company in the world would appear to be in stark contrast with director of The Localization Institute and has offi ces in São Paulo, as do Brazil’s own Argentina, where almost all localization a principal organizer of the Localization homegrown corporate giants — Petrobras, is mono-directional — from English into World event, says that while he often EMBRAER, O Globo and others. Spanish. receives queries from parties interested Brazil is also linguistically unique. It is in organizing localization and project the only country in the world where Bra- The lack of localization training management events in Latin America, he zilian Portuguese is spoken and therefore opportunities: the Achilles heel does not foresee a Localization World faces no competition from more afford- With a plethora of international events Buenos Aires or São Paulo in the near able offshore locations. and organizations to choose from such as future. The lack of critical mass in terms of local companies and viable local part- ners required to organize such events and the distance from major global markets in the northern hemisphere makes organiza- tion diffi cult and costly. It is impossible to think of the language industry in the northern hemisphere today without the ALC (founded in 2002) in the United States, the ATC (founded in 1976) in the United Kingdom or the Asociación de Empresas de Traducción (founded in 1990) in Spain. No such organizations exist in Latin America, and this is a seri- ous impediment to industry dialog with government and universities and to the organization of larger events requiring collective efforts. This must be remedied immediately in the case of Argentina, if the local industry wishes to mature. In the meantime, however, the onus of creating localization training opportuni- ties falls inevitably on the shoulders of local localization companies — at least in the short term — until universities, industry organizations and government are prepared to get on the bandwagon. A positive example of such homegrown training events can be found in the recent workshops on software and website local- ization organized in Córdoba and Rosario by Translated in Argentina, a cluster of Argentine translation and localization companies. Both workshops were given by Manuel Mata Pastor, a professor of localization at the Universidad Autónoma

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of Madrid, and were fully booked almost perhaps because Santiago is probably such offshore subsidiaries to create value immediately. The success of these efforts now one of the most expensive cities and leverage strategic assets for their par- demonstrates the power of what collec- in Latin America. The abrupt closure of ent companies on an ongoing and sustain- tive action can achieve. This momentum Berlitz’s Rosario offi ce in 1999 is a case able basis. must be capitalized on by further training in point, where duplicated structures opportunities if local companies are truly and cost issues prompted the former to Cooperation with committed to overcoming the scarcity of suddenly ditch what had erstwhile been the education sector qualifi ed localizers in Argentina. considered a strategic asset. Reinhard Schäler, director of the Moravia’s stamp of approval has cre- Localisation Research Centre (LRC) of the The arrival of Moravia in ated quite a media buzz within the indus- University of Limerick, Ireland, enthusias- Argentina: watch this space try at a global level. Rosario is suddenly tically notes that change is defi nitely in With great fanfare, Moravia Worldwide a place that many industry leaders in the the wind in Brazil. GeNESS, the Center is currently opening an offi ce with eight northern hemisphere can actually fi nd for Excellence in Software Globalization, staff members in Rosario, Argentina. For on a map. Local industry players must Internationalization and Localization, is Cecilia Piaggio, managing director of now move forward to capitalize on this Brazil’s leading internationalization and Moravia Argentina, the new offi ce will wave of good publicity and continue to localization research center, supported by provide cost-effective multilingual proj- encourage investment and opportunities the Brazilian government and based at ect management services for Moravia’s for growth. the Federal University of Santa Catarina, North America based operations and While Piaggio is certainly bullish about Florianópolis. GeNESS organizes what is customers. According to Piaggio, Moravia Moravia’s future in Argentina, whether the only internationalization and localiza- chose Argentina over Mexico and other other mid-tier players follow Moravia’s tion event of signifi cance in the region alternatives for two main reasons. lead and establish offi ces in Argentina or at this time, the annual LISE conference The one-hour time difference with other Latin American countries remains to on Software Localization and Interna- the eastern seaboard of the United States be seen. This will depend on the ability of tionalization for Export, held every year enables Argentina to bridge a critical time- zone gap that Moravia’s existing offi ces in the Czech Republic, Ireland, Japan, China and California did not effectively cover. And Argentina’s predominantly European- oriented culture positions it uniquely as a bridge between Latin America, Europe and North America. Other advantages for investment in Argentina include: Q Labor costs for industry profession- als are around a third of comparable costs in Europe or North America and are also considerably lower than in Mexico or Brazil. In a people-intensive industry such as localization, labor costs are clearly a critical determinant when choosing where to localize, hence the rise of the Indian, Chinese and Eastern European localiza- tion clusters. Q The education system is predomi- nantly free in Argentina, with more than 14 universities and tertiary institutions offer- ing translation and linguistics programs. Moravia’s choice also clearly has stra- tegic implications. Few of the mid-tier or top-tier language companies in the world have a foothold in Latin America. Lionbridge currently operates an offi ce in Santiago, Chile, with 16 permanent staff members whom it inherited after acquir- ing Bowne Global Systems — which in turn had received the offi ce from Berlitz. It is not clear to me whether the strategic importance of the Santiago offi ce is being fully exploited by Lionbridge at this time,

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in November in Florianópolis. GeNESS and LRC recently signed and automakers in countries such as Japan or the United States. a memorandum of understanding designed to foster cooperation Buyers, like automakers, are looking for long-term relationships and to offer a dedicated teaching and training program on digital with vendors that add value and strategic assets to their organiza- media internationalization and localization. tions while developing tightly integrated processes connecting the Although LISE is still a relatively small event with around buyer to the vendor. Vendors, like the parts suppliers, are looking 100 participants, it attracts an interesting blend of software for steady cashfl ows from dependable clients that will empower developers, localizers, translators and academia. LISE is cer- ongoing growth and reinvestment and minimize business risks. tainly on my packed conference travel agenda. The result is that both buyers and vendors need to invest GeNESS and LISE represent unique examples of government, in the relationship to build a scalable system of managing university, software and localization industry cooperation in Latin the translation and review processes. Vendors will have to America. Other countries in the region, particularly Argentina, lead training initiatives themselves, dragging universities and would do well to follow the example of GeNESS and LISE and industry organizations along with them, albeit unwillingly at encourage this type of win-win cooperation between government the beginning, in order to overcome the shortage of qualifi ed and the business and the education sectors. localizers. Vendors will have no choice but to reinvest heavily What is holding Argentina and Latin America back from real- in order to continue to grow. Remote structures will be super- izing their full potential as full-service localization providers? seded by in-house operations to guarantee the scalability and Don De Palma and Renato Beninatto of the consulting fi rm full-service approach required by demanding mid-tier buyers of Common Sense Advisory boldly state that Latin America is sim- localization services. ply not selling itself well enough. While India, China and Eastern In the medium to long term some vendors may merge or acquire Europe are well known for their university systems, particularly other local companies in order to gain momentum. Although it in the fi elds of engineering, software development and exact may initially sound somewhat utopian, direct monetary invest- sciences, Latin America has not convinced the world that it is ment in Latin American vendors by US-based or European-based capable of full-service localization. It is a question of percep- companies may indeed be necessary for the former to meet the tions, De Palma and Beninatto argue. Latin America is not getting demanding level of service mid- and top-tier industry leaders the attention or the venture-capital fi nance that other regions increasingly depend on. are receiving because Latin America is not promoting itself as a future localization powerhouse. Mexico and Spain are synony- Where to now? mous with the Spanish language for Americans and Europeans. Whatever ultimately happens, the future of the Argentine They are natural choices. If other Latin American countries are to localization may well appear to be very bright, but it is in fact far mature, they will have to aggressively sell themselves as viable, from guaranteed. Without ongoing investment, effective industry stable and promising destinations for investment. representation, cooperation and benchmarking between compa- Companies will have to present themselves as highly adaptable nies, government and universities, and vastly improved sales and visible organizations willing to do due diligence and bench- structures, the apparent rising sun of the Argentine localization marking in order to closely partner with buyers in the northern industry may well turn out to be a false dawn. hemisphere. Andre Pellet, vice president of Welocalize, has com- Do I hear a supporting motion for the creation of the Argen- pared this relationship to that between auto parts manufacturers tine Translation and Localization Industry Association? M

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Instructional design principles for serious games Valerie Hainley & Jaime Henderson

Given a choice, would you rather work or play? Most likely your answer is play because playing is fun. For 69% of American heads of Ghouseholds, playing video games is how they spend 7.5 hours of their time every week. They return to this activity again and again because playing games brings them enjoyment and pleasure. As one gamer noted, “It’s fun because I’m always learning something!” So, for some people, playing computer and video games is not only fun but educational.

In fact, fun and games have been used to help people learn One objective of the Tactical Questioning game is to interview for years. As computers and computer games have become more the local Sheik and gain his support while gathering information complex and popular, this trend toward making learning fun about activities and people in the town. has matured into the concept of serious games. A serious game is a game in which education is the primary goal rather than player develops a character and travels through the game world entertainment. As video games have increased in popularity, the completing various quests. The game player is always learning appeal of using and refocusing these games to this more serious something, even if it’s just learning to play the game. purpose is gaining appeal, as well as acceptance. In serious games, this learning is taken a step further. Instead of simply allowing general learning to take place as Why computer games? the player plays the game, designers and developers are focus- Today’s learners, particularly younger ones, have grown ing the game around specifi c topics or skills. Flight simulators up playing computer and video games. These games tend to are used to teach specifi c fl ying skills. Games such as Full be complex and immersive. They range from simulations of Spectrum Warrior have been used to train the military in spe- real-life activities, such as fl ight simulators, to fully developed cifi c fi ghting skills. America’s Army, developed primarily as a fantasy worlds, such as Oblivion, a role-playing game where the recruiting and marketing tool, has also been adapted to train various skills. What’s in a game? In an attempt to create a defi nition of game, Jesper Juul com- Valerie Hainley (left) and pared defi nitions from a variety of researchers. He summarizes Jaime Henderson (right) are six basic qualities that make any particular activity a game: instructional designers for Q Games are rule-based with rules which are well-defi ned Imedia.it, Inc., in Houston, Texas. and unambiguous.

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Q Games have variable, quan- the game is teaching. The tifi able outcomes. The rules of the negative outcome refl ects game must allow for different the failure of the learner to possible outcomes. However, the accomplish the goal. The outcomes of the game should, student crashes the plane if like the rules, be unambiguous. he or she has not learned the Q The potential outcomes of proper landing techniques. a game have either positive or In order for learning negative values to the player, to take place, the learner — that is, there is a winning out- must be challenged, so come and a losing outcome. the challenge and confl ict Q Games present a challenge must be present within the or a confl ict so that the player context of the game. There must invest effort in order to is no challenge if the plane infl uence the outcome. in the fl ight simulator is Q The player is attached to easier to land than a real the outcome of the game. He plane. The challenge can be or she is happy with a positive Street scene in Tactical Questioning requires the learner to interact increased by adding con- outcome or unhappy with a with the local people, using knowledge of local customs fl icts: darkness, weather or to meet the objectives of the game. negative outcome. mechanical diffi culty. Get- Q The game can be played with or become even more important in guiding ting the learner attached to or involved without real-life consequences. In other the learning toward the desired outcome. in the story provides the motivation for words, the game can be just for fun, with In a fl ight simulator, for example, a seri- completing the game. A variety of land- the only consequences happening harm- ous game would force the student to try ing sites makes the student want to keep lessly within the game, or the game can to land the plane instead of simply fl ying playing. have some kind of real-life cost — that around looking at the landscape. Finally, the consequences within the is, injury (as in sports) or money (as in The rules can also be used to cre- game provide feedback necessary for the gambling). ate the context for learning. The fl ight learner to improve his or her skills. If simulator mirrors the performance of a the student cannot land the plane in a Serious games real airplane and only allows maneuvers simulator, what teacher will allow that The same defi nitions apply to serious which are realistic. The outcomes are student to attempt a real landing? games, but with heavier emphasis on the tailored to refl ect the goal of the serious rules and outcomes so that play is more game and create consequences. The posi- Instructional designers directed. In a serious game, the rules tive outcome is the desired goal — what and serious games Designing serious games requires all of us in the learning development commu- nity to rethink the design and develop- ment process. Since instructional designers play a key role in creating instruction, it is especially important to consider what we need to do if we want to create seri- ous games. The movement toward serious games will challenge instructional design- ers to take a close look at everything we have learned so far. What do instructional designers need to do differently in order to design seri- ous games? As instructional designers interested in developing game-based scenarios, we began researching serious games. Although there are numerous books and articles about the subject, there is no cookbook on how it is done. Instructional designers and everyone else involved in developing seri- ous games are “learning by doing.” What became clear after going through the pro- cess of developing a couple of game-based projects is that if, as instructional designers, we want to be involved in creating serious

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games, we need to make some changes in what we do and the way we think. These changes can be summarized into these areas: Q understand video and computer games Q change the way we think about instruction Q align the instructional strategy with the engagement strategy Q design for learning experiences Q adapt our design processes Understand video and computer games. Instruc- tional designers need to understand games from the point of view of both game players and game develop- ers. This means analyzing what good games do and use those techniques in creating serious games. Playing games is a good place to start. Often computer games are considered “kid stuff,” but the average game player is 33 years old. In fact, 44% of game players are 18-49 years old, the same age as the people for whom we are usually designing training. A briefi ng at the beginning of Tactical Questioning tells the learner what Actually sitting down to play these games gives the is expected during the game. Consequences for saying or doing the wrong instructional designer the opportunity to see what is thing can include angering the Sheik and being kicked out of his house. possible in games. Instructional designers need to under- stand the wide variety of games that is available; how the player game so the students are immersed in a real world situation interacts with the game events and other characters; and how where they can practice these skills. In order to “win,” the sol- games provide feedback to the player through tutorials, actions diers must successfully complete the objectives they are given, and messages. In video games the player is always learning which indicates that they have learned the skills they will need something. By playing these games, instructional designers once they have deployed to the Middle East. discover fi rst-hand how this learning happens and can carry it Design for learning experiences. The best games provide over into their designs. the player with an in-depth experience, a great story and an Change the way we think about instruction. In the rush immersive environment, in addition to the actual play or goal to fi ll the growing demand for online instruction, many online of the game. In designing serious games, the instructional courses look and feel more like online books. Lesson content designer needs to apply the same concepts used in games by is digitized and is published to a CD, the internet or a learn- designing learning experiences rather than merely design- ing management system. The student clicks through pages of ing instruction. Facts become easier to learn if the student is text, interspersed with graphics and checks-on-learning. Then immersed in activities and experiences that use those facts to the student takes the lesson test, receives a score and moves achieve specifi c goals. Learning under these conditions moves on to the next lesson. Although this strategy works in some beyond out-of-context memorization and rote learning to situations, it can cause learners to disengage, and then little deep learning. learning is achieved. In the TQ course, we created a storyline — a situation where The change in thinking that we are advocating is to move the players needed to be out in the community to gather infor- away from the basic presentation of facts and into more mation to help support their mission. The game environment immersive environments where students are learning in con- includes characters (military leaders, community leaders such text. Learning in an environment that is similar to the situation as a sheik and spiritual leaders, children playing in the street, where the student will use the information is effective. Serious and possible terrorists) and settings (a city street, a traffi c con- games can do just that. trol point, and a sheik’s house) that allow the students to safely Tactical Questioning (TQ), a game-based product for the US explore the kinds of situations they will encounter once they Army, is designed for soldiers preparing for duty in Iraq. These are deployed. soldiers need a better understanding of Middle Eastern culture, The idea behind the design is that by the end of the game laws of warfare and basic questioning skills in order to better the learners will have developed a solid foundation in the conduct tactical missions. skills necessary to be successful in the environments they will In order to align the instructional strategy with the engage- encounter once their training has ended. In this game, we take ment strategy, we fi rst considered the audience — soldiers the facts and information that the soldiers need to know and preparing for deployment to Iraq. This analysis of the target turn them into a story and experience that they will remember audience resulted in the need for a highly interactive learning and apply once they reach the Middle East. strategy. Since many of the target audience are in the age range Adapt our design practices to facilitate serious game of those who grew up playing video games, the use of a game design. We learned that in designing something as complex as was an ideal strategy. a serious game, it was necessary to adapt some of our standard Instead of simply developing a series of lessons where the practices. soldiers are given the list of dos and don’ts for each of these One of the biggest adjustments was in the design phase. topics, we decided to enhance this instruction with a serious In past projects, the instructional designer would work with

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a subject matter expert (SME) to create the lesson — gather team throughout the project becomes a key piece of meeting the information needed, lay out an interface and create a this responsibility. storyboard. Once the design was complete, the instructional designer’s role was basically over. The lesson was handed over Conclusion for production, and the instructional designer’s role became Serious games are of great interest to people in a variety of more secondary — answering questions concerning the design disciplines. Much of this interest involves trying to fi gure out and testing the fi nal product for completion. The line between the best way to design and develop these games as effective the design phase and the development phase of the project learning tools. Just as there is no “best way” to create learn- was distinct. ing, there may not be a “best way” to design a serious game. In a serious game project, the design phase and the pro- However, by exploring what video games are about, being open duction phase tend to blend together. The design of the game to new ideas about learning, and trying out different design becomes more a collaboration between the instructional processes, instructional designers can create effective, engag- designer, the SMEs, graphic designers and programmers. ing, and even fun, serious games. M Although the instructional designer, along with the SME, still designs the instruction that must be included, the actual game References design needs the technical expertise of the graphic designers Entertainment Software Association. (2006), “2006 Essential Facts and programmers. about the Computer and Video Game Industry.” Retrieved June 21, Working as a team. When creating the game, the focus 2006 from www.theesa.com/archives/2006/05/2006_essential.php of the programmers and graphic developers, especially if Juul, J. (2003). “The Game, the Player, the World: Looking for a they do not have an instructional design background, is not Heart of Gameness” In M. Copier and J. Raessens (eds.), Level Up: Digital Games Research Conference Proceedings (pp. 30-45) Utrecht: necessarily on the learning objectives, and it shouldn’t be. Utrecht University. Retrieved February 23, 2006 from www.jesperjuul Their expertise is on the functionality and graphics. It is the .net/text/gameplayerworld responsibility of the instructional designers, whose expertise United Press International. (2006). “‘America’s Army’ game is instruction, to work with the entire team to retain the transformed.” Retrieved June 22, 2006 from http://pda.physorg.com/ focus on learning. Constant communication with the entire lofi -news-army-game-americas_10919.html

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Localizing casual games Frank Dietz

An interesting bifurcation is happening in the world of As I will show, localizing casual games is not as easy computer and video games. as it may seem. The games AOn the one hand are games are short, but not necessarily for hard-core players — be primitive, and they may offer localization problems specifi c they role-playing, simula- to this gaming segment. tion, action or adventure — that require increasing What are hardware power either in casual games? The defi nition of casual the form of a powerful PC games is different from that with a high-end graphics of usual game genres. While card (or two) or an up-to- genres are generally defi ned date video game console, by content — fantasy role- playing game, sports simula- such as the Xbox 360. These Figure 1: Scene from Flash-based Samorost 2. ©Amanita Designs tion, adventure game and so games strive for ever higher on — casual games cut across levels of realism, both in terms of graphics and genres and are defi ned by user appeal (“a category of electronic or computer games targeted at a mass audience” — Wikipedia) or in-game physics. They appeal to gamers who are user interaction (simple interface, easy-to-learn controls, short willing to devote untold hours to mastering the playing time). Attempts at more formal defi nitions (fi le size, intricacies of the game and fi nishing its highly retail price, operating system, distribution channel or develop- complex challenges. ment costs) such as the list of features given by Scott Bilas (www. fl ashmagazine.com/1073.htm) appear to me to be too restrictive On the other hand, there is a growing market for what for a type of game that is still very much evolving. may be termed “coffee-break” games — small, easy-to-play Casual games can be traced back to the Solitaire game games that entertain and relax rather than challenge. These included with Microsoft Windows, which introduced millions casual games are a rapidly growing segment of the games of users to the concept of short, simple computer games, and market, and, as they have global appeal, they are sometimes was later supplemented by other titles such as Free Cell or Mine- localized. sweeper. While these types of games have long been available on CD, often as budget collections containing dozens or even hundreds of games, recent technological developments have greatly infl uenced the distribution and usage of casual games. The increasing spread of broadband connectivity allows both for the download of relatively large casual games as well as Frank Dietz is a German-to-English translator for online playing. Furthermore, other devices, such as cell specializing in software localization. phones and PDAs, now have gaming abilities.

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The recent market success of Is localization required? casual games is therefore not In terms of localization, casual surprising. The industry sees it as games seem to be easy. Games are a means of breaking out of the more likely to be simple, with rela- core group of dedicated gam- tively small amounts of text. Some ers and reaching a potentially casual games are even almost much larger group of customers, completely textless, such as the promising a signifi cant increase point-and-click puzzle adventure in revenues: “Over the past few Samorost 2 (Figure 1). years, casual games have gone Other casual games might be from a cottage industry to one based on well-known patterns such of the highest growth areas in as board games, card games or sim- the overall video games sector. ple arcade action games, where it The casual games industry has might seem that little text is neces- grown from almost nothing in sary to guide the player. Yet even in 2002 to well over $600 million these games, some instruction and in 2004 in the United States messages will have to be translated. (US). By 2008, industry experts Figure 2: Screen from Coffee Tycoon. ©Jamopolis Interactive This is particularly true for level- anticipate that the market will based games that require a “story” surpass $2 billion in the US alone.” (2006 According to the 2006 Casual Games and success messages to keep the player Casual Games White Paper, IDGA Casual White Paper, “the downloadable games motivated in fi nishing a sequence of Games SIG, p. 8) market is a North America-centric busi- essentially only slightly different levels of This appeal is not limited to the US ness today with less than twenty-fi ve game play. In this case, text is actually a market, though. What makes casual games percent (25%) of revenues coming from counterbalance to the relatively simplistic globally relevant is their low cost of entry other territories. Global sales are game play, and while each level might be for the user. Powerful PCs with mid- to increasing quickly with top English- relatively short, there could be hundreds high-end video cards or the latest video- language games selling well interna- of levels in the game, each with specifi c game consoles are a luxury item limited tionally — even to non-English speaking messages or characters. to a relatively small group, whereas cell consumers — as a result of the games’ So, the spectrum of text density in phones and PCs with less graphic horse- more casual and intuitive play pattern. casual games varies considerably, from power are much more widespread in coun- Additionally, leading channels are increas- a few words to tens of thousands. After tries all over the world. The casual games ingly focused on developing localized all, casual games can range from sim- industry is therefore turning towards this distribution channels and pursuing local- ply arcade action or visual puzzles to potentially huge global market. ized content. . . .” (p. 12) mini-simulations of real-world activities that contain thousands of words of text. In this case, it is also important that translators are familiar with the specifi c »à’æÚגéáäÞ֒áؒÞÓàÙçÓÙגåáÞçæÛáàå terminology, be it golf or snowboard- ing — or, in the case of the game Coffee ÕçÔ×å’ÓäגÛà’ØÓåÚÛáà“ Tycoon, the running of a coffee house. As you can see in Figure 2, the game not only covers coffees from mocha to mac- chiato, but also touches on topics such as employee health benefi ts, profi t shar- ing and public stock offerings — and, as you can see, the interface does not allow for much textual expansion. Similarly, a golf or snowboarding game would also require the translator to be familiar with éגÖᒠáçä’ÓÖèÓàæÓÙ×å’ specifi c terminology. ²””èæÕâçàÕèÝãâç”Ýâ”Õàà”àÕâÛéÕÛÙ甔 ²””çÝâÛàٔ×ãâèÕ×è”äãÝâè”Úã攔 ÕâؔàÕâÛéÕÛٔ×ãáÖÝâÕèÝãâç” Õàà”àÕâÛéÕÛÙç” ²””àã×ÕàÝîÕèÝãâç” ²”Õ”æÙÛÝçèÙæÙؔçéääàÝÙæ”Úãæ”èÜٔ¹É” Issues in localizing ²””×æãçç¡×éàèéæÕà”×ãâçéàèÝâÛ ²”½ÇÔ­¤¤¥®¦¤¤¥”×ÙæèÝĀÙØ casual games ²”àÝâÛéÝçèÝהÕâؔäæãÚÙççÝãâÕà” ²”¥¦”íÙÕæç”Ýâ”èÜٔáÕæßÙè” ” äæããÚæÙÕØÝâ۔Öí”âÕèÝêٔçäÙÕßÙæç” Furthermore, there are a number of »àæ×äàÓæÛáàÓޒÂäáÜ×Õ撿ÓàÓÙ×ß×àæ’ ²””¸ÈĔäæã×ÙççÝâ۔ÕâؔÛæÕäÜÝהØÙçÝÛ┠µ×àæäגÂäÓÙçה issues in localizing casual games, some ²”çãÚèëÕæٔçãàéèÝãâç ÝâÚã´çßæÝêÕâÙߢ×ãá common to game localization in general Ÿ¨¦¤”¦§§”§¦¤”©ª¤ and others specifi c to certain types of casual games. ¶ÙàÛÝéᔠ” ¶éàÛÕæÝՔ ” ·ÜÝâՔ ” ·îÙ×ܔ ÆÙäéÖàÝה ” ¹çèãâÝՔ ” »ÙæáÕâ픔 Length restrictions. This is probably ¼éâÛÕæí” ” ÀÕèêÝՔ ” ÀÝèÜéÕâÝՔ ” ÄãàÕâؔ ” ÇàãêÕßÝՔ ” ÇàãêÙâÝՔ ” Éǵ ééé åÝäÛèÓà×Ý Õáß the most serious problem for translators

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53-55 GF Dietz.indd 54 11/1/06 9:51:41 AM Industry Focus

in regard to casual game localization. Sometimes, of course, With casual games, which may be played by someone 7 years this is caused by the device the game runs on. While there are old or 70 years old, the target group can be much more diffuse. hybrid cell phone/game player devices, such as the Nokia N- This will infl uence the stylistic level of the translations down Gage (Figure 3), the average cell-phone screen imposes severe to such basic questions as whether to use formal or informal restrictions on text length. This is particularly problematic modes of addressing the player (Sie/du, usted/tu, vous/tu). when the game was not originally designed for this device, but Non-native English. As the development of casual games is is “ported” from another platform. I was involved in such a a global enterprise, it often happens these days that the game localization in which a rather complex PC-based simulation texts are written by non-native speakers of English. In some was ported to a cell phone, and the translators received the cases, the English is slightly or not so slightly “off,” and trans- instruction “No word can be longer lators will have to check with the than 9 characters.” This did not just client to receive clarifi cations about apply to the menu interface, but the intended meaning. also to the rather detailed help fi les “Blind” localization. While one and game messages. translator of casual games reported Another translator reported hav- that she received demos and emula- ing to limit text lengths to the char- tors for the games to be localized, acter count of the English text, which it seems unfortunately much more caused considerable problems with common that translators are only menu items such as “Undo,” “Back” working with the actual text strings, or “Save,” which have much longer without any visual or contextual German translations. In this case, information. The reason for this may the restrictions seemed to be based be concerns about piracy or simply on hard-coded length limits rather Figure 3: Nokia N-Gage. ©Nokia. Note the pixel administrative inertia. This lack of dimensions, as compared to a PC monitor. than on the physical dimensions of context, though, not only makes the the output screen. The result of these severe restrictions is that translator’s work much more diffi cult but can also lead to errone- localized texts are full of awkward abbreviations that degrade ous translations. legibility and may cause confusion among players. In many of these cases, a focus on “localizability” could Conclusion have avoided these problems, either by allowing localized text The market segment is still relatively young, and numerous additional space or, where that turned out to be impossible, by new entrants may have little or no experience in localization. using a symbol-based interface that is explained in the docu- As a consequence, the casual games industry is in a way repeat- mentation or the help fi le. In some cases of cell-phone games, ing the earlier development of the mainstream game industry as one developer of such titles explains, the only solution may from a parochial business to one more aware of global markets be to create a custom font for the game. and the need for quality localization. Partial localization. When I started working in game local- Considering that casual games can potentially reach hun- ization in the mid-1990s, the era of partial localization was fad- dreds of millions of users worldwide who may never play a ing, at least for the major overseas markets. Instead of shipping “hardcore” game, an increased focus on localizing casual games an English game with a translated manual or an only partially would be a sound investment. M localized game, the trend was towards fully localized games. In casual games, in my experience, there is a return to partial References localization, as the games are considered simple enough to be Bilas, Scott. “Casual Games.” www.fl ashmagazine.com/1073.htm played in the original version. The documentation then simply “Casual game.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/casual_game provides translations of major interface elements (“Klicken Sie Casual Games SIG/Whitepaper, Online version. www.igda.org/wiki/ auf Load [Laden] um ein Speicherspiel zu laden”), but on-screen index.php/Casual_Games_SIG/Whitepaper messages in the game itself remain untranslated. This is obvi- Chandler, Heather Maxwell. The Game Localization Handbook. ously a cost-saving factor, but it could lead to a “plot stopper” Charles River Media, 2005. if the player does not understand a specifi c message and cannot Dietz, Frank. “Issues in localizing computer games.” Perspectives continue the game. in Localization, edited by Keiran J. Dunne. American Translators Device-specifi c terminology. Several translators I inter- Association Scholarly Monograph Series XIII. John Benjamins, 2006. viewed indicated that they were not always told what device the Hyman, Paul. “‘Casual’ video games are serious business.” The game was for. Considering that buttons and control elements Hollywood Reporter, June 17, 2004. have very specifi c translated names depending on whether they Kushner, David. “The Wrinkled Future of Online Gaming.” Wired, are on a Nintendo DS, for instance, or on a Nokia N-Gage, June 2004. www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.06/gaming.html this can cause problems. Besides indicating the platform, clients Niedermair, Christoph. E-mail interview, August 16, 2006. should also provide translators with offi cial device-specifi c Saltzman, Marc. “Casual games — good, clean, cheap fun online.” glossaries. www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/fun.games/02/28/casual.games/index.html More diffuse audience. If a translator translates a complex Sommer, Jill R. E-mail interview, August 17, 2006. strategy game aimed at so-called “grognards” (hard-core mili- Valido, Jennifer Vela. E-mail interview, August 16, 2006. tary strategy gamers), he or she will have a pretty good idea When, Karin. “Jeder sollte die Chance haben, ein Computerspiel zu about the age and subject-matter expertise of the audience. gewinnen.“ www.heise.de/tp/r4/artikel/20/20776/1.html

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53-55 GF Dietz.indd 55 11/1/06 9:52:33 AM Games: quality, localization and the world market Pearse Finegan Industry Focus

Video games — consumer entertainment prod- ucts — are created to allow the player to have fun, entertainment magician. Such magicians are always driven by a total dedication to quality in every aspect of their work. pure and simple. They compete with television, It is diffi cult to measure the quality level of a game. Measuring movies, novels, music and other hobbies for a entertainment quality is subjective, but the commercial/consensus V approach would be to use a combination of sales achieved and share of a person’s free time and his or her dis- review scores. Quality is the byword for games developers and posable income. Creating a game is an expensive publishers who take a long-term strategy, and, on the whole, we business and requires an extensive team of game can see this refl ected in their sales and their longevity when we designers, software engineers, graphic artists, ani- examine their annual revenues later in this article. Every devel- mators, sound engineers, video editors and so on. oper and publisher can, for a myriad of reasons, fail to attain the quality level that they would like to achieve, but, as long as Bringing a game to market is also expensive and the consumers do not share their opinion that the game is below requires the marketing skills, advertising budget, par, then they may survive in the business. Mistakes in game distribution system and sales team of a games development are costly and can be immediately terminal. If a publisher. Both the games developer and games multimillion-dollar project that can take three years to complete does not sell well in the initial weeks at retail, then the developer publisher set out to create the best quality game and publisher may never get the chance to try to hit that quality they can, within the obvious constraints of time, bar next time. money and technology. Quality in the localized versions of a game is paramount, just as quality is paramount in all other aspects of the development A typical story-driven game is part software, part novel, part of a game. The translations must be more akin to creative writ- movie and part instruction manual, usually designed to entertain ing than to literal translation while still conveying all the same a player for at least 30 hours. Delivering a 30-hour entertainment information contained in the original. The spoken audio must experience and consistently hitting a high-quality bar throughout breathe life into the game characters in the localized version. this time period are daunting tasks. But quality is all important, and The software must work seamlessly in another language, and every member of the team strives for it. If we compare the enter- the localized game must deliver a consistently high-quality level tainment objectives of a game with those of a movie, we can see throughout the 30+ hour playing experience. Later in this article that games developers must entertain their customers for at least we will detail the task of localizing games and examine how we 28 more hours than an average movie. Even blockbuster movies can achieve the high-quality level expected, but fi rst an exami- with big stars and big budgets can fail to deliver a short two-hour nation of the history and business of games publishing will set entertainment experience, so a games developer who manages the scene and illustrate why quality is the guiding principle in the good reviews and strong sales of a 30-hour experience is truly an games business, just as it is in the games localization business. The games industry Pearse Finegan is managing director of Game In the short history of the games industry, the territories with Localization Network, based in Dublin, Ireland. signifi cant markets for games hardware and software have always

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56-61 GF Finegan wextraad.indd 56 11/1/06 9:53:44 AM Industry Focus

been North America, Japan and Western Europe, but in the last segment of its business. This fi gure includes revenue from licens- few years Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia, particularly Korea ing agreements with software publishers that release games on and China, have shown signifi cant growth. The games industry Sony hardware. Shipments of PlayStation 2 have exceeded 100 encompasses companies that create the hardware on which we play million since its launch in March 2000. More than 7,000 games games and companies that create and publish the game software have been released for the platform, and software shipments have that we play. By looking into the history of the games industry, we exceeded one billion units. Sony will release PlayStation 3, its next- can see how the modern industry has evolved and been shaped by generation console, in November 2006 in Japan and North America the successes and disasters of the past. and in March 2007 in Europe. Nintendo and Microsoft are currently The early 1970s was the dawn of the video games industry. a very close second and third place in terms of net revenues. For Players initially experienced games on coin-operated arcade cabi- the fi scal year ending March, 2006, Nintendo posted $4.34 billion, nets, and at this time the major companies were of US origin. Atari and Microsoft (Home and Entertainment division) posted $4.25 bil- and Midway came to dominate the arcade market through to the lion. Microsoft released the original Xbox in 2001, and unoffi cial late 1970s. The mid-1970s saw the introduction of games consoles estimates put its sales at approximately 24 million units. The next- which could be used at home when connected to a television set. generation console, the Xbox 360, was launched in November 2005, The ability to play games at home led to an explosion in the market and Microsoft stated that the company had “sold approximately for games, and the buoyant market was served by a number of US 5 million” units by June 2006. Nintendo will release a new console, companies, including Atari and Magnavox. While some Japanese the Wii, in November/December 2006. The industry is shaping up electronics fi rms were involved in the production for a major battle between the next-generation of electronic components for the games hard- consoles during Christmas 2006 and beyond. Pre- ware, it was not until the late 1970s that Japa- Quality in the dictions abound on who will come out on top, but nese companies started to achieve direct success it will be 2008 before we know for certain. with their own products. In 1978 Space Invaders localized versions of The majority of the top pure games publish- became a runaway success for Taito, and this a game is paramount, ers — those companies that exclusively create and caused other Japanese electronics companies to publish software and have no hardware business sit up and take notice of the games market, both just as quality is — were founded in the 1980s and 1990s. US, Japa- at home and abroad. The home console market nese, British, French and Korean companies cur- was pretty much dominated by Atari until the paramount in all rently dominate the pure publishing business. The early 1980s, but the release of many competing other aspects of largest pure games publisher is Electronic Arts, a home console systems, including the very suc- US company, and its most recent annual report cessful Intellivision from Mattel and the rise of the development gives net revenue as $2.95 billion (54% of revenue the fully-fl edged home computer (PC, Mac and of a game. obtained in North America, 40% in Europe and Commodore), caused a major shake-up in the US 6% in Asia). Activision is another US pure games games industry. In Japan, Nintendo released the publisher, with revenues of $1.15 billion in 2006 Famicom, and it quickly came to dominate the Japanese market. (61.5% from North America, 35% in Europe and 3.5% in Asia). This kick-started Nintendo’s expansion overseas. Sega, too, had The top ten companies in the games business include a number some success in games hardware during the 1990s, and by the of Japanese companies that have software publishing businesses, mid-1990s the console market came to be dominated by Japanese specialize in the creation of arcade games hardware and oper- manufacturers. This dominance has persisted to the present day. ate amusement centers in Japan and abroad. Companies such as Konami, Namco and Sega-Sammy derive a signifi cant portion of The major game-console manufacturers their revenue from their Japanese arcade operations, and this keeps At present there are three major manufacturers in home consoles them in the top tier of games publishers internationally. — Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft. Each has a rival system in the South Korean companies such as NCsoft, Webzen and Nexon are market, and each creates both the hardware and also games soft- the most recent entrants to the ranks of the top games publishers. ware exclusively for its own systems. Sony has dominated in sales Their success has largely been built on the extraordinary growth of terms, but Nintendo continues to innovate and has experienced online gaming in their home country and in neighboring South- great success with the handheld Game Boy, DS and the soon-to-be- east Asian territories. Korea became a phenomenon in the games released Wii. Microsoft has shown a strong commitment to carving business in the late 1990s with the spread of the internet cafes out a place for itself with the Xbox in 2001, and the company is dedicated to gaming and the massive uptake of broadband in the currently expanding its importance with the Xbox 360, which was country. Multiplayer games on PCs are what people play; single- launched in 2005. Due to the combination of hardware and soft- player console gaming just never took off in Korea. In a country ware sales, these three companies are the games companies with with a population of 48 million, it is not uncommon for the top the highest revenues. The history of the games hardware industry games to have more than two million players. Flush with cash is littered with companies that achieved great commercial success from success in their home markets, many of the top Korean com- only to subsequently succumb to huge commercial losses. Many panies have embarked on expansion overseas, both into Southeast of the early hardware companies that survived have switched their Asian markets and further into the markets of the United States focus to games software and have reinvented themselves as games and Europe. They have some interesting gaming concepts and new publishers rather than hardware manufacturers. Atari and Sega are business models. The next year or two will tell if these concepts particular examples of this phenomenon. and models can be successful in international territories. Sony is currently the dominant company in the games console One of the most interesting aspects of the Korean market has business with a net revenue of $7.85 billion from the games been the success attained with the “free to play, pay for upgrades”

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model. These games are available for free or pay for virtual upgrades — is the model principle that has underpinned everything download (they are not sold in shops), and that has proven most successful. they have done is a focus on quality. The players can play the basic game online In discussing gaming in general and international success of World of Warcraft for free. But if they want to change their Korea and China in particular, it would be shows that quality counts with games in-game character’s appearance or if they remiss not to specifi cally mention the US players across the world. want to get better items for their character, developer Blizzard Entertainment, part of In looking through a collection of then they pay a small fee ($1 or $2) for a Vivendi Games. In 1998, Blizzard released annual reports and having digested the virtual upgrade. The game Kart Rider from StarCraft. The game was a success world- fi nancial data and the messages from the Nexon has had amazing success with this wide, but it became a true phenomenon in CEOs of games businesses, a couple of key model. It generates more than $10 million Korea. It quickly became the online game points emerge. per month from sales of virtual upgrades, of choice in Korean game cafes, sold mil- Q All companies are more successful in and latest fi gures show that it has over 11 lions of copies in Korea, spawned televi- their home territory/continent than they million registered users. sion shows and has even allowed expert are in other territories. China is another interesting territory players to turn professional and make Q Almost everybody wants to become a and is home to a couple of interesting their living by playing the game. Blizzard “global leader” and aims to achieve this by games companies, namely Shanda Enter- is also the developer behind the hugely expanding its business in other territories. tainment, The9, Netease and CDC Corpo- successful World of Warcraft, an online ration. Although the revenue potential in game with more than seven million users International ambitions the Chinese market has yet to reach sig- worldwide and more than three million In order for games companies to achieve nifi cant levels, it has attracted games players in China. As a developer, Blizzard their expansion and global leadership ob- companies to its shores due to its future has always had a reputation for quality. It jectives, many hurdles need to be jumped. potential based on the size of the popula- built its brand on a small number of great The primary hurdle is in developing a game tion and the pace of economic growth. games, each one of which showed care that will sell in other territories, but this Online games companies in particular have and attention to detail in every aspect of does not necessarily mean that the game made great efforts in this territory, and the the game design. There are many reasons must be targeted at the global market; in micro-payments model — pay by the hour why Blizzard has been successful, but the fact, it may be more prudent to focus on local preferences. In order for a publisher to expand its business into other territories, it will be necessary to analyze the target territory and develop games that suit the target territory. An analysis of the top ten games charts from the different territories shows that individual territories have unique pref- erences for genres, subject matter, styles of play and game platforms. Japan has the most unique charts. It is almost exclusively a console territory with very low sales of PC games and has proven a diffi cult market to crack for US and European publishers. Japanese companies have had much better fortune in taking successful games from their home market into the international charts, but they have always had a strong focus on their home territory and continue to be prudent in their decisions. Releasing games into the international market obviously requires more than just the translation and localization of the game; it also requires that the logistics for a successful international release be fi rmly in place. The major publishers typically have their own local sales, marketing and distribution operations in all the key ter- ritories for games. Smaller publishers may not have local operations, but they can still have a successful international release through partnerships with local companies that are expert in their respective territo- ries. In this role the local partner typically

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56-61 GF Finegan wextraad.indd 58 11/6/06 9:49:03 AM Industry Focus

provides advertising, marketing and distri- version of the game for initial testing. The Translating the text of a game is not an bution for the game. pseudo-translated version of the game easy task; it is also the task that has the The games industry is a hit-driven has accented characters added to the greatest impact on the quality level that business. Games tend to have a short shelf text; string lengths are increased by 25%; the localized game achieves. The layout life in retail channels, so it is critical that and the game software is tested in order of the game text itself is usually one of a game targeted for the global market has the major hurdles in the translation of a an international advertising and market- game. The reason for this is that the source ing strategy behind it when preparing game text is always sorted into fi les in a for release. The game needs to garner as It is critical that a game way that suits the software rather than the much attention as is possible in games targeted for the global translator. The text of a game can be stored magazines, on games websites and on in anything from a single fi le to hundreds retail shelves in the weeks preceding and market has an international of fi les. Just getting the text into a format immediately after release. A game needs that suits translation can be a diffi cult positive reviews, good media coverage advertising and marketing task. Use of localization tools and transla- and availability in the shops for it to attain strategy behind it when tion memory tools can assist in the extrac- recognition, achieve sales and command tion of the game text and the preparation good word-of-mouth among games play- preparing for release. of the fi les for translation; however, such ers. A focused international campaign tools cannot help to overcome the biggest for a game is a prerequisite for achieving problem with game text — getting it into a success in the market. I want to emphasize to identify any major issues for localiza- logical sequence for translation. the importance of marketing in the suc- tion within the game. A tester checks In any typical translation project the cessful international release of a game, the pseudo-translated build, identifi es all translator needs to be able to read through but for the purposes of this article I will localization issues and then works with the the text of the full translation project in concentrate on the role of localization in project manager and localization engineer order to understand the subject matter the process. The bottom line is that it will in the preparation and organization of the and appreciate the style before he or she be nearly impossible to sell a game to the assets for translation and recording. begins translation. In the case of articles, games players of a target country if the The typical localizable assets within game is not in a language that they speak the game software include text that must and understand. be translated, spoken audio that must be Undoubtedly, games companies can recorded, and graphics and animated mov- prosper in the international marketplace, ies that must be created. A game localiza- but it is inevitable that some will succeed tion project also involves the creation of while others fail. I cannot predict who support materials for the game such as might win and who might lose, but one the website, the manual, the box art and thing that is for certain is that every com- the associated marketing materials. The pany will need to localize their games. quantity of localizable assets in a game varies depending on the platform and the Games localization genre of game. Translatable word count The starting point for the localization can range from 1,000+ words in a small of a game is an analysis by the publisher mobile game to 500,000+ in a story driven of the sales potential for the game in console or PC title. A game can have other language territories — a commercial anything from a small number of spoken decision based on a profi t and loss projec- audio fi les to thousands of audio fi les. An tion and a business gamble. Once it has action game might just have a narrator for decided to back a particular game in order the tutorial and the mission introductions; to achieve its global ambitions, then the a story-driven game can have the cast of localization procedure gets underway. a small movie. Each game character must A game localization project requires be voiced by a professional voice-over a team of people. Each member of the artist in each of the target languages. The team has a distinct specialization and use of experienced in-country recording unique skills, and he or she makes his or studios and quality talent is a prerequisite her contribution to the project at differ- in the casting and recording process. The ent phases in the production process. The localizable graphics in a game typically game is fi rst checked by a localization include one or two of the title screens engineer who examines the structure of and a number of graphical buttons, and the game software. He or she identifi es some of the recorded audio will need to be the game assets that require localization, mixed into the game movies. The creation checks for any localization issues in the of the localized website and print materi- code, extracts the localizable assets from als requires translation, as well as web and the game and creates a pseudo-translated DTP production.

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novels, movies, websites and so on, the text is usually in a logical a luxury that is almost never a reality. Even when a game is 100% order. It has a beginning, middle and an end, thus allowing the complete prior to the start of localization, it can still be diffi cult to translator to read and translate in the order in which the reader sort the various parts of the game text into a logical sequence that or viewer will experience the fi nal text. Games are different. educates the translator on the game as he or she proceeds. They are interactive so there can be many branching story paths Ideally, the translator would have the complete game available with no defi nite chronological order. They are software, so they to play before he or she begins translating. Even more ideally, the contain technical text that must be succinct and yet accurately translator would have the time available to play the game before describe game concepts and functionality. They contain dialogue beginning. If the translator can play the game for some time before which must be translated in a way that entertains and breathes he or she begins translation, then he or she will have had a chance life into the game in the target language. to become familiar with some of the key concepts and the general The worst thing about game text is that it is never available in setting and writing style used in the game. A good starting point a logical sequence for translation. When the text for translation is for translation is to begin with some of the general descriptive extracted from the game fi les, it typically has a jumbled structure. text on the game — for example, descriptions of the game used It can resemble a mix of a technical article, with a small novel, a on the website and in press releases and marketing materials. This dialogue script for a short movie and an extensive technical index. text is usually well written and helps the translator get a general Sorting the text into a logical sequence for translation and gather- understanding of what the game is about and also gives him or ing context information that will assist in translation is absolutely her a good indication of how the game is being pitched and who necessary. It can be time consuming to do this, but without this the target market is for the game. The game manual or a design process the project will run into diffi culties down the line. document can provide the translator with a good overview of the For a translator the other worst thing about translating game game concepts and game mechanics. If it is available early in the text is that it is always needed “urgently”! localization project, then so much the better. In reality, the translator often needs to do his or her work while Quality in games localization and translation the game is still in development. Imminent release schedules and The optimal situation for the localization of a game is when the delays in fi nalizing the source text are invariably the driver behind source language version is complete and has been released. This is this. In such circumstances the logical path is to complete as much

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of the user interface translation as is pos- sible as it typically contains the majority of key terms and game concepts and is a good starting point for development of the game glossary. Once the user interface is Your Reliable Asian complete and has been subjected to some linguistic testing, the translator can pro- Localization Partner ceed through the game fi les in as logical a Precise, Competitive and manner as the available fi les allow. Established in 1996, Golden View started as an IBM Scripts for spoken dialogue are always Effective Translation vendor. You can expect from our team: a challenge. It is imperative that this What makes One Planet different? A deep understand- • High quality services into Asian languages text is translated for vocal delivery and ing of corporate culture. Our clients require accuracy, • Professional voice recording capabilities essential that the translator capture the measurable productivity and excellence in communication. • Strong native Japanese translation team essence of the in-game character in his or • Software localization, technical, legal, life science How can one firm specialize in areas such as high her translations. A well-translated script is • CJK into English — high-volume capacity, on-time technology, medical products and technical manufacturing? very important as without it even the most delivery By blazing the path in translation since 1979, we utilize accomplished actor will have diffi culty • Multilingual DTP on Mac and PC — complex, knowledgeable translators in the United States, Europe bringing his or her character to life. high-volume Word and FrameMaker formatting and Asia in every field and every specialty. The real challenge for a game transla- • FrameMaker, PageMaker, Illustrator, QuarkXPress, tor is being able to balance the different • Technical translation InDesign, Freehand, Flash styles of writing and translation required • Software localization • Robohelp, WebWorks compiling/processing in games. A typical game will contain • Multilingual website development highly succinct technical text in the user Our customers from Ametek to Unisys like the fact Golden View (China) interface; it will contain general technical that we function as an extension of their teams. text in the descriptive strings in the user Technologies Inc. interface, the game manual and help sys- One Planet Room 801, H7.8 Building, Tian’An Cyber Park tem; and it will contain creative writing in 820 Evergreen Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15209 Shenzhen 518040, People’s Republic of China the story and the audio script. Delivering 888-677-1010 • Fax: 412-632-1071 86755-83439364 • Fax: 86755-83434064 quality translations in the various styles [email protected] • www.one-planet.net [email protected] • www.gvlocalization.com is a special skill. Fortunately, most game translators are also game players and are more than prepared to face the challenge. Game players To be successful in the games industry, you must exceed player expectations. You must give unique game play and extraor- dinary environments, and, most of all, you Your Polish must give them a quality entertainment Medical Translations experience. Production Center Players judge the quality of a localized MediLingua is one of Europe’s few companies Since 2000, Ryszard Jarza Translations has been game at the surface level — the text and specializing in medical translation. We provide all audio content, the quality of the local- providing specialized Polish translation, localization European languages (31 today and counting) and ized user interface and so on. They do and DTP services, primarily for life sciences, IT, Japanese as well as the usual translation-related not necessarily appreciate the underlying automotive, refrigeration and other technology services. Our 100-plus translators have a combined technical issues, but they are never shy sectors. medical and language background. in expressing their opinion if something We work with multilanguage vendors and We work for manufacturers of medical devices, is not to their liking. Game players are directly with documentation departments of large instruments, in-vitro diagnostics and software; a demanding and vocal group. Word of multinational customers. We have built a brilliant pharmaceutical companies; medical publishers; mouth is extremely important in game in-house team made up of experienced linguists national and international medical organizations; sales. It is cited as one of the key sales and medical journals. drivers in almost every market research and engineers, who guarantee a high standard of report, and gamers are never shy about quality while maintaining flexibility, responsiveness Call or e-mail Simon Andriesen or visit our website expressing their opinions. and accountability. for more information. If you target an international market, MediLingua BV if you aim to be a global leader, if you Ryszard Jarza Translations Poortgebouw, Rijnsburgerweg 10 want a player to spend 30+ hours in a ul. Barlickiego 23/22 2333 AA Leiden, The Netherlands virtual world that you created, then you 50-324 Wroclaw, Poland 31-71-5680862 • Fax: 31-71-5234660 need a game that exudes quality in every 48-601-728018 • Fax: 48-71-3414441 [email protected] language that it speaks. M [email protected] • www.jarza.com.pl www.medilingua.com

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56-61 GF Finegan wextraad.indd 61 11/1/06 10:00:57 AM 26 oaiainWrdRpr.262 Report.62 World Localization 62-63 Localization WorldReport.62 62 62 L Tsang, Adobe Systems,Inc.Sessionswerepresentedin threetracks: Paula Shannon,Lionbridge;LewTarnopol, Intel;andFrancis O’Dowd, AlchemySoftwareDevelopment;ClioSchils,Medtronic; Franco, Welocalize; DanielGervais, MultiCorporaR&DInc.;Tony Bernier, LionbridgeandGALA;KarenFowlie,Cognos; DanaBarras Translations.com (bronze). Lionbridge (platinum);SDLInternational(silver);Acclaro and tion andLocalizationAssociation(GALA).Majorsponsorswere are co-organizersoftheevent,withcooperationGlobaliza- |

MultiLingual Business The committee developing the program included Christiane The committeedevelopingtheprogramincludedChristiane MultiLingual Computing,Inc.,andTheLocalizationInstitute companies. and businessstrategiesforlocalization memories (TMs),“disruptivetechnologies” technology, theownershipoftranslation topics includingthefutureoftranslation Royal tolisten,questionandcommenton the SalonsInternationalinCentreMont- French-Canadian fun.Participants packed intense networkingandsomeold-fashioned the Value ofLinguistic Assets”—aswell sessions basedonthethemeof“Increasing tries October16-18forthreelivelydaysof more than450professionalsfrom29coun- Localization World Montréalwelcomed of managing editor Laurel Wagers is Laurel Wagers Bonjour Localization World: eebr20 [email protected] December2006 MultiLingual . simulation. global productdevelopment on” solutions,includinga topics; andPraxis—“hands- point —debatesoncurrent ness focus;Point/Counter- presentations withabusi- Perspectives —nontechnical , Montréal! and more.Morethantwodozen participantsfoundthemselves feast ofpeasoup,meatpie, ham,souffl electronics) setthemoodasdiners passed,family-style,ahearty in small-batch,artisanfashion. Folkmusicians(assistedby de laMontagne,a“sugarshack”wheremaplesyrupisproduced ning onTuesday, atraditionalsugaring-offmealattheSucrerie Bernhard Kohlmeier Moravia Worldwide andVistaTECsponsoredthesocialeve- Keynote speaker The openingreceptionatAltitude737offered a 360-degreeviewoftheMontréalskyline. Bélair Inc.(TRSB). sponsored byLionbridge Monday openingreception,whichwas greeting oldandnewfriendsatthe admired thelightsofcitywhile Conference-goers sipped,snacked and Altitude 737thetopoftown. Royal itself—whichmakes thelounge struction higherthanthetopofMont System, Inc.,andTraductionsSerge The cityofMontréalallowsnocon- Special events e omelette,pancakes Canada, Nestor 110 00:2AM 10:02:02 11/1/06 10:02:02 AM Business

Clockwise from top: The Sucrerie de la Montagne; musicians direct spoon players — fi rst the men, then the women — and Francie Gow takes a solo.

Preconference workshops included an introduction to medical localization; how playing wooden spoons along to reach the marketplace; managing distrib- with the fi ddle and guitar uted teams; hands-on translation automa- — and Francie Gow of Canada’s tion (Translation Automation User Society); Translation Bureau brought a clients-only medical round table; GALA her own fi ddling talent to the annual meeting; and a .NET localization ses- stage. The evening ended with sion for members of The Institute of Locali- an energetic contradance. sation Professionals. Program highlights Next conference set for Shanghai Bernhard Kohlmeier, director of localization futures at Micro- The next Localization World conference will take place at the soft Corporation, opened the conference with a keynote address Everbright Convention and Exhibition Center in Shanghai, Peo- on “Unlocking the Value of Linguistic Resources at Microsoft,” ple’s Republic of China, March 20-22, 2007. Proposals for papers noting Microsoft’s 97 localized language versions and more are due November 15, and more information is available at than 200 locales as well as its local language programs. He cited www.localizationworld.com/lwShanghai2007 M the long-standing statement that machine translation (MT) “will be great in fi ve years” — and that it’s been fi ve years from great ever since 1954 — and said that while it’s not likely to be perfect, it doesn’t have to be perfect to be useful. He went on to describe other means of unlocking resources such as moving localization upstream. Discussions throughout the conference frequently returned to themes of usefulness, collaboration, innovation and com- munication. In a summing-up session, Donald A. DePalma and Renato Beninatto of Common Sense Advisory pointed out the evergreen problems of the industry and added that “the business case ROI is always going to be about big problems, but those in charge keep talking about quality, technology, process, technol- ogy and technology.” To change the discussion requires moving forward, using the translation industry’s collective memory, to move through the steps of what they call a Localization Maturity Model — steps from Discouraging (tied to strict budget control) > Scornful > Obstructive > Negligent > Reactive > Repeatable > Managed > Optimized > Transparent. And, they said, the evolu- Participants in the global product development tion will continue. simulation work on a tight schedule.

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62-63 Localization World Report.63 63 11/1/06 10:03:00 AM Be Free.

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Be free. To learn how, request your copy of the new Bock & Company report: Forging the Links in the Globalization Supply Chain. Visit www.idiominc.com/bock or call +1781-464-6000.

© 2006 Idiom Technologies, Inc. All rights reserved. Idiom and WorldServer are trademarks, or registered trademarks of Idiom Technologies, Inc. All other trademarks belong to their respective holders.

64 Idiom #84.indd 64 11/1/06 10:04:32 AM Business Customer-loyalty strategies for LSPs Emilie Achard & Joseph Gomes

Two friends are having a discussion which becomes a bit heated. Out of frustration one says, “I don’t think we are communicating very well.” a two-way channel of communication, helps pinpoint how the “What do you mean? I am communicating – just do as customer defi nes “value” and creates an environment where the I say,” the other responds. customer actively contributes to the overall goal of providing better language services. Most of us understand the basic theory behind Deciding whom to focus on: communication. One person speaks, the other the ‘80-20 rule’ (or not) listens and then speaks in turn. Simple. But how The fi rst step to creating a customer loyalty strategy is many times have you been involved in a con- to decide which customers to focus on. You have probably M experienced fi rsthand that retaining an existing client is versation where the response takes no account signifi cantly less expensive than gaining a new one. It costs of what you have just fi nished saying? In other fi ve to seven times more to win a new client than to keep an words, how many times has it seemed that the existing one. other person just wasn’t listening? All clients, however, are not created equal. You will certainly want to nurture certain clients more than others, and you may Listening is arguably as important as speaking, if not more even want to “fi re” those clients who drain your resources with important, to make communication effective. This applies not no appreciable gain, such as that one-person communications only to our personal lives but also to our professional lives, fi rm that bombards you with questions, comments and changes where a focused two-way communication can help build to every 200-word press release — unless this is the type of work customer loyalty — essential at a time when translation and you relish. localization are at risk of becoming just commodities. Customer When deciding which clients to focus on, many a customer loyalty can make the difference between continued success and loyalty strategist will look to the Pareto Principle, named after the slow erosion of a company’s client base. Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who in 1906 observed that 80% of the income in Italy was received by 20% of the Italian What is customer loyalty? population. Applied to our business, the 80-20 rule, as it is also Customer loyalty is often confused with satisfaction when, known, suggests that 80% of a company’s sales will come from in fact, a customer can be fully satisfi ed but not necessarily loyal. It is estimated that the average company loses 20% to 40% of its customers every year. These customers are not neces- Emilie Achard is marketing sarily unsatisfi ed, but they may simply be equally satisfi ed with manager of Eurotexte, a competing language service provider (LSP). In all probability, founded in Paris in 1986. they left because the initial company didn’t do what it takes to Joseph Gomes is general make them loyal. manager of Viva Translations, So, how can an LSP make its customers loyal? The solu- Spanish and Portuguese tion lies in creating a customer loyalty strategy that opens up specialists in Lisbon.

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65-67 Achard-Gomes.indd 65 11/1/06 10:05:42 AM Business

20% of its customers — something that These may include lost customers, custom- example, but that the boss wants to see a our companies have uncannily verifi ed ers who have fallen from the top 20%, and 5% discount regardless of the fi nal price. year in and year out. A company whose seriously underperforming customers. You’ll need to have an excellent business objective is increasing overall More importantly, it ignores what we system in place to fi nd out what is most sales would, therefore, focus on these believe to be a basic principle: every cus- important to those customers whom you customers. tomer has the potential to become loyal deem strategic and then to take action. Another way to apply this rule is to to the company. Prospects, new custom- Another key component to maintain- look at profi tability rather than sales ers, old customers, regular customers, ing an environment conducive to loyal as an indicator. In other words, which champions — they all add value to your customers is a loyal staff. Your chances customers provide you with the major- company, and your company can add of building strong customer loyalty are ity of your profi ts, or, if you will, where value to all of them. signifi cantly reduced when the company do you get the biggest bang for your experiences high or constant turnover buck? Some companies identify which — particularly in front-line employees such customers provide them with the highest Prospects, as project managers. Serve your employees margins and then target their customer new customers, so that they can serve your customers. loyalty strategies on them. With the right environment in place Alternatively, marketing goals could old customers, to support your tailored customer loyalty drive your strategy and defi ne those cus- regular customers, strategy, the next thing to do is to identify tomers to focus on. For example, if you which mechanisms are to be used with want to develop translation expertise in a champions — they which “types” of customers — prospects, particular area, say the automotive indus- fi rst-time clients, champions and so on. try, you might choose to concentrate your all add value to your efforts on clients in that vertical. company, and your Feedback — get it, use it However the 80-20 rule is applied, it The underlying goal is not only to dismisses some potentially loyal customers. company can add encourage feedback but also to encour- age complaints. Consider the comment, value to all of them. “Bob and Mary never fi ght. I guess it must be because they never talk.” In an Resources are, of course, limited, effort to maintain a cordial relationship, but this does not mean that a customer they never truly converse. This dynamic loyalty strategy needs to be exclusive. also applies to business where if things It does mean, however, that it needs to are going well, they must be good — why be tailored to the target, with the most rock the boat? time-consuming activities such as client Why? Because while your customers visits reserved for those clients you most might not be complaining to you, they want to grow. may be complaining to somebody else. Bottom line: your strategic goals will Worse, they might not complain but may dictate how to allocate your resources to simply not contact you again. Loyal cus- increase your customers’ loyalty. tomers may overlook something that has gone wrong once, maybe twice. But on Open the floodgates the third occurrence they might not be First and foremost, before opening up so forgiving. You need to know the fi rst bidirectional channels of communication, time something happens so that you can a company needs to create and maintain take corrective action, which in turn can an environment for these mechanisms to serve as an early warning system of what fl ourish and be effective. could go wrong for other customers. ISO 9001 certifi cation goes a long way By offering your customers channels toward creating this environment. At the to voice their opinions — both positive very least, a company aiming to capital- and, more importantly, negative — you ize on a customer loyalty strategy needs are giving them the chance to tell you to incorporate the “process approach” what truly gives them value. inherent to a quality management sys- Customer satisfaction surveys are a tem. Crucial customer feedback must be commonly used method for obtaining a systematically collected and analyzed, customer’s feedback. But how often have and action plans must be executed. Only you asked a customer’s feedback on the a highly structured approach to handling structure, content and so on of the sur- customer feedback will allow you to mine vey itself? Did you make it easy for the it for that all-essential information — that customer to respond — online, via e-mail receiving quotes speedily is most important or other means? Are you asking the right for the assistant of a certain key client, for questions? Before you can begin providing

66 | MultiLingual December 2006 [email protected]

65-67 Achard-Gomes.indd 66 11/1/06 10:06:24 AM Translation Showcase

your customers with value, you need to use all available tools to get them to tell you what that value is. Customer satisfaction surveys typi- cally are conducted on a yearly basis, Europe’s No. 1 possibly twice a year. But what about performing a specifi c survey for fi rst-time Latin America’s Premier Greek Localizer customers? By opening up an avenue for Multilanguage Vendor Since 1986, EuroGreek has been providing high-quality, feedback, not only will you be showing turnkey solutions, encompassing a whole range of client the customer that you care, but you will • Latin America is a regional market of more than needs, for the following language combinations: also be taking the fi rst step to turning an 560 million inhabitants. • English into Greek uncommitted customer into a loyal one. • Brazil accounts for nearly one-third of these • Greek into English With prospects, this loyalty strategy inhabitants. • German into Greek may start further back in the chain. We • How do you communicate effectively with this • French into Greek have designed a prospect satisfaction huge, potential market? survey specifi cally designed to identify All EuroGreek’s work is produced in our Athens The answer is our unparalleled experience and production center and covers most subjects: what needs have not been met by other market leadership in the region. suppliers. As an added bonus, we learn • Technical how each prospect defi nes value. Nearly three decades of top-quality technical • Medical/Pharmaceutical Besides having a well-designed survey translation and localization in Brazilian Portuguese, • IT/Telecommunications methodology in place, another important Spanish and some 30 other languages. • Economics/Legal step is to make it easy for all prospects and Let All Tasks handle your global translation and All EuroGreek’s work is fully guaranteed for quality customers to “speak” with you directly. localization requirements. and on-time delivery. Provide them with toll-free numbers. Give regular customers a direct line to their All Tasks Traduções Técnicas EuroGreek Translations Limited single point of contact. Use every oppor- Rua Dona Teresa Margarida, 56 EuroGreek House, 93 Karagiorga Street tunity to communicate, being careful not São Paulo – SP 04037-040, Brazil Athens 16675, Greece to overdo it or send information that is 55-11-5908-8300 • Fax: 55-11-5908-8308 30-210-9605-244 • Fax: 30-210-9647-077 perceived by the customer as spam. [email protected] • www.alltasks.com.br [email protected] • www.eurogreek.com User groups, for example, are a popu- lar concept in the information technology industry, where software users share their experiences, issues and resolutions. They The Tool also give valuable input to the software company, thereby allowing them to You Reach For enhance their products and services to better meet the needs of their clients. Why More Often not extend this mechanism to LSPs? Regu- ISO 9001:2000-certifi ed lar translation and localization customers • LogiTerm is offered in various versions at very (“users”) could be invited to exchange Translation Services affordable prices. Powerful search functions, a information and experiences. These could be regular, topic-independent sessions, or Idem Translations, Inc., is a full-service translation/ very robust alignment tool and very handy data they could be ad hoc and content specifi c. localization company, specializing in the life sciences, conversion and deformatting tools. We recently invited some of our regu- legal and IT industries since 1983. Our expert • LogiTrans has been designed to answer the lar customers to share with us and their translation teams combine linguistic excellence with question you may often ask yourself: “Haven’t I strong backgrounds in a variety of fields. We maintain peers their ideas on how they perceive seen this already somewhere?” It allows you to customer “self-service.” Not only did the specialized client glossaries and memory databases to participants share best practices among ensure consistent terminology. Our ISO 9001:2000- obtain even more added value from your bitext themselves, but we also learned how we certified translation and quality processes guarantee and full-text documents. could help customers help themselves. a service that meets the highest industry standards. • LogiTermWeb — A fast and easy way to ensure These initiatives help foster customer We offer a unique combination of industry-specific consistent terminology and phraseology experience, knowledgeable translation teams and “champions” by bringing loyal custom- throughout your organization. ers together with less-loyal customers as friendly, client-oriented service. • TransSearch — A web-based bilingual concordancer. well as creating a win-win situation in which they learn from each other and we Idem Translations, Inc. learn from them. The bonus? We main- 550 California Avenue, Suite 310 Terminotix Inc. tain — and retain — loyal customers and Palo Alto, CA 94306 240 Bank Street, Suite 600 promote others to become more loyal. 650-858-4336 • Fax: 650-858-4339 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K2P 1X4 After all, we all feel good when we [email protected] 613-233-8465 • Fax: 613-233-3995 are listened to. M www.idemtranslations.com [email protected] • www.terminotix.com

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65-67 Achard-Gomes.indd 67 11/1/06 10:07:16 AM Announcing Alchemy CATALYST 6.0 Total Visual Localization

Visual HTML Localize almost any HTML document using a visual translation, testing and engineering environment.

Total TRADOS Integration Work seamlessly with TRADOS Desktop Total Microsoft .NET Solution and Enterprise technologies and share Localize, engineer and test all your Microsoft .NET your translations effortlessly. (1.x/2.0) applications, including ASP pages in a true WYSIWYG environment.

With over 120 new features inside Alchemy CATALYST 6.0, it’s With over 12,000 licenses shipped and chosen by industry-leading impossible to list all the finer points of our total visual localization technology partners such as Siemens and Business Objects for its solution. high-productivity and visual localization solutions, Alchemy Software Development is a trusted software vendor. More Features. More Productivity. More Flexibility. Find out more. Visit our web site for free online demonstrations, Providing complete control of your localization process, Alchemy tutorials and evaluation software at www.AlchemySoftware.ie. CATALYST 6.0 is an ideal solution for developers seeking efficient integration of their localization process with their product development To buy now, call +1-503-362-9372 (Europe:+353-1-708 2808), visit our life cycle. online store at http://www.alchemysoftware.ie/products, or contact your local reseller. Alchemy CATALYST 6.0 is a reliable, scalable and secure technology (C) 2005 Alchemy Software Development Ltd. All rights reserved. Alchemy Software Development that is an excellent starting point for developers who need a total visual and Alchemy CATALYST are trademarks or registered trademarks of Alchemy Software Development Ltd. All other trademarks or registered trademarks referenced are the property of localization platform that can grow with the demands of their business. their respective owners.

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Alchemy Software Development has its headquarters at Block 2, Harcourt Business Center, Harcourt Street, Dublin 2, Ireland

68 Alchemy #84.indd 68 11/1/06 10:08:38 AM Business Managing change across cultures Erik Granered

Change management is commonly applied in and a fourth characteristic later added by Fred Nickols in Change situations such as mergers, acquisitions or deep Management 101 (2002) and aligned them with Hofstede’s four culture dimensions, creating some valuable insights. The Bennis- shifts in organizational strategy. True change Benne-Chin book is a classic on the topic, and the basic idea is initiatives involve often radical changes in per- that you select the most suitable change management strategy C based on the nature of your target population. The alignment of sonnel, organizational realignment and sweeping process changes. The localization and translation cultural dimensions and the people characteristics can be seen in Table 1. community is impacted and involved in such times of change in a very relevant way. This arti- Hofstede Bennis, Benne, Chin and Nickols cle argues that it is in the interest of global orga- Cultural dimension People characteristic Change strategy nizations to question some conventional change Individualism (individual Empirical- People are rational management assumptions and adapt change style / group style) Rational Power distance management strategies to local settings. Normative- (hierarchical style / People are compliant Re-educative Much of our understanding of how cultures differ comes participative style) from the Dutch researcher and author Geert Hofstede. Some go Certainty (structure as far as saying that he is to cross-cultural studies as Freud is to orientation / risk People are adaptable Power-Coercive the fi eld of psychology because even those who disagree with orientation) his fi ndings have to recognize his framework and construct. Masculinity (task Environmental- Hofstede administered more than 100,000 questionnaires to IBM orientation / relationship People are social Adaptive employees in 50 countries. This data led to ground-breaking books. orientation) First was Culture’s Consequences in 1980, which was updated in a Table 1: Cultural dimensions and people characteristics. second edition that included references to an additional 200 stud- ies that validated and updated his initial work. A more accessible It is not that the fi ndings of these change management experts version was the popular Cultures and Organizations, Software for were wrong. They are not, but culture-specifi c assumptions asso- the Mind: Intercultural Cooperation and its Importance for Sur- ciated with conventional change management theory are exposed vival, now available in its recently published and expanded second when you apply them in a variety of countries/cultures. edition. Hofstede initially examined a country’s cultures along Please recognize that we are examining these tendencies in four dimensions: individualism, power distance, certainty, and terms of country culture. There is also a different thing called masculinity. Hofstede’s fi ndings are rich with insights into human organizational culture. Organizational cultures refl ect the cultural behavior and his works have been cited widely. values of the important people One such citation came from John Bing and in the development and growth Catherine Bing in the appendix of a 2004 article of the organization. Global they published in the Academy of Management Erik Granered is a consultant organizations often develop Executive. In it, they took the three people char- with ITAP International, a patchworks of organizational acteristics developed by change management company that focuses on the tendencies in their various experts Warren G. Bennis, Kenneth D. Benne and cross-cultural aspects of locations and business units. If Robert Chin in The Planning of Change (1985) organizational effectiveness. you take a job at Microsoft or

www.multilingual.com December 2006 MultiLingual | 69

69-72 Granered #84.indd 69 11/1/06 10:09:43 AM Business

Siemens, you will learn to adapt and behave in ways appropriate Bing and Bing present the matrix in Table 2 as helpful, for fi tting in there, but at the core you retain your basic values. practical advice in appealing to individual-oriented and group- In managing change framed within the organizational culture, oriented cultures. we are reaching for buy-in from individuals — true buy-in that is Here is an example of individual versus group styles: congruent with the employees’ basic values. This buy-in happens Two large steel companies, one in the United States and one on the individual level. Managing change will not change deeply in South Korea, have agreed to merge. The merger appears to be held personal values collectively, but we can change individual a brilliant move because their specialties do not overlap, meaning behavior and even the traits of an organization by appealing to they can share know-how and gain new reach into important individual values. markets on both continents. Initial press releases have gone out, An example might clarify. Training is often an important com- and, judging by the stock value, the move has been embraced ponent of implementing change. But training someone who is not by the market. But the initial excitement is not shared among convinced that it is in his or her interest to learn is a waste of time employees in either the United States or South Korea. Some ini- for the individual, the class and the facilitator. No basic values tial working-level meetings were not productive, and there are change because a program or the behavior changes being taught unfounded rumors that some functional mergers could lead to there are required. So before you put employees in class, you want downsizing. Executives in the United States call for a worldwide participants to want the class/information/behavior change. With “town meeting” using video conferencing. Employees in both that in mind, let’s explore the four Hofstede cultural dimensions/ countries are asked to submit questions in advance via e-mail characteristics in detail. so the questions can be pooled CHANGE - How do you handle CHANGE - How do you handle and addressed during the meet- Individualism those with a preference those with a preference ing. The meeting is held, and Country/cultural groups vary for individual style? for group style? nobody seems to pay attention in terms of individual versus to the fact that nearly all the Focus on how change is good for group priorities. In Hofstede’s the group (appeal to the questions came from US work- research, the United States, Aus- Focus on how the change is good common interest). ers. Also, the atmosphere only tralia and the United Kingdom for them (appeal to their Allow the group to formulate improves in the United States. rank high on the individualism self-interest). and ask questions. It gets worse in South Korea. continuum. So do several other Allow individuals to formulate Allow the group to consult with What happened here? The European countries such as the and ask questions. each other and spend time working US scores at the very top of Scandinavian countries, France, out their responses, questions, and the individualism scale. The The Netherlands and Italy. Indi- concerns. problem was not the format of vidual achievement tends to Table 2: Change and individual-oriented and group-oriented cultures. the town meeting. The problem be important in these cultures. happened in soliciting ques- An individual can belong to many social, familial and profes- tions to individuals via e-mail because South Korea scores very sional groups and move in and out and among these groups with much in the direction of group orientation. They might have relatively few barriers. Contrast this, for example, with several done much better pooling their questions through small team Central and South American countries that tend more toward meetings or something similar. In the end, their concerns were the group style. Members of these cultures place strong emphasis never addressed. Of course, this merger will not be saved by tak- on group input in evaluating situations and making decisions. ing one simple measure like that. Inclusion in a particular group is often more likely to be assigned — as in being born in a particular family or village — rather than Power distance earned as is sometimes the case in individualistic countries. This Hofstede dimension which deals with how cultures deal Bennis, Benne and Chin wrote about people in general being with inequality is easy to appreciate on a conceptual level. In rational: “People are rational and will follow their self-interest some cultures, organizations tend to have steeper organiza- — once it is revealed to them. Change is based on communica- tional charts, and in other cultures, workers tend to be more tion of information and the proffering of incentives.” comfortable with fl atter participative structures. There are a It should be fairly obvious how important the context of few important points that members of each side of these styles individual and group cultural styles is to change. Those with a should understand about each other. preference for individualism respond to that which is in their First, employees with a preference for a hierarchical style “self-interest,” but this is not a universally uniform variable. A are not oppressed in unfair and unproductive situations, though person whose self-interest is fundamentally different from mine this could certainly be the case in any organization. Instead, might even appear irrational to me as my proffering goes unno- employees with a preference for high power distance expect ticed (proffering means to offer acceptance). When you translate strong leadership, clear directions and rely on their managers to messages related to change, are you really “revealing” the moti- understand their roles in conducting business. vation for change, as Bennis, Benne and Chin write? Revealing Likewise, democratic and participative organizations are not sounds too much like a prescriptive, top-down activity, as in chaotic places where all people do is go to meetings and noth- “I will uncover for you what you were not able to see before.” ing gets done, although to someone with a preference for a Rather, communications experts often use the word evoke to point more hierarchical style it might appear that nothing gets done. to the fact that individuals interpret messages based on their own Instead, there is a common belief that gaining input and buy-in web of beliefs, which is why it is so essential for the translator to from all participants leads to both better decisions and execu- understand the values and culture target audience. tion after decisions are made.

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69-72 Granered #84.indd 70 11/1/06 10:10:27 AM Business

Last, it is not easy to make general- regions. After analyzing the situation, it our expectations and how we deal with izations such as “all Latino cultures are is determined that a new sales strategy change among cultural groups. hierarchical” because this is just not employed in the Scandinavian region is If a culture is generally more anxious the case. For example, Guatemala is the answer to the situation. The com- about the future or is structure-oriented, one of the most hierarchical countries pany puts together a worldwide training this will impact how members of this in Hofstede’s studies, while Costa Rica program and assembles a SWAT team of culture live and work. For example, is relatively participative. Again, when three Swedish sales executives who are employees in structure-oriented cultures looking at Asian cultures, Malaysia is to tour the world to train all sales repre- tend to have preference for longer-term the most hierarchical, while Japan, Tai- sentatives. As the months go by, analysis employment with one company. wan and South Korea are more toward shows that the program is working great In Hofstede’s research, Greece ranks as the participative side of the continuum. in some markets and not at all in oth- a very structure-oriented culture. Greece European cultures vary as well. ers. The issue is passed to some senior has strong unwritten rules about what Knowing this, it is extra important to organizational development consultants constitutes appropriate and inappropriate assess individuals and even departmental in the company for analysis. Their fi nd- behavior regarding family relations. The tendencies inside organizations when ing is that the training program needed divorce rate in Greece is 18% compared to adjusting change management 64% in Sweden, which is a more approaches. Our change man- risk-oriented culture. Sweden has CHANGE - How do you handle CHANGE - How do you handle agement experts — Bennis, those with a preference for high those with a preference for low fl exible written laws about what Benne and Chin — say, “People power distance / hierarchical power distance / participative constitutes a family, including are basically compliant and style? style? gay marriage. will generally do what they are About people’s ability to adapt told or can be made to do. Use infl uencing skills. to new situations, Nickols says, Change is based on the exercise Use senior staff to make Include them in a discussion; “People oppose loss and disrup- of authority and the imposition announcements and to explain your (or the tion, but they adapt readily to new of sanctions.” communicate change. company’s) position. circumstances. Change is based on When implementing change Use legitimate power to Allow for questions and building a new organization and across cultures, this statement exercise authority. challenges. gradually transferring people from is loaded with exceptions. For Tell subordinates what to do Provide a forum where they the old one to the new one.” example, a team member in differently (do not leave it to them can be involved in discussion/ This statement is generally a participative culture might to fi gure out how to do things framing how things will be true because change is disruptive deeply resent being told what differently). different (work processes during even in risk-oriented cultures. So, the interim) after you provide to do and even worse if being the what. it is important to consider how made to do something through the transfer is carried out. Bing negative reinforcement. If a Table 3: Change and hierarchical and participative styles. and Bing provide pointers on person from a hierarchical implementing change in struc- culture that is also a group-style culture re-design. As it was created, it involved ture-oriented and risk-oriented cultures (Mexico, for example) is being told what only collaborative exercises with exten- (Table 4). to do by a higher-level manager from sive question-and-answer sessions and another country/culture, you might be almost no clear directions. Also, while Masculinity putting that person in a very uncom- the friendly Swedish “SWAT team” Masculinity deals with the extent to fortable situation. While this employee was well received in places such as the which it is accepted that tasks and respon- understands the realities of rank, he United States, the United Kingdom and sibilities that are conventionally associated or she might fi nd it nearly impossible Germany, which are relatively participa- with one gender can also be performed by to move ahead without fi rst allowing tive, they were largely ignored in places the other. Extreme examples are Japan, a the local group/team and manager to such as France, which is more hierarchi- masculine culture where women are rarely also have input in the situation, pos- cal. In France, the “SWAT team” is now seen in corporate leadership positions, sibly creating delays and confl ict. In referred to as les trois souris blanches and The Netherlands, a feminine country both these examples, you might have (the three white mice), generating roar- where it is common to see male nurses. achieved your immediate objective of ing laughter. It deals with social beliefs and attitudes getting a person to do something, but regarding social gender roles and behav- you could have caused a lot of damage Certainty iors, but also with broad acceptance of in the process. The certainty dimension is defi ned basic behavior. Assertiveness and ambi- Bing and Bing summarize some strate- as the extent to which the members of a tion can be said to be masculine traits, gies for adapting change initiatives across culture feel threatened by ambiguous or so if you are trying to implement change hierarchical and participative cultures in unknown situations. Change can create by assertively appealing to ambition in Table 3. much ambiguity, and our expectations Norway, you might have a lower chance Here is an example for hierarchical regarding change and how we deal with of success. Norwegians are less used to versus participative styles: change vary a great deal. This is true from assertive confrontation than Americans, A global fi nancial service company individual to individual, and it is also for example, meaning that kind of behav- is experiencing sluggish sales in several true that there are tendencies regarding ior will be perceived very negatively.

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CHANGE - How do you handle those with a preference CHANGE - How do you handle those with a for certainty / structure orientation? preference for risk orientation?

Provide specifi c rules/structures/interim structures. Reward creative behavior that moves the group/division/company Recognize their need for information. Have available lots of toward the end even if it was “outside the box.” supporting data and even theory, if appropriate. Use a logical fl ow Focus on the process of learning as the employees move toward the to your interactions. outcome. Provide them with examples of others who have used the approach Share information and open many communication forums. successfully. Provide them with an outline of information for them to use in Provide them with a cost analysis to help them see the cost-benefi t decision-making. A return-on-investment scenario would go a comparison. long way to helping them make a quick decision. They may not Share what they need to know. need to know how it is going to work as long as the numbers Use channels. make sense. Focus on compliance with procedures and policies. There is less need to prove others have tried an approach and that it works, although a case study couldn’t hurt — but provide it in bullets. Start with the bottom line, then build your case around their questions. Challenge and question “the way things are done.”

Table 4: Implementing change in structure-oriented and risk-oriented cultures. CHANGE - How do you handle those with a preference CHANGE - How do you handle those with a preference for task orientation? for relationship orientation? Stress and reward performance and results. Stress interdependence. Expect that work takes precedence over family life. Focus on continued service to the internal and external customer. Remember their focus is “Live to work.” Remember these clients are more likely to “Work to live” — stress how Show drive or ambition for completion of tasks and meeting of the changes improve quality of life. Stress solidarity and service. deadlines. Remember these employees have a family life — take this into Communicate and respond with a sense of urgency. account. Deliver what is promised, when you promise, and give 20% more Emphasize humility and modesty in your approach. than you promised. Resolve confl icts by compromise and negotiation. A good manager should be decisive. A good manager should be intuitive.

Table 5: Change and task orientation and relationship orientation.

Let’s see what Bennis, Benne and Chin say about human As you read these suggestions for change strategies in Table social nature and change: “People are social beings and will 5, note particularly the task priority in masculine cultures and adhere to cultural norms and values. Change is based on the relationship priority in feminine cultures. redefi ning and reinterpreting existing norms and values, and developing commitments to new ones.” Conclusion As noted earlier, Hofstede would argue that setting a goal Organizations apply change-management techniques to imple- of changing an employee’s personal values is a tall order. ment new and usually important business strategies. In doing so, Selecting change-management strategies that are appropriate they will be more effective when using change management strate- for existing norms and values might be more effective. Resolv- gies suitable to local country cultures. Organizations that venture ing confl ict, which is important because change can involve down this path can expect to be themselves transformed in the pro- a lot of turmoil, is carried out differently in various cultures. cess. There is a wonderful irony in global organizations changing Feminine cultures tend to prefer compromise, and many mas- though the infl uence of the people they are trying to change. M culine cultures are comfortable engaging in a heated debate and forceful tactics to resolve issues. To extend this point in Notes a slightly different direction, if your change initiative is to Bennis, Warren G., Kenneth D. Benne, and Robert Chin, eds. The create a corporate culture that is more fl exible and innovative, Planning of Change. 4th ed. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1985. yelling and screaming at your Dutch colleague will cause him Bing, John, and Catherine Bing. “Hofstede’s consequences: The or her to withdraw and possibly even to retaliate by with- impact of his work on consulting and business practices.” Academy holding creative ideas. In the earlier example, the Swedish of Management Executive, February 2004, Vol. 18, No. 1. Available at SWAT team and the French sales representatives involved an www.itapintl.com/hofstedesconsequences.htm element of the masculinity dimension because learning styles Hofstede, Geert, and Gert Jan Hofstede. Cultures and Organizations, differ from feminine to masculine. French learners want to see Software for the Mind: Intercultural Cooperation and its Importance for intellectual precision, articulate expression and wit in their Survival. 2nd ed. McGraw Hill, 2005. instructors, and they found it diffi cult to take their Swedish Nickols, Fred. Change Management 101. http://home.att.net/ colleagues’ peer approach seriously. ~nickols/change.htm. January 2002.

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69-72 Granered #84.indd 72 11/1/06 10:11:37 AM Business Controlling the workflow in translation projects István Lengyel

The concept of workfl ow in translation re- workfl ow innovation and also provides a way to communicate mained hidden until there was enough time to effectively, thereby improving workfl ow implementation. deal with localization, and technology did not al- In this article I will focus on issues related to systematic low complexity. It was always there, but recently workfl ow planning, providing hands-on advice to workfl ow T planners to make projects run smoothly. When using you, I am it has stepped out from the background and has addressing workfl ow planners who may be project managers become the hottest issue ever. (usually senior project managers) at both LSPs and their clients, technology evangelists, C-level executives, or — on a less formal Workflow — the source of innovation level — even terminologists and translators. Please note that no More than a decade ago technology crawled into the calm workfl ow works without feedback, and continuous improvement waters of language services. Translators and language service is necessary to fi ne-tune the workfl ow and actually save more on providers (LSPs) had to meet the challenge of different fi le for- the better organization of projects. mats and a few technology-related constraints such as string length and the lack of context. At the same time, the competition Identify the scope of your projects of transnational enterprises and the increasing need for localized Lucky are the jigsaw puzzle manufacturers! They are the only products urged the speeding up of global shipment in a num- people on earth who can take the big picture and chop it up into ber of cultural contexts. This made it clear that innovation was modules. This top-down approach hardly ever works when you required in the language industry as well. enter the world of localization. Rarely does a single person possess all the knowledge Whatever your role at any of the organizations involved, fi rst required to perform a translation/localization project. What’s you need to identify the scope of the project and the project stake- more, the scope of projects has also increased. On the LSP holders. The scope of the project is usually related to your scope side, a single project is not only the translation of three docu- and responsibilities in the organization. If the organizational chart ments but preparation of the text, translation, quality assur- shows that technical writing is completely separated from transla- ance, typesetting and so on. On the enterprise side, things tion/localization, you are very likely to face opposition when you have become even more complex. Projects may also include try to provide international writing guidelines. As a rule of thumb, authoring, meaningful data storage/recycling and feedback the bigger the scope of your project, the more chances you have to mechanisms. Simply put, only those organizations prevail that save — and the more you can lose if you don’t make smart moves. learn constantly. The translation of an application’s help fi le is not as complex It is now clear that localization is a multiplayer game, and as the full localization of a product, yet there is also less room this calls upon the formalization of localization workfl ows. For- for saving. Effi cient communication may help in expanding the malization provides a way to think systematically; thus, it fosters scope of the project. Fortunately, if you are an effi cient task communicator, you are likely to be a good project manager, so you are likely to expand the project only at a point where you are already able to manage the expanded project. István Lengyel is COO at Kilgray and one of the architects behind MemoQ. A former consultant, Create the units of workflow he also has experience in localization business The world of computing came up with a concept to solve process reengineering. organizational problems: object-oriented programming. You can

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create “objects” that are standard build- nature and structure of the building for the translators to discuss terminology ing blocks and “instantiate” those objects blocks — just make sure that you have or anything else. Then you need to send when required. Then the object code will all your activities covered. I will return the book out to typesetting and then run with the specifi ed input data and give to this subject later. — maybe after a spelling review — to the you whatever you need — so the abstract However, suppose that you take a printing press. It is not so hard to imag- will become practical. If you want to be rather simple workfl ow model of trans- ine this, but it is much harder to make a successful in workfl ow management, you lating a book: you have pictures, you workfl ow chart of it. Figure 1 shows this can borrow this concept and create build- have a long text, and you need to use a “simple” workfl ow. ing blocks that you can use to shape any number of translators because time does workfl ow model. not permit a single translator to do the Establish building One relatively simple (yet often mut- entire job. Consistency is at stake, so you block properties ating) building block can be translation need to prepare the text. You may employ The workfl ow that I have just outlined — taking the source text(s), the refer- a terminologist and/or a term extraction does not show all aspects of the building ence text(s), the source and reference tool, or you may simply extract some blocks. It is very important to note again translation memories (TMs), the source items based on the style. Screen captions that you need to specify the input materi- and reference term bases, the style are usually distinguished with a separate als and the required output. Just imagine guide and the translation brief as the desktop publishing style and so are the that you delegate your job as a project input, and giving the target text(s) and table of contents entries. You can almost manager to someone else and the person the newly created TM and TB entries take it for granted that terms will be forgets to send out the terminology or the and the translator’s comments as the missing, so you need to ensure that there reference materials to one of the transla- output. Maybe you don’t even need is a review after the translation, and tors. This little mismanagement can result the TM entries because you only add to minimize the cost of reviewing (just in increased review time/cost. After all, if the entries to the TM once they were reading the text takes less time than cor- you go beyond the traditional cascading proofread, or maybe you also include recting the text, and now I suppose that workfl ow — fi rst you prepare the project, the project settings among the inputs. the review is paid by the hour) you may wait until it ends, then you do something It’s entirely up to you to decide on the need to ensure communication channels else, wait until it ends, then you do some- thing different, wait and so on — you do that to save time and try to avoid extra costs. But a poorly planned workfl ow can actually slow down the whole project and increase the project cost, both due to the increased review. Once you know the input and the out- put of the building block, you need to specify a group who can perform the task. Make sure that you don’t have bottle- necks, and if you fi nd that one task can only be performed by a few people, train more people to perform that task if it’s a common one. Often it’s enough to write a document describing how to accomplish the task. It is also important to specify a contact point for the person(s) who will in the end perform the task, as communica- tion is of key importance. If the performer fails, the contact person can quickly fi nd a replacement or give some help. The contact point can be you or your appoin- tee, but make sure that the contact point keeps in touch with you too. As your French-Portuguese trans- lator is not likely to do a good job in translating from Chinese to Kurdish, you usually need to refi ne your building blocks and say that a building block is not “translation,” it is “Chinese-Kurdish translation.” You may also add special- ization. For this building block you can easily specify the group who can perform the task, and the group will consist of

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73-78 Lengyel.indd 74 11/1/06 10:13:28 AM Business

your Chinese-Kurdish translators. If you don’t offer this language pair directly and use a pivot language, then your workfl ow will use two building blocks — Chinese-English and English-Kurdish — instead of one. Other building blocks can include the semi- automatic quality assurance process, which may or may not require language-specifi c knowledge, despite the fact you are dealing with language. People are not machines, and you will never reach the six sigma in translation projects. Even if you prescribe some input, the input may be missing. To prevent confusion arising from such situations, you need to think about a mechanism to handle missing input. What can you do if your terminologist does not deliver on time and the translation has to start? What can you do if your client does not provide reference materials or a TM you expected him or her to provide? Provide a way to define the granularity of the workflow What’s really good about using building blocks is their abil- ity to be embedded into other building blocks. Your manager needs to see only the big picture, and maybe professional review does not have to be separated from translation. Then you can take the building block “delivery of correct translation” and embed “transla- tion” and “professional review” into them. It is easy to fi nd out what the input and the output for the big building block will be: take all inputs of the embedded tasks and keep only those that are not a result of the output of other embedded tasks, and take all outputs as output. So if “translation” required 1) source document and 2) terminology, and the output was a) target document and b) TM; and the “professional review” required 1) target document, 2) terminology and 3) reference materials, and the output was a) reviewed target document and b) reviewed TM, then the inputs Figure 1: A possible workfl ow for translating of “delivery of correct translation” will be 1) source document, an IT manual. Each of the steps in this sche- 2) terminology and 3) reference materials, and the output will be matic is detailed in following illustrations. a) target document, b) reviewed target document, c) TM and d) The detail schematics on the next pages show reviewed TM. The target document is generated during “transla- the input (left side), output (right), reference tion,” which is included in the “delivery of correct translation.” materials (above) and the human or automatic Using this method, it is possible to achieve any degree of processor (below) the step. Each resource is granularity. This simplifi es communication because those who assigned a unique identifi er at the time of creation for later reference in the workfl ow. are not involved in certain small tasks can also see the big picture immediately and see how they fi t into that. Drawing a detailed workfl ow chart is usually too complex, and it also requires much effort to interpret it. return on investment any translation tool can offer you; thus, it’s better to think about tools supporting your workfl ow rather than Think about the costs of your proposed workflow to base your workfl ow on your existing tools. Building blocks are always connected, and together they give the total workfl ow. I intentionally avoided talking about costs Identify relationships in your workflow before because it is not always easy to estimate costs from the If you take a look at the workfl ow in Figure 1, you see that costs of the building blocks. If translation is charged by the word, tasks happening at the same time are aligned horizontally and line or character, there is no problem with that. But the sequence tasks carried out in sequence are aligned vertically. It’s no surprise of building blocks and the impact of one on the other can really that time is an important factor when creating your workfl ow. To infl uence how much you will actually pay for the individual tasks. save time, however, you usually need to involve more people. The So, instead of giving precise estimates, you should just give some alternatives are automation and workfl ow reengineering, which hint on the costs when designing the building blocks. The cost you are not the same. As Michael Hammer wrote in the Harvard Busi- need to quantify is the total workfl ow cost (TWC), and if you want ness Review in 1990, “Don’t automate, obliterate!” To keep the to calculate how much you save on sound workfl ow management, project consistent, people usually need to communicate, and bad you should compare the actual TWC to a brute-force cascading communication also has costs. So, you should always keep the TWC. You will probably fi nd that this return highly exceeds the number of people working at the same time as low as possible.

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Workfl ow Step (WS) 0: Source document acceptance WS 0 - 5.1: Translation brief compilation

WS 1: File conversion WS0 - 5.2: „ MS Word Screenshot localization

WS 1 - 5: Package creation

WS 2: File conversion „ Single TXT

WS 3 & 4: Term extraction/ WS 5: Manual Termbase creation termbase cleanup

The model on page 75 is simplifi ed because: to supply this information. If there is a building block that does Q It does not contain conditional branching, that is, anything not receive the input, it usually means that you forgot about one such as “IF the result is XY in this task, THEN do this, ELSE do or more tasks in the workfl ow. So if a building block requires the that.” In the workfl ow of a job this is not usual, but if you plan target-language document as an input and if there is no building abstract processes for the long run, you may easily require such block with the target-language document as an output in the relationships. workfl ow preceding this building block, the workfl ow is probably Q It does not show fallback — what to do if task XY simply not good. fails. Fallback planning is crucial in the case of mission-critical Is there any overlapping in the workfl ow? Don’t waste your projects because the failure of a task is almost always due to time money — eliminate the overlaps. For example, if you created the constraints in localization. terminology while preparing the project, don’t let the professional Q It only shows a limited amount of feedback. Feedback reviewer re-create the terminology from scratch. is very important because it is the best way to improve your What tasks have an impact over other tasks? It is obvious that processes, and building a knowledge base makes communication those tasks that provide the output that will be the input for a better. Turn your organization into a learning organization with later task have an impact on the later task. What is less obvious effi cient feedback handling. is the horizontal impact: is there a task that runs simultaneously Conduct a few systematic checks before starting the project and has an impact over another task? If you localize a big IT and ask a few questions. Before you start the workfl ow, make project, you cannot fi nish the translation of the user manual until sure that you perform the necessary checks: the translation of the user interface ends, unless you include the Do all tasks get the necessary information from previous tasks? building block of “unifi cation.” If one person is reviewing the All building blocks have inputs that can come from the outside localized version of the packaging and another is reviewing the world or from the output of another task. Make sure you are able manual, they should communicate to ensure consistency.

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WS 6 - 8: WS 6: Screenshot QA Terminology and translation brief QA

WS 7.n: Translation EN - HU WS 10: Typesetting

WS 8.n: Peer review EN - HU WS 11: QA Review

WS 9: Proofreading EN - HU WS 12: Delivery to Printer

yet sometimes it is necessary. When you change the workfl ow, you should notify the participants. You should plan ahead. If What tasks can you omit or delay? If you can omit a task, it is your client asks you to stop working, sends new fi les and asks usually a good idea to eliminate it. However, sometimes you plan you to compare them against the old fi les and translate only for the long run and create materials that will save you money the changes, you need to notify all participants in time. If you later. You can usually omit real terminology work — classifi ca- realize only when the translators are already translating that you tion and so on — but it yields benefi t in the medium run. If you would need to extract all the screen captions and put them into a can delay a task, you will have to worry about it less. termbase to prevent too much unifi cation work later, make sure Did you set deadlines for every task? At least two types of that you can communicate this to them and say whether they deadlines are worth setting: planning deadlines and perfor- need to change retrospectively or you will do the job because it mance deadlines. A planning deadline is the deadline for hav- is your fault. ing all the task participants contracted, purchase orders ready How do you handle feedback and forward communication? and so on, whereas a performance deadline is the time when the Feedback is important because it helps you avoid confusion in task should be fi nished at the latest. You can also set a brief- later tasks and maybe also in later projects. You should have a ing deadline by which time all information is sent to the task policy whether you handle a certain type of feedback on the proj- participants, but if you can, use for briefi ng the same deadline ect level or on the corporate knowledge base level and whom you as for planning. notify about the feedback. If a translator fi nds out that a phrase There are also a certain number of questions to ask. is culturally inappropriate and this is confi rmed, you should for- How do you communicate a change in the workfl ow? Changing ward the information to everyone who may be interested. Good the workfl ow isn’t the best — and the most cost-effi cient — thing, communication can prevent marketing disasters, too.

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How do you ensure consistency? You can ensure consistency Q e-mail communication is hard to publish — you can easily by these methods: a corporate knowledge base — a repository search for your own e-mails, but others can’t do so easily; and of earlier communication and knowledge; preparation — prepar- Q e-mail takes time to write and you may need to wait a long ing the project by including a preparation task; communication time for the answer. Many people feel that sending an e-mail — ensuring that all project participants can exchange informa- without salutation and signature is rude, especially if you are tion with each other and they actually do exchange information; business partners, and that they need to be polite. Also, if there is and correction — post-editing the project by including a new an urgent issue to solve, it’s not easy to know whom to send the task. The time and the cost required increase from the former to e-mail — to the project manager who might be at home with his the latter. or her children or to everyone involved, thereby creating a kind How do you share resources and formalize communication? of project spam. Translation tools such as TM servers can help a lot, yet most of Forums and instant messaging provide a more appropri- them have some drawbacks. First, resource management (such as ate means of communication, but it is not so easy to set up a terminology management or the maintenance of TM databases) forum and it is not so easy to persuade people to use a forum, also has a workfl ow — let’s call it a sub-workfl ow — especially especially if they need to log in every time. In addition, it is when you are working for an enterprise, and most of the tools out hard to move the forum messages to another forum or a search- there don’t support resource workfl ows such as term approval. In able corporate knowledge base. That’s why it is worth using a addition, only two tools on the market can handle communica- translation resource server that has a built-in communication tion from within the tool, creating a knowledge base for you. module. Make sure that you don’t entirely build upon tools. Choose the tools according to your needs. Consider sub-workflows How do you provide support to workfl ow participants? It’s a To add even more complexity, a few tasks such as terminol- team game, so make sure you don’t leave others in trouble. You ogy management may span several other tasks. The terminology always have experts and people with less knowledge for every workfl ow is special because different aspects of terminology can task. You can reduce your workload if you allow them to provide be treated at different stages in the workfl ow. Terminology is cre- support to one another. It may be good to have a task expert for ated via mono- or bilingual term extraction, performed manually every task. The feeling of belonging to a community can also or supported by computer tools. Terms are almost always added increase motivation — something that people hardly talk about in during translation, and this is the time when the quickest response the case of translation. is required on behalf of the terminologist. During review, some How do you provide guidance on what to consider an issue? term suggestions are replaced with others, some terms are simply It’s not so easy to determine what an issue is. How do you discarded, and some new terms may be added. Classifi cation is know what to consider a term? How do you make sure that important, but it can also be performed after translation because your language-specifi c solution for a user-interface string does it yields the most benefi ts during content creation and corporate not confl ict with solutions for other languages? In some lan- communication. guages, suffi xes in some cases are almost a must, yet sometimes To translate this into technical language, some parts of the localization requires that you avoid suffi xes. How does your TBX/OLIF/CSV entry may remain blank during translation and translator know what to choose: the stylistically rough, local- be added later. During content creation, however, these parts add ization-wise correct version or the stylistically fi ne, technically the most value, thus enabling navigation. Tools should not only hard-to-implement version? be able to handle terminology — the way current terminology management tools do — but they should also enable management Think about communication of the terminology workfl ow. as a translation resource As some of these questions demonstrate, effi cient communi- Think about automating the workflow cation is a key element in ensuring a successful workfl ow. Don’t As you can see, effective workfl ow planning involves a lot think about verbose descriptions here — just the right questions of thinking. Once you draft your basic workfl ow, you can build asked at the right points and the right instructions given. Every upon it, modifying existing workfl ows for the sake of individual workfl ow participant needs to know what to communicate and projects. when to communicate it. Communication has to be quick and You have your processes, and you should choose the tools that effi cient because sometimes the lack of knowledge blocks you in facilitate your processes, not tools that create processes for you. your work or creates extra things to do. It is a good idea to archive Processes should be tailored to the needs of your organization, communication and to make it available for search because other and you should be in control. co-workers often already have the information that newbies are You have full control over the workfl ow if you know at all asking for, and enabling them to access your knowledge base points what’s happening. Always keep in mind that control over saves you work and ensures prompt response. It’s a kind of FAQ your workfl ow saves you much more than any tool you might that you don’t need to edit. decide to implement. If your translation environment does not have a communica- Before investing in a tool, examine your workfl ows, under- tion module and you need to communicate in e-mail, then you stand how you would perform the processes manually, and check face these problems: if the tool conforms to your workfl ow. A translation tool is Q e-mail communication is hard to archive — you need to always a strategic investment, and mingling a number of systems separate project- or task-related e-mails from other business/per- usually reduces productivity. Workfl ow innovation is what keeps sonal e-mails that you want to hide from project participants; you one step ahead of the competition. M

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73-78 Lengyel.indd 78 11/1/06 10:16:41 AM Basics Basic terminology

This section offers terminology, abbreviations, acronyms and other resources, especially as related to the content of this issue. For more definitions, see the Glossary section of MultiLingual’s annual Resource Directory and Index (www.multilingual.com/resourceDirectory).

Bidirectional (writing system). A writing system in states that for many phenomena, 80% of the consequences which text is generally flush right, and most characters are stem from 20% of the causes. The principle was suggested written from right-to-left, but some text is written left-to- by management thinker Joseph M. Juran, and it was named right as well. Arabic and Hebrew are the only bidirectional after the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who observed writing systems in current use. that 80% of income in Italy was received by 20% of the Casual games. A category of electronic or computer Italian population. The assumption is that most of the games targeted at a mass audience, casual games usu- results in any situation are determined by a small number ally have a few simple rules and an engaging game design, of causes. This idea is often applied to data such as sales thereby making it easy for a new player to begin playing figures: “20% of clients are responsible for 80% of sales the game in just minutes. Casual games require no long- volume.” Such a statement is testable, is likely to be approx- term time commitment or special skills to play, and there imately correct and may be helpful in decision making. are comparatively low production and distribution costs for European Union (EU). An intergovernmental and supra- the producer. national union of 25 democratic member states. The EU Character. A symbol standing for the smallest abstract was established under that name in 1992 by the Treaty on component of a writing system or script, including sounds, European Union (the Maastricht Treaty). syllables, notions or elements, as opposed to glyphs. Globalization (g11n). In this context, the term refers to Computer-aided translation (CAT). Computer techno- the process that addresses business issues associated with logy applications that assist in the act of translating text launching a product globally, such as integrating localiza- from one language to another. tion throughout a company after proper internationaliza- Content management system (CMS). A system used tion and product design. to store and subsequently find and retrieve large amounts Globalization management system (GMS). A system of data. CMSs were not originally designed to synchronize that focuses on managing the translation and localization translation and localization of content, so most of them cycles and synchronizing those with source content man- have been partnered with globalization management sys- agement. Provides the capability of centralizing linguis- tems (GMS). tic assets in the form of translation databases, leveraging Controlled languages. Subsets of natural languages glossaries and branding standards across global content. whose grammars and dictionaries have been restricted in HTML (HyperText Markup Language). A markup lan- order to reduce or eliminate both ambiguity and complexity. guage that uses tags to structure text into headings, para- Also, stylistic rules — such as not using certain verb tenses graphs, lists and links, and tells a web browser how to or the passive voice — can be created, depending upon the display text and images on a web page. group or organization and its language usage goals. Information retrieval. The science of searching for 80-20 rule. Also known as the Pareto principle, the law information in documents, searching for documents them- of the vital few and the principle of factor sparsity. The rule selves, searching for metadata which describe documents

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or searching within databases, whether relational stand- such as marketing or advertisement, while giving them an alone databases or hypertext networked databases such as enjoyable experience. the internet or intranets, for text, sound, images or data. Source language. A language from which text is to be Internationalization (i18n). Especially in a computing translated into another language. context, the process of generalizing a product so that it can Translation. The process of converting all of the text handle multiple languages and cultural conventions (currency, or words from a source language to a target language. An number separators, dates) without the need for redesign. understanding of the context or meaning of the source lan- Localization (l10n). In this context, the process of adapting guage must be established in order to convey the same mes- a product or software to a specific international language or sage in the target language. culture so that it seems natural to that particular region. True Translation memory (TM). A special database that stores localization considers language, culture, customs and the char- previously translated sentences which can then be re-used acteristics of the target locale. It frequently involves changes on a sentence-by-sentence basis. The database matches to the software’s writing system and may change keyboard use source to target language pairs. and fonts as well as date, time and monetary formats. Translation Memory eXchange (TMX). An open stan- Machine translation (MT). A technology that trans- dard, based on XML, which has been designed to simplify lates text from one human language to another, using and automate the process of converting translation memo- terminology glossaries and advanced grammatical, syntac- ries (TMs) from one format to another. tic and semantic analysis techniques. Unicode. The Unicode Worldwide Character Standard (Unicode) is a character-encoding standard used to repre- .NET. Microsoft platform for applications that work over sent text for computer processing. Originally designed to the internet. support 65,000 characters, it now has encoding forms to Offshoring. The relocation of business processes to another support more than 1,000,000 characters. country, especially a country overseas. This includes any busi- XML (eXtensible Markup Language). A programming lan- ness process such as production, manufacturing or services. guage/specification. XML is a pared-down version of SGML, an Open-source software. Any computer software distrib- international standard for the publication and delivery of elec- uted under a license that allows users to change and/or tronic information, designed especially for web documents. share the software freely. End users have the right to mod- ify and redistribute the software, as well as the right to Resources package and sell the software. ORGANIZATIONS Outsourcing. The delegation of non-core operations or jobs from internal production within a business to an external American Translators Association (ATA), www.atanet.org entity such as a subcontractor that specializes in that opera- Fédération Internationale des Traducteurs / International tion. Outsourcing is a business decision that is often made to Federation of Translators, www.fit-ift.org lower costs or focus on competencies. A related term, off- Globalization and Localization Association (GALA), shoring, means transferring work to another country, typically www.gala-global.org overseas. Offshoring is similar to outsourcing when compa- European Commission Directorate-General for Translation (DGT), nies hire overseas subcontractors, but differs when companies http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/translation transfer work to the same company in another country. Localization Industry Standards Association (LISA), www.lisa.org Search engine. A program designed to help find informa- The Localization Institute, www.localizationinstitute.com tion stored on a computer system such as the worldwide The Unicode Consortium, www.unicode.org web or a personal computer. A search engine allows a user World Wide Web Consortium, http://w3c.org to ask for content meeting specific criteria — typically those containing a given word, phrase or name — and retrieves a PUBLICATIONS list of references that match those criteria. MultiLingual (formerly MultiLingual Computing & Technology). Additional resources available at www.multilingual.com Serious games. Computer and video games that are intended to not only entertain users, but have additional The Guide to Translation & Localization, published purposes such as education and training. They can be simi- by Lingo Systems, www.lingosys.com lar to educational games and are primarily focused on an WEBSITES audience outside of primary or secondary education. A seri- Gamasutra, www.gamasutra.com ous game is usually a simulation that has the look and feel Wikipedia, www.wikipedia.org of a game, but is actually a simulation of real-world events User-built, web-based encyclopedia with articles in numerous or processes. The main goal of a serious game is usually to languages. Top ten are English, German, Japanese, French, train or educate users, though it may have other purposes, Polish, Swedish, Dutch, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese.

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79-80 Basics #84.indd 80 11/1/06 10:18:29 AM Buyer’s Guide A SSOCIATIONS ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS ASSOCIATIONS 81 AILIA Association de l’industrie de la CONFERENCES 81 langue/Language Industry Association Description AILIA is the voice of the Canadian language ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS 81 industry, bringing together organizations and professionals from three sectors: translation, language technologies and INTERNATIONALIZATION TOOLS 81 language training. Through a single point of contact, AILIA LOCALIZATION SERVICES 81 members can access key resources to stimulate their growth Idiom Technologies around the world. Multiple Platforms OCALIZATION OOLS AILIA 65 Sherbrooke Street East, Suite 110, Montréal, Québec, Canada L T 85 Languages More than 120 Description Idiom Technologies H2X 1C4, 514-285-6596, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.ailia.ca optimizes the globalization supply chain by aligning global RESEARCH 85 enterprises, language service providers and translators. Award-winning WorldServer™ software solutions expand TM BROKERS 86 market reach and accelerate multilingual communication with a proven platform for automating translation and lo- TRAINING & SEMINARS 86 calization processes. Idiom works with global organizations including Adobe, Autodesk, Continental Airlines, eBay, TRANSLATION SERVICES 86 Motorola and Travelocity to cost-effectively translate global RANSLATION OOLS websites and applications, streamline software localization T T 88 Globalization and Localization Association and delivery, and speed time-to-market for international Description The Globalization and Localization Association product documentation. Idiom also partners with consult- (GALA) is a fully representative, nonprofit, international ing firms, systems integrators and technology vendors to industry association for the translation, internationaliza- help customers achieve high-quality results and maximize tion, localization and globalization industry. The association NTERNATIONALIZATION OOLS existing enterprise infrastructure. I T gives members a common forum to discuss issues, create in- Idiom Technologies, Inc. 200 Fifth Avenue, Waltham, MA 02451, novative solutions, promote the industry, and offer clients 781-464-6000, Fax: 781-464-6100, E-mail: [email protected], unique, collaborative value. Web: www.idiominc.com See ad on page 64 Globalization and Localization Association 23 Main Street, Andover, MA 01810, 206-329-2596, Fax: 815-346-2361, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.gala-global.org See ad on page 60 across Systems GmbH Windows Languages All Description across Systems GmbH is a spin-off of Nero AG with its world’s leading CD/DVD application. across includes TM and terminology system as well as powerful tools Translation Automation User Society STAR Group to support the project and workflow management of transla- Description Translation automation is not a straightforward Multiple Platforms tions. Product manager, translator and proofreader all work Languages All Description STAR is a leader in information process with a guaranteed recipe for return on investment. The together within one system, either in-house or smoothly inte- management, localization, internationalization and global- grated with translation service providers. across provides several difference between profit and loss depends on solid, detailed ization solutions as well as a premier developer of language partner concepts and the Software Development Kit (SDK) for and objective information. The best way of obtaining that in- technology tools such as Transit/TermStar, WebTerm and of system integrators and technology partners, to allow the transla- formation is by networking with other users and by sharing ex- our information management system, GRIPS. For more than tion desktop to be integrated directly, in order to include both periences. TAUS is a member organization for the exchange of 21 years, STAR has specialized in information management preliminary and subsequent process steps. This results in more insights and experiences in automating translation processes. and publishing, multilingual processing including translation flexible and transparent processes that benefit all sides. Founding members are Autodesk, Cisco, Computer Associ- services, terminology management, software localization/ across Systems GmbH Im Stoeckmaedle 18, D-76307 Karlsbad, ates, EMC Software Group, European Patent Office, FileNET, internationalization, software development and multimedia Germany, 49-7248-925-425, Fax: 49-7248-925-444, E-mail: info@ GambroBCT, Hewlett-Packard ACG, Intel, McDonald’s Cor- systems engineering. With 37 offices in 28 countries and our across.net, Web: www.across.net See ad on page 2 poration, McAfee, Novell, Océ Technologies, Oracle, Sun Mi- global network of pre-qualified freelance translators, STAR crosystems, Symantec and WatchGuard. provides a unique combination of information management Translation Automation User Society (TAUS) Oosteinde 9-11, OCALIZATION ERVICES 1483 AB De Rijp, The Netherlands, 31-299-672028, E-mail: info@ tools and services. L S translationautomation.com, Web: www.translationautomation.com STAR Group America, LLC 5001 Mayfi eld Road, Suite 220, Lynd- See ad on page 13 hurst, OH 44124, 216-691-7827, 877-877-0093, Fax: 216-691-8910, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.us.star-group.net See ad on page 91 CONFERENCES Adams Globalization Languages All major European and Asian languages Descrip- tion For over 22 years, Adams Globalization has provided comprehensive turnkey solutions for globalization. We de- liver software localization and testing, technical translation, XTRF Management System web globalization and desktop publishing with superior Multiple Platforms quality, and we do it on time. Our team of experienced and Localization World Languages All Description XTRF is a global management sys- Description Localization World conferences are dedicated efficient project managers, technically proficient native- tem for translation agencies. Built-in cutting-edge Java technol- to the language and localization industries. Our con- speaking linguists, technical experts and desktop publishers ogy, XTRF is a flexible, customizable and web-based software stituents are the people responsible for communicat- using the latest software tools and technology will work to enabling web access for a company’s suppliers and customers. ing across the boundaries of language and culture in the expand your boundaries and offer you a world of possibili- It’s designed to help translation companies to streamline all global marketplace. International product and market- ties. Please contact us today for a free estimate. ing managers participate in Localization World from all their daily activities, and it guarantees smooth management Adams Globalization 10435 Burnet Road, Suite 125, Austin, TX of the company while reducing administrative costs. Project 78758, 800-880-0667, 512-821-1818, Fax: 512-821-1888, E-mail: sectors and all geographies to meet language service and [email protected], Web: www.adamsglobalization.com technology providers and to network with their peers. management, invoicing, quotations, ISO 9001 reports and Hands-on practitioners come to share their knowl- CRM are the main fields covered by the system. Designed by edge and experience and to learn from others. See our translation and localization professionals and created by the Stay Current. Stay Informed. website for details on upcoming and past conferences. best IT team, this powerful tool will reduce the time spent on Localization World 319 North 1st Avenue, Sandpoint, ID 83864, repetitive tasks and increase the company’s effectiveness. www.multilingual.com/ 208-263-8178, Fax: 208-263-6310, E-mail: info@localizationworld XTRF ul. Walerego Slawka 3, 30-653 Krakow, Poland, 48-12-2546- multilingualNews .com, Web: www.localizationworld.com 126, Fax: 48-12-2546-122, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.xtrf.eu

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of crucial projects and has become one of the major players in the Italian localization industry. Our goal is to guarantee high quality, timeliness and flexibility. We are accustomed to working for clients throughout the world who need to reach the Italian market with their products. Our project managers, ADAPT Localization Services translators and revisers are trained to solve today’s challenges Languages More than 50 Description ADAPT Localization iDISC Information Technologies of translation/localization projects, regardless of text length Language Spanish Description iDISC, established in 1987, Services (founded in 1999 as transline Localization) offers the or the software tools to be used. Fields of expertise are soft- full range of services that enables clients to be successful in is a leading independent localization company based in ware, hardware, telecommunications, finance, training, web Barcelona, Spain. Services range from localization to DTP, international markets, from documentation design through and marketing. translation, linguistic and technical localization services, pre- from compiling to product testing. We are backed by a team Binari Sonori srl Viale Fulvio Testi, 11, 20092 Cinisello Balsamo, press and publication management. Serving both Fortune of in-house, full-time professionals and a carefully selected Milano, Italy, 39-02-61866-310, Fax: 39-02-61866-313, E-mail: and assessed freelance database which allows us to tackle any 500 and small companies, ADAPT has gained a reputation [email protected], Web: www.binarisonori.it See ad on page 38 for quality, reliability, technological competence and a com- size of project in our areas of expertise, mainly software lo- mitment to customer service. Fields of specialization include calization, technical and telecom documentation, ERP and diagnostic and medical devices, IT/telecom and web content. marketing. As a single-language localization company, we With offices in Bonn, Germany, and Stockholm, Sweden, and leverage from long-time experience using TRADOS, IBM a number of certified partner companies, ADAPT is well Translation Manager and other translation tools. Highly suited to help clients achieve their goals in any market. technical capabilities, in-house know-how and professional ADAPT Localization Services Clemens-August-Strasse 16-18, 53115 support are guaranteed by iDISC’s Support and Develop- Bonn, Germany, 49-228-98-22-60, Fax: 49-228-98-22-615, E-mail: ment Department. Contact us for a quote or other details. [email protected], Web: www.adapt-localization.com CPSL iDISC Information Technologies Passeig del progrés 96, 08640 See ad on page 74 Languages All Description CPSL offers all the standard lo- Olesa de Montserrat, Barcelona, Spain, 34-93-778-73-00, Fax: 34- calization services, yet so much more. With over 40 years of 93-778-35-80, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.idisc.es global experience, CPSL provides its customers with best practices consultancy, content authoring, event planning, translation, localization, publishing, as well as interpreting services. CPSL focuses on localization services for life sciences, technical, automotive, information technology and energy industries, and is renowned for its ability to retain long-term Alliance Localization China, Inc. (ALC) relationships with its clients. These attributes, paired with Languages Major Asian and European languages Description its reputation for outstanding customer care, competence, ALC offers document, website and software translation and lo- quality, and state-of-the-art technology, make CPSL an in- iSP — The Localization Experts calization, desktop publishing, and interpreter services. We fo- dustry leader. While other translation businesses have come LanguagesFrom English into all major languages Description cus on English, German and other European languages to and and gone, CPSL has consistently grown to become the largest iSP (international Software Products) is a distinct provider of from Chinese, Japanese, Korean and other Asian languages. Spanish-owned localization company, headquartered in Bar- localization services. For 20 years iSP has served its clients with We use TRADOS, CATALYST, SDLX, Transit and other CAT celona with offices in Madrid and Galway, Ireland. the principles of honesty and customer-centric services. Not tools, as well as DTP tools including CorelDraw, FrameMaker, CPSL Torre Llacuna, Llacuna 166, 9ª planta, 08018 Barcelona, Spain, surprisingly, first-time customers and new customers have FreeHand, Illustrator, InDesign, PageMaker, Photoshop and 34-93-486-42-80, Fax: 34-93-300-00-40, E-mail: [email protected], always stayed with iSP. We are dedicated to delivering the QuarkXPress. Our customer-oriented approach is supported Web: www.cpsl.com See ad on page 66 highest quality localized products. Our flat, in-house organi- by strong project management, a team of specialists, a large zational structure means decision-making and action-taking knowledgebase and advanced methodologies. We always pro- are quick and simple. We are located near Amsterdam, The vide service beyond our customers’ expectations at a low cost Netherlands, where we surround ourselves with languages. and with high quality, speed, dependability and flexibility. Our services cover all aspects of localization. We are in the Alliance Localization China, Inc. (ALC) Suite 609, Building B, heart of Europe. We are iSP. We are the localization experts. Number 10 Xing Huo Road, Fengtai Science Park, Beijing 100070, iSP — international Software Products B.V. Dorpsstraat 35-37, P.R. China, 86-10-8368-2169, Fax: 86-10-8368-2884, E-mail: 1191 BH Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, The Netherlands, 31-20-496- [email protected], Web: www.allocalization.com 5271, Fax: 31-20-496-4553, E-mail: [email protected], Web: EuroGreek Translations Limited www.isp.nl Language Greek Description Established in 1986, EuroGreek Translations Limited is Europe’s number one Greek localizer, specializing in technical and medical translations from Eng- lish into Greek and Greek into English. EuroGreek’s aim is to provide high-quality, turnkey solutions, encompassing a whole WHY range of client needs, from plain translation to desktop/web Alpha CRC — Translating Excellence publishing to localization development and testing. Over the years, EuroGreek’s services have been extended to cover most ? Languages All Description You benefit from 19 years of subject areas, including German and French into Greek local- experience in software localization when choosing Alpha OTAL SOLUTIONS FOR YOUR BUSINESS CRC. A private company, we pride ourselves on meeting the ization services. All of EuroGreek’s work is produced in-house T individual needs of customers. Our in-house staff includes by a team of 25 highly qualified specialists and is fully guaran- IN THE KOREAN MARKET translators covering 17 languages plus experts in software en- teed for quality and on-time delivery. gineering, DTP, QA and testing, voice recording and project EuroGreek Translations Limited helps you successfully do business management. This means we always have people available to London 27 Lascotts Road, London N22 8JG UK in Korea by providing high-quality localization discuss and deliver your requirements. When selecting Alpha, Athens EuroGreek House, 93 Karagiorga Street, Athens 16675, services. We also provide the full scope of soft- Greece, 30-210-9605-244, Fax: 30-210-9647-077, E-mail: production@ you have the added confidence of knowing that top technol- ware testing services in Windows, Macintosh, ogy companies do the same. Our customers include SAP, Sun eurogreek.gr, Web: www.eurogreek.com See ad on page 67 and Symantec. Whether you’re an experienced global player Linux and Unix. or just starting, Alpha has the solution for you. Golden View (China) Technologies Inc. Alpha CRC Ltd. St. Andrew’s House, St. Andrew’s Road, Cambridge Languages Asian languages Description Established in 1996, ACCUMULATED LOCALIZATION EXPERIENCE CB4 1DL UK, 44-1223-431011, Fax: 44-1223-461274, E-mail: Golden View started as a professional vendor of IBM China. [email protected], Web: www.alphacrc.com We specialize in software localization, technical, legal, life has successfully accomplished science document translation, multilingual typesetting and many major projects for customers such as voice recording with voice samples provided. We have a well- Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, InternetSecurity proven excellent Asian linguist team and very skilled DTP Systems, Sun Microsystems, BMC Software, specialists. We are committed to high quality, on-time deliv- ery and capacity management. We aim at being your strategic Sony, BEA Systems and PeopleSoft based on partner in Asian language localization. Please contact us now accumulated experience and know-how. to discuss your needs. Binari Sonori Golden View (China) Technologies Inc. Room 801, H7.8 Building, [email protected] Languages From all European languages into Italian Descrip- Tian’An Cyber Park, Shenzhen 518040, People’s Republic of China, www.e4net.net tion Binari Sonori has served the localization and translation 86755-83434064, Fax: 86755-83434064, E-mail: info@gvlocaliza 822-3465-8500 market since 1994. Binari Sonori has been awarded a number tion.com, Web: www.gvlocalization.com See ad on page 61

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technology applications globally. Through its globaliza- tion service offerings, Lionbridge adapts client products and content to meet the linguistic, technical and cultural requirements of customers, partners and employees New markets for your products and solutions worldwide. Lionbridge offshoring services include the de- velopment and maintenance of content and applications Janus Worldwide Inc. as well as testing to ensure the quality, interoperability, Moravia Worldwide Languages Russian, Ukrainian, CIS and Baltic languages usability and performance of clients’ software, hardware, Languages All Description Moravia Worldwide is a leading Description Janus provides localization, translation and consumer technology products, websites and content. globalization solution provider, enabling companies in the in- DTP services for Russian, Ukrainian, CIS and Baltic lan- Lionbridge offers its testing services under the VeriTest formation technology, e-learning, life sciences and financial in- guages. Our deep expertise, flexibility, diversity and ex- brand. Lionbridge has more than 4,000 employees based dustries to enter global markets with high-quality multilingual ceptional value of services are recognized by many in 25 countries worldwide. products. Moravia’s solutions include localization and product industry-leading customers and partners worldwide. Our Lionbridge 1050 Winter Street, Waltham, MA 02451, 781-434- testing services, internationalization, multilingual publishing business services have ISO 9001:2000 quality certification. 6111, Fax: 781-434-6034, E-mail: [email protected], Web: and technical translation. Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Microsoft, Our uniqueness is a solid team of the best professionals in www.lionbridge.com See ad on page 3 Oracle, Sun Microsystems and Symantec are among some of all relevant areas — localization engineers, language spe- the companies that depend on Moravia Worldwide for ac- cialists, QA officers, DTP and software engineers and more. curate, on-time localization. Moravia Worldwide maintains We do it end-to-end — from servers to handhelds, from global headquarters in the Czech Republic and North Ameri- ERP to automotive solutions and from interface specifica- can headquarters in California, with local offices and produc- tions to legal notices. Our clients sound truly Russian. tion centers in Ireland, China, Japan and throughout Europe. Janus Worldwide Inc. Derbenevskaya nab., 11B, Offi ce 113, Moscow To learn more, please visit www.moraviaworldwide.com 114115, Russia, 7-495-913-66-53, Fax: 7-495-913-66-53 ext. 299, E- Moravia Worldwide mail: [email protected], Web: www.janus.ru Logrus International Corporation USA 199 East Thousand Oaks Boulevard, Thousand Oaks, CA 91360, Languages EE, EA, ME, WE, rare languages Description 805-557-1700, 800-276-1664, Fax: 805-557-1702, E-mail: info@ Logrus offers a full set of localization and translation ser- moraviaworldwide.com, Web: www.moraviaworldwide.com vices for various industries, including top-notch software Asia 86-25-8473-2772, E-mail: [email protected] engineering and testing and DTP for all languages, includ- Europe 420-545-552-222, E-mail: [email protected] ing bidi and double-byte ones. The company is proud of Ireland 353-1-216-4102, E-mail: [email protected] its unique problem-solving skills and minimal support Japan 81-3-3354-3320, E-mail: [email protected] requirements. The company offers all European and Asian See ad on page 18 Jonckers Translation & Engineering s.a. languages as well as many rare languages through its offices Languages All Description Jonckers is focused on delivering and established long-term partners. With its production site software, e-learning and multimedia localization services. in Moscow, Russia, Logrus provides a winning combination We support the globalization strategies of industry leaders of quality, experience and affordability. With over 14 years such as Adobe, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Microsoft and SAP. in business, the company has received multiple awards for Our service range covers the complete localization value excellence from its long-time customers, including IBM, chain, including linguistic, publishing, engineering and Microsoft, Novell, Oracle and others. testing services. With headquarters in Brussels, Jonckers has Logrus International Corporation Suite 305, 2600 Philmont Ave- PTIGlobal Languages All commercial languages for Europe, Asia and the local offices in the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, nue, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006, 215-947-4773, Fax: 215-947-4773, Americas Description PTIGlobal is committed to developing Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the People’s Republic of E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.logrus.ru See ad on page 48 ongoing, long-term partnerships with its clients. This means China. Jonckers is a founding member of LCJ EEIG and a dedication to personal service, responsiveness, high-qual- a Microsoft Premier Vendor. To learn more, please visit ity output, and sensitivity to clients’ cost goals and timelines. www.jonckers.com & Backed by over 25 years of experience in technical translation, Jonckers Translation Engineering s.a. Avenue Herrmann- PTIGlobal provides turnkey localization services in 27 lan- Debroux 15a, B-1160 Brussels, Belgium, 32-2-672-80-30, Fax: 32- guages simultaneously for software, web applications, embed- 2-672-80-19, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.jonckers.com See ad on page 12 Loquant Localization Services ded devices, wireless applications and gaming technology. Languages English, Brazilian Portuguese Description Lo- Projects are customized to fit client needs and feature our ex- quant bases its operations on the experience of its found- pertise in end-to-end project management; internationalization ers and collaborators, professionals who closely follow the consultation; glossary development; native-language translation; ongoing evolution of technology and the latest processes multilingual web content management; translation memory in internationalization and localization of information. maintenance; localization engineering; linguistic and function- ality QA; high-end desktop publishing, including graphics local- Adhering to rigorous processes that were developed by the ization; and complete multilingual video and audio services. software localization industry during the last few decades, PTIGlobal 9900 SW Wilshire, Suite 280, Portland, OR 97225, 888- Lingo Systems, Translation & Localization Loquant is able to prepare the most diverse products for Languages 72 Description Lingo Systems provides cus- 357-3125, Fax: 503-297-0655, E-mail: [email protected], Web: the primary world markets. To do this, Loquant counts on www.ptiglobal.com tomer-focused translation and localization services for global the best project managers, native translators, engineers and companies. We specialize in software, online applications, desktop publishers to guarantee a quality control recog- technical documentation, training materials, e-learning solu- nized internationally by the main international standards tions and business systems (including ERP, CRM and data- organizations. base tools). Our ability to complete complex, multilanguage Loquant Localization Services Rua Luís Carlos Prestes, 410/114, projects on time with superior quality sets us apart. Our cli- 22775-055, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 55-21-2104-9597, Fax: 55-21- ents consistently rate us a 6 out of 6, and we have never caused 2104-9597, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.loquant.com a late release. Providing exceptional project management, ex- ceeding client expectations and delivering measurable value Sajan are our raisons d’être. For a free copy of our award-winning Languages All Description Sajan provides language trans- Guide to Translation & Localization: Preparing for the Global lation services and technology to companies doing business Marketplace, visit www.lingosys.com around the world. We offer globalization solutions that fuse Lingo Systems 15115 SW Sequoia Parkway, Suite 200, Portland, OR leading-edge technology with personalized customer service 97224, 503-419-4856, 800-878-8523, Fax: 503-419-4873, E-mail: and ISO quality controls. Sajan’s GCMS (global communica- [email protected], Web: www.lingosys.com See ad on page 14 tion management system) platform integrates and simplifies 2G Localization Alliance the entire translation workflow process, from authoring to Languages All Description milengo Inc. is a global provider publication. GCMS is the only single, seamless, end-to-end for localization, engineering and testing services for the high- solution in the industry. Plus GCMS is web-based. There is tech industries. It is the largest 2nd Generation (2G) Localiza- no software to buy, install or upgrade. We focus on how our tion Alliance in the market, formed by 16 leading localization technology can simplify globalization efforts. By listening to companies located in the most important global ITC markets our clients, we continually broaden, enhance and innovate Lionbridge Software and Content Localization spanning Europe, the Americas and Asia. our product and service offerings. Languages All Description Lionbridge provides globaliza- milengo Inc. 1001 Fourth Avenue, #3200, Seattle, WA 98154, Sajan 625 Whitetail Boulevard, River Falls, WI 54022, 715-426-9505, tion and offshoring services that enable clients to develop, 877-224-8740, 49-30-2248-7681, Fax: 866-203-1685, E-mail: 877-426-9505, Fax: 715-426-0105, E-mail: [email protected], localize, test and maintain their enterprise content and [email protected], Web: www.milengo.com See ad on page 10 Web: www.sajan.com See ad on page 58

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project management create a solid foundation of our services Web, which provides clients with their latest information on- which go far beyond translation. We provide a full range of line, schedules and query logs and allows them to keep track of quality localization engineering and DTP services that every their projects at all times. To learn more about Tek, contact: day yield tangible benefits to our customers’ bottom line. Tek Translation International C/ Ochandiano 18, 28023 Madrid, Studio Gambit Sp. z o.o. ul. Matejki 6, 80-952 Gda´nsk, Poland, 48- Spain, 34-91-414-1111, Fax: 34-91-414-4444, E-mail: sales@ 58-345-3800, Fax: 48-58-345-1909, E-mail: gambit@stgambit tektrans.com, Web: www.tektrans.com See ad on page 36 SDL International — E-nabling Global Business .com, Web: www.stgambit.com Languages All Description SDL International is the leader in global information management (GIM) solutions that empower organizations to accelerate delivery of high-qual- ity multilingual content to global markets. Our enterprise software and services integrate with existing systems to man- age global information from authoring to publication and TOIN Corporation throughout the distributed localization supply chain. Global Symbio Multiple Platforms industry leaders rely on SDL to provide enterprise software Languages 46, with emphasis on Japanese, Simplified/ Languages Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Thai, Vietnam- or full outsourcing for their GIM processes. SDL has imple- Traditional Chinese, Korean, French, German, Italian, Spanish, ese Description For most Western companies, Asia is their mented more than 150 enterprise solutions and has over Brazilian Portuguese and Latin American Spanish Description most difficult market. This is due not only to technical com- 130,000 software licenses deployed across the GIM ecosys- Symbio, an IT services and outsourcing company, provides plexities, but also to differences in culture between East and tem. Our global services infrastructure spans over 50 offices end-to-end globalization solutions for technology compa- West. Founded in 1964, TOIN has been helping bridge this in 30 countries. nies. From internationalization and localization through in- culture gap for over four decades. 100% focused on Asian lo- SDL International 5700 Granite Parkway, Suite 410, Plano, TX country services such as customer product implementations calization, TOIN’s staff is well versed in the technical, linguis- 75024, 214-387-8500, Fax: 214-387-9120, Web: www.sdl.com See and technical support services, Symbio acts as an extension tic and cultural issues in each Asian market. TOIN is based in ad on page 92 of our clients’ organizations to roll out products and content Tokyo with regional offices in China, Europe and the United globally. Symbio has unmatched expertise and scale in the States. Global 1000 clients, including IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, technology industry, including the largest in-house group of PeopleSoft, SAP, Sun and Sybase, rely on TOIN for their Asian internationalization engineers and globalization testers in the localization needs. industry. With 12 development centers and offices around the TOIN Corporation world, Symbio works with most of the world’s leading tech- China Room 411, No. 223 Xikang Road, Shanghai, 200040, China, 86- nology companies, including AOL, BMC, CA, EMC, FileNet, 21-6279-2235, Fax: 86-21-6279-3962, E-mail: [email protected] IBM, Microsoft, Nokia, Sony and over 300 others. Europe Dodaarslaan 55, 3645 JB Vinkeveen, The Netherlands, 31- 297-212-091, Fax: 31-297-212-086, E-mail: [email protected], 1803 Research Boulevard, Suite 508, Rockville, SEPROTEC SymbioSys, Inc. Web: www.to-in.com MD 20850, 301-340-3988, 866-469-4116, Fax: 301-340-3989, Languages All Description From large corporate groups to USA 4966 El Camino Real, Suite 101, Los Altos, CA 94022, 650- SMEs, as well as institutions and organizations in the pub- E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.symbio-group.com See ad on page 19 966-8468, Fax: 650-949-5678, E-mail: [email protected], Web: lic sector, SEPROTEC offers added value to its customers www.to-in.com across all continents with customized solutions adapted to their needs. Transco Technology Ltd. SEPROTEC Calle Valle de Alcudia 3, planta 3, 28230 Las Rozas, Languages From English into major Asian languages De- Madrid, Spain, 34-91-204-87-30, Fax: 34-91-204-87-11, E-mail: scription Founded in 1998 and having grown tenfold its [email protected], Web: www.seprotec.com See ad on page 17 original size by 2003, Transco is the world’s leading Asian localization provider and is well renowned for its quality, ef- Studio Gambit Sp. z o.o. ficiency and professionalism in serving its global client base. Tek Translation International Transco offers a complete range of localization solutions for Languages Central and Eastern European Description Languages European, Scandinavian, Latin American, Middle Studio Gambit, a regional vendor of choice for many re- Asian languages. Relationship management is our philoso- Eastern, Asian Description Tek Translation has over 40 years phy of doing business. We are focused on our customers nowned global companies, has helped clients to get their of experience in working worldwide for the leading technology and partners, and make a long-term commitment toward message across to Central and Eastern Europe for the past companies. Now, thanks to the web, we operate globally from maintaining these relationships with quality, service and 14 years — always on time, on target and within budget. The one production center offering a complete translation, web and continuous improvement. fields of our subject matter expertise include IT, life sciences, software localization service into more than 50 languages at Transco Technology Ltd. B406 Grand Pacifi c Garden Mansion, 8 consumer electronics, financial services, automotive and en- lower prices than our major competitors. Our English-speak- Guanghua Road, Beijing, 100026, China, 86-10-65819599, Fax: 86- gineering industries. Streamlined ISO 9001:2000-certified ing project managers, specialist translators, linguistic control- 10-65819799, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.transco.cn See ad processes, advanced engineering capabilities and value-added lers and engineers are all connected via Tek’s exclusive Project on page 20

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off the ground. WHP’s flexible and open workflow technology localization projects. Visual Localize remembers all previous adapts to any production process. WHP’s high standards sat- translations and thus maximizes re-use. With Visual Local- isfy the most demanding globalization requirements. ize, no programming skills are required for localization. This WHP Espace Beethoven BP102, F06902 Sophia Antipolis Cedex, makes it applicable for everyone. A free evaluation copy is France, 33-493-00-40-30, Fax: 33-493-00-40-34, E-mail: gunther available at www.visloc.com [email protected], Web: www.whp.net, www.whp.fr See ad on page 52 AIT — Applied Information Technologies AG Auberlenstrasse Ushuaia Solutions 21, D-70736 Fellbach, Germany, 49-711-520473-10, Fax: 49-711- Languages Spanish (all varieties), Portuguese (Brazil) De- 520473-30, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.visloc.com scription Ushuaia Solutions is a fast-growing Latin Ameri- can company providing solutions for translation, localization Idiom Technologies and globalization needs. Ushuaia Solutions is focused on be- Multiple Platforms ing creative and proactive to meet tight time frames with a Languages More than 120 Description Idiom Technologies high-quality level and a cost-effective budget. Customizing optimizes the globalization supply chain by aligning global its processes, Ushuaia assures project consistency and tech- enterprises, language service providers and translators. Award- nical and linguistic accuracy, thus reducing clients’ time- winning WorldServer™ software solutions expand market to-market. Ushuaia combines state-of-the-art technology WORDSTATION GmbH reach and accelerate multilingual communication with a proven with top-notch experienced native translators, editors and Languages British and US English, German, French (other Eu- platform for automating translation and localization processes. software engineers. Our mission is to work together with our ropean languages are available upon request) Description Since Idiom works with global organizations including Adobe, Au- clients, thereby creating a flexible, reliable and open relation- its founding in 1991, WORDSTATION has become a superior todesk, Continental Airlines, eBay, Motorola and Travelocity ship for success. quality provider of localization services, including terminology to cost-effectively translate global websites and applications, Ushuaia Solutions Rioja 919, S2000AYK Rosario, Argentina, 54-341- work, software and documentation translation, electronic pub- streamline software localization and delivery, and speed time- 4493064, Fax: 54-341-4492542, E-mail: [email protected], lishing and film production — starting from the bytes of the to-market for international product documentation. Idiom Web: www.ushuaiasolutions.com See ad on page 39 software down to the final details of the documentation. We also partners with consulting firms, systems integrators and also conduct prototype translations to ensure translatability of technology vendors to help customers achieve high-quality software and documentation. WORDSTATION is large enough results and maximize existing enterprise infrastructure. to ensure security and continuity, yet small enough to provide Idiom Technologies, Inc. 200 Fifth Avenue, Waltham, MA 02451, numerous advantages: no administrative overhead, short com- 781-464-6000, Fax: 781-464-6100, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.idiominc.com See ad on page 64 munication channels, fast and efficient feedback, short produc- tion cycles, high motivation and excellent team spirit. Updates VistaTEC and follow-up versions are done by the same specialists. Languages All Description VistaTEC is a leading provider WORDSTATION GmbH Max-Planck-Strasse 6, D-63128 Dietzen- of globalization services and specializes in the localization bach, Germany, 49-6074-91442-0, Fax: 49-6074-91442-29, E-mail: and testing of enterprise, mobile and desktop applications. [email protected], Web: www.wordstation.com VistaTEC provides translation, technical consulting, engineer- ing and testing during the design, development and market- PASSOLO ing cycles of software products. VistaTEC has headquarters in LOCALIZATION TOOLS Version 6.0 for Windows NT, Windows 2000 and Windows XP Dublin, Ireland, and satellite offices in the United States. Addi- Languages All, including Eastern European, Asian and bi- tional information on VistaTEC is available at www.vistatec.ie directional languages using Unicode support Description VistaTEC PASSOLO offers cutting-edge localization technology for all Europe VistaTEC House, 700 South Circular Road, Kilmainham, major Windows development platforms to process Windows Dublin 8, Ireland, 353-1-416-8000, Fax: 353-1-416-8099, E-mail: software, Microsoft .NET, Borland Delphi/C++ Builder, Java, [email protected], Web: www.vistatec.ie XML, XLIFF, HTML, text files and databases. The integra- USA East 2706 Loma Street, Silver Spring, MD 20902, 301-649- tion of translation memory systems (for example, SDL 3012, Fax: 301-649-3032, E-mail: [email protected] Alchemy Software Development Ltd. TRADOS), terminology databases, spell checkers and WYSI- USA West 131 Shady Lane, Monterey, CA 93940, 831-655-1717, Fax: Multiple Platforms WYG editors guarantees high-quality and short turn-around 831-372-5838, E-mail: [email protected] See ad on page 33 Languages All Description Alchemy Software Development is cycles. PASSOLO offers fuzzy-matching, pseudo-translation, the market leader in localization technology. With over 8,000 numerous check functions, statistical reports, and experts for Welocalize licenses worldwide, Alchemy CATALYST is the dominant project setup, alignment and update processes. The optional Languages More than 40 European, Middle Eastern and choice among professional development companies, localiza- Layout Engine can automatically re-size Windows dialogs Asian languages Description Our services fulfill the transla- tion service providers and global technology leaders that need and so reduces engineering costs. Automation and integra- tion, engineering, testing and cultural needs inherent in re- to accelerate entry into international markets. Alchemy CATA- tion technologies provide users the means to adapt quickly to leasing products globally. We enable our clients to meet these LYST 5.0 boosts localization velocity, improves quality and special requirements and non-standard file formats. challenges and achieve fluid international product develop- reduces localization cost. Supporting all Microsoft platforms PASS Engineering GmbH Remigiusstrasse 1, D-53111 Bonn, ment and faster global release cycles without increasing inter- and development languages (VB, .NET, C++, C#), Borland Germany, 49-228-697242, Fax: 49-228-697104, E-mail: info@ passolo.com, Web: www.passolo.com See ad on page 7 national development costs. Welocalize provides localization, C++Builder and Delphi, XML/XLIFF and databases (Oracle, testing and translation services to leading companies, includ- MS-SQL), it is an indispensable solution for software localiza- ing AOL, Apple, Cisco Systems, Computer Associates, IBM, tion, helping clients achieve near-simultaneous release of their Sun, Symantec and Xerox. The company maintains offices translated applications. Corel Corporation holds a 20% equity RESEARCH in Frederick, Maryland; Portland, Oregon; Dublin, Ireland; stake in Alchemy Software Development. Wakayama, Japan; and Saarbrücken, Germany. Alchemy Software Development Ltd. Block 2, Harcourt Business Welocalize 241 East 4th Street, Suite 207, Frederick, MD 21701, Centre, Harcourt Street, Dublin 2, Ireland, 353-1-708-2800, Fax: 301-668-0330, Fax: 301-668-0335, E-mail: [email protected], 353-1-708-2801, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www Web: www.welocalize.com See ad on page 21 .alchemysoftware.ie See ad on page 68

Make Our Knowledge Your Power Description Common Sense Advisory is a research and con- sulting firm committed to improving the quality of interna- tional business and the efficiency of the online and offline operations that support it. We provide independent research, Visual Localize executive sales and management workshops, and business WHP Windows 98, NT, 2000, XP consulting to help companies make informed decisions Languages All European and major Middle Eastern and Asian Languages All, including Eastern European, Asian and bi- about the technology, business services and organizational languages, including local variants Description WHP, a ma- directional languages using Unicode support Description structures on which a global enterprise depends. Of course, jor supplier for the industry-leading corporations, localizes Visual Localize is a leading application that fully supports keeping abreast of the fast pace of a global economy, whether software, documentation and web content. WHP has been the software localization process of Microsoft Windows you are a vendor or a buyer, is difficult, at best. Get accurate benchmarked “Best Localization Vendor” by Compaq. Clients applications (including .NET applications), databases and information. Profit in a global market. Contact Common specifically appreciate WHP’s dedication to high quality and XML files. It dramatically reduces cost, effort and complexity Sense Advisory today. strict respect of deadlines and, consequently, entrust WHP with of software localization. With its MS Explorer “look and Common Sense Advisory, Inc. 100 Merrimack Street, Suite 301, their most sensitive projects. WHP also helps many fast-grow- feel,” it is user friendly and intuitive to use. After a very short Lowell, MA 01852, 866-510-6101, E-mail: info@commonsenseadvisory ing companies to get their first localization projects smoothly introduction time, you will be able to handle all kinds of .com, Web: www.commonsenseadvisory.com See ad on page 15

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Soluciones provides suitable solutions to ensure we meet TM BROKERS our clients’ objectives. We study their documentation re- quirements; produce translations that are adapted to spe- cific markets and cultures; and prepare an end product in ACP Traductera DTP or printed format in accordance with the demands of Languages From all the world languages to languages of each project. Specialized fields include software localiza- Central and Eastern Europe Description ACP Traductera tion; engineering and technology; life sciences; and insti- is a translation agency based in the Czech Republic. Our local tutional-corporate sector. Three elements of fundamental experience in Central Europe and our strong focus on appro- importance are developed and combined at Celer Solucio- The Translation Memory Brokers priate language use make us the reliable partner for provid- nes: translation — good translation practice; technology Languages All Description Central to most translation ing high-quality translations into Bulgarian, Czech, Estonian, — use of suitable computer-assisted translation, file-han- processes today is the database that contains previously Hungarian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, dling and management tools; quality — quality in our cli- translated data: the translation memory (TM). The consis- Slovak, Slovenian and Ukrainian. Document translation ser- ent relations, quality of project management and quality of tently growing size of the TM represents an ever-increasing vice, translation, proofreading, review, independent specialist the documentation produced. review, legal certification of translated documents, website value to you as its owner. By the same token, it becomes in- Celer Soluciones, S.L. Plaza de España, 12, 28008 Madrid, Spain, 34- creasingly attractive to TM buyers from the same industry and software localization, localization, engineering, testing, 91-540-0540, Fax: 34-91-541-9259, E-mail: [email protected], Web: to either jump-start a TM or complement it with proven, documentation localization, graphic design, DTP operations www.celersol.com See ad on page 47 and pre-press review and printing. Our team of more than industry-specific translations. Through TM Marketplace, 1,000 professional translators, proofreaders, terminology spe- this asset can now provide an immediate return on invest- cialists, graphic designers, IT engineers and, last but not least, ment through licensing to other parties. As TM brokers, TM experienced project managers is our most significant asset. Marketplace connects corporate owners of translation as- ACP Traductera Na Vysluni 201/13, Prague 10, Czech Republic, 420- sets with parties who want to license and benefit from those 384-361-300, Fax: 420-384-361-303, E-mail: [email protected], linguistic resources. Web: www.traductera.com See ad on page 59 TM Marketplace LLC 319 North 1st Avenue, Sandpoint, ID 83864, 208-265-9465, 888-533-7886, Fax: 208-263-6310, E-mail: info@tm Eriksen Translations Inc. marketplace.com, Web: www.tmmarketplace.com See ad on page 19 Languages All Description Eriksen Translations Inc. is a lead- ing provider of multilingual services, including translation, interpreting, typesetting, project management, web localiza- tion and cultural consulting. For 20 years, Eriksen has helped TRAINING & SEMINARS a broad range of organizations in both the public and private sectors excel across print, desktop and web environments The Localization Institute in the domestic and global marketplace. With a worldwide Languages All Description The Localization Institute pro- Your #1 choice for Brazilian Portuguese network of over 5,000 linguists, a commitment to leading vides training, seminars and conferences for the global Languages Brazilian Portuguese and 30 other languages technologies, and an in-house staff dedicated to tailoring our localization community. Best known for its four annual Description If your company is facing the challenges of global proven project management process to the individual needs localization roundtables, the Institute’s events train local- expansion, we can offer nearly three decades of experience in of each client, Eriksen is your globalization partner. ization professionals and promote the sharing of experience providing high-volume technical translation services to large Eriksen Translations Inc. 32 Court Street, 20th Floor, Brooklyn, and information. Seminars include “Multilingual Websites,” corporations in Brazil and abroad. Conquering new markets NY 11201, 718-802-9010, Fax: 718-802-0041, E-mail: info@eriksen “Writing and Designing for an International Audience,” and communicating more effectively with your clients are eas- inc.com, Web: www.erikseninc.com “Localization Project Management,” “Advanced Localiza- ier when you choose a partner who offers extensive experience tion Project Management,” “Designing International Web in translation and localization services to international quality standards. Our high production capacity, modern infrastruc- and User Interfaces,” “Writing International Software for ture and continuous investment in technology and staff train- Win32API,” “Introduction to Localization,” “Tools and ing have made All Tasks the market leader in Brazil and Latin Technologies for Localization/Internationalization,” “QA America since 1991. Contact us for a quotation. of Global Products,” “Implementing a Translation Memory All Tasks Traduções Técnicas Rua Dona Teresa Margarida, 56, Vila Process” and “Introduction to Unicode.” See our website for Mariana, São Paulo-SP 04037-040, Brazil, 55-11-5908-8300, Fax: 55- details. Most seminars are available in-house. 11-5908-8308, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.alltasks EuroGreek Translations Limited The Localization Institute 4513 Vernon Boulevard, Suite 11, .com.br See ads on pages 43, 67 Languages Greek Description EuroGreek Translations Limited Madison, WI 53705, 608-233-1790, Fax: 608-441-6124, E-mail: is Europe’s number one Greek production house, specializing [email protected], Web: www.localizationinstitute.com in technical and medical translations from English into Greek See ad on page 9 and from Greek into English. EuroGreek’s aim is to provide high-quality, turnkey solutions, encompassing a whole range of client needs, from plain translation to desktop/web publishing to localization development and testing. Over the years, Euro- TRANSLATION SERVICES Greek’s services have been extended to cover most subject areas, Beijing E-C Translation Ltd. including German and French into Greek translation services. All of EuroGreek’s work is proofread by a second in-house spe- Languages Asian Description Beijing E-C Translation Ltd., cialist and is fully guaranteed for quality and on-time delivery. one of the largest localization and translation companies in China, focuses mainly on software and website localization; EuroGreek Translations Limited technical, financial, medical, patent and marketing transla- London 27 Lascotts Road, London N22 8JG UK Athens EuroGreek House, 93 Karagiorga Street, Athens 16675, tions; and desktop publishing services. We use TRADOS, Greece, 30-210-9605-244, Fax: 30-210-9647-077, E-mail: production@ SDLX, CATALYST, TTT/PC, STAR Transit, Robohelp, Frame- eurogreek.gr, Web: www.eurogreek.com See ad on page 67 2tr Soluções Globais Maker, PageMaker, InDesign, QuarkXPress, MS Office and Language Brazilian Portuguese Description Firmly com- other graphic and DTP tools. Having more than 150 full- mitted to providing top-quality services, 2tr is backed by time employees located in Beijing, Taipei, Singapore, Seoul, the proven track record of its founders, Adriana Ferreira Shanghai, Hong Kong, Shenyang and Chengdu, we can han- and Jorge Marinho, with over ten years’ experience in the dle English/German into and from Simplified Chinese/Tra- localization industry. We specialize in technical translations, ditional Chinese/Japanese/Korean/Thai. We guarantee that clients’ projects will be handled not only by native speakers, from a few words on a label to complex million-word proj- but also by topic specialists. Clients can expect and will receive ects involving TEP, DTP, QA and testing of web, mobile and Follow-Up Translation Services high-quality services, on-time delivery and low cost. desktop applications and documentation in fields ranging Languages English, Brazilian Portuguese, Latin American Beijing E-C Translation Ltd. 2nd Floor, Hua Teng Development from IT, telecom, energy and pharmaceuticals to business, Building, No. 23, Xi Huan Bei Road, BDA, Beijing Economic- Spanish Description With more than 17 years of experience, finance and legal affairs. We are fully qualified in related lo- Technological Development Zone, Beijing 100176, P.R. China, 86- we know exactly how to help your products and docu- calization services, such as DTP, engineering and testing in 10-67868761, Fax: 86-10-67868765, E-mail: service@e-cchina ments penetrate South American markets faster and more Western European languages. For additional information, .com, Web: www.e-cchina.com efficiently. Trust our expertise and leave your software/web- please contact us. site localization with us. Follow-Up gathers a select group 2tr Soluções Globais Ltda. Rua Voluntários da Pátria, 45 Sala 401, Celer Soluciones, S.L. of translation, localization, DTP, engineering and project Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 22270-000, Brazil, 55-21-2266-6449, Fax: 55-21- Translation — Technology — Quality management specialists to always exceed your company’s 2286-1694, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.2tr.com.br Languages All major European languages Description Celer requirements of high quality and time-to-market. Our areas

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of expertise include IT, telecom, finance, ERP, marketing, translation and localization of manuals, websites and bro- differentiate one translation agency from another. We medicine and pharmaceuticals. chures. With over 15 years’ experience, ICD provides 100% stand apart by taking the most proactive approach to Follow-Up Av. Presidente Wilson 165, Sala 1308, Rio de Janeiro, reliability, quality and on-time delivery. Our team includes quality in the industry, utilizing stringent project manage- RJ 20030-020 Brazil, 55-21-2524-2994, Fax: 55-21-2210-5472, ATA-accredited translators who are native speakers, subject ment procedures, offering one of the most aggressive rate E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.follow-up.com.br matter experts and project managers. Using the latest tools, structures available and applying a sincere dedication to ICD maintains translation memories that shorten project providing the best possible service. cycles and improve product consistency. ICD — translating LinguaLinx Language Solutions, Inc. 650 Franklin Street, Suite 502, your company into a global success. Schenectady, NY 12305, 518-388-9000, Fax: 518-388-0066, E-mail: International Communication by Design, Inc. 1726 North 1st [email protected], Web: www.lingualinx.com Street, Milwaukee, WI 53212, 414-265-2171, Fax: 414-265-2101, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.icdtranslation.com ForeignExchange Translations Language 42 languages and growing Description ForeignEx- change is the global leader in providing translation services to life sciences companies. We work with many of the biggest pharmaceutical companies, medical-device manufacturers, biotech companies and CROs. Our proprietary Multilingual McElroy Translation Co. KERN Global Language Services Languages All Description Experience: 35 years of indus- Compliance Process combines expert linguists, best-of-breed Your language partner technology and measurable translation quality in a process that try success providing legal, technical, medical and business Languages All Description KERN Global Language Services translation and website localization. Client Commitment: is both robust and completely scalable, ensuring your projects is a leading provider in the area of global communication are finished on time and within budget. For more information Close communication with clients to establish schedules with over 35 offices worldwide. With more than 30 years of and project benchmarks. Quality, price and service are the on how we can help meet your translation requirements or for experience, our services include translation and interpret- a quote on your next translation project, please contact us di- cornerstones of our client relationships. Human Expertise: ing in all languages; software, multimedia and website lo- Translators and editors are selected based on experience and rectly or visit our website at www.fxtrans.com calization; terminology management; multilingual desktop ForeignExchange Translations 411 Waverley Oaks Road, Suite professional skills testing in subject matter and language 315, Waltham, MA 02452, 866-398-7267, 781-893-0013, Fax: 781- publishing; and individual and corporate language train- pairs. Clients have dedicated technical support, account and 893-0012, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.fxtrans.com See ing in all major languages. KERN has established itself as project management throughout every project. Technology: ad on page 24 a preferred insourcing and outsourcing solution provider Selecting and building technology is based on its value to our for language services. We serve clients in all industry sec- clients’ projects. Will it improve turn time, cost savings, com- tors, including the automotive, medical, pharmaceutical, munication, product quality or workflow processes? chemical, IT and financial services industries. To learn more McElroy Translation Co. 910 West Avenue, Austin, TX 78701, 800- about us, please visit www.e-kern.com 531-9977, 512-472-6753, Fax: 512-472-4591, E-mail: sales@mcelroy KERN Global Language Services translation.com, Web: www.mcelroytranslation.com See ad on page 16 USA 230 Park Avenue, Suite 1517, New York, NY 10169, 212-953- 2070, Fax: 212-953-2073, E-mail: [email protected] Hermes Traducciones y Europe Kurfuerstenstrasse 1, 60486 Frankfurt/Main, Germany, 49- Servicios Lingüísticos, S.L. 69-7560730, Fax: 49-69-751353, E-mail: [email protected] Languages Spanish, Portuguese (Continental and Brazilian), China Right Emperor Commercial Building, Unit B, 11/F, 122-126 English, French, Italian, German and other languages on de- Wellington Street, Central, Hong Kong, SAR China, 852-2850-4455, mand Description Established in 1991, Hermes Traducciones Fax: 852-2850-4466, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.e-kern.com is a leading Spanish translation company, specializing in soft- Medical Translations Only ware and hardware localization and also undertaking a broad Languages All European languages and Japanese Description range of other translation projects. Comprehensive in-house MediLingua is one of the few medical translation special- translation teams include translators, reviewers and linguists ists in Europe. We only do medical. We provide all European with an expertise in Spanish and Portuguese, a knowledge of languages (31 today and counting) and Japanese as well as CAT tools, and a commitment to deliver cost-efficient, reliable translation-related services to manufacturers of medical de- and high-quality services to customers. Hermes Traducciones Lido-Lang Technical Translations vices, instruments, in vitro diagnostics and software; pharma- is a member of the International Committee for the creation ceutical and biotechnology companies; medical publishers; of the European Quality Standard for Translation Services. Languages All Description Established in Poland in 1991, Lido-Lang has expertise in technical translations into national and international medical organizations; and other Hermes Traducciones also organizes university courses on lo- customers in the medical sector. Projects include the translation calization and translation. Central and Eastern European languages. We also possess in-depth experience in the following fields: economics, of documentation for medical devices, surgical instruments, Hermes Traducciones y Servicios Lingüísticos, S.L. C/ Cólquide, 6 hospital equipment and medical software; medical information o law, medicine and IT, providing translations in nearly all - planta 2 - 3. I, Edifi cio “Prisma”, 28230 Las Rozas, Madrid, Spain, 34- for patients, medical students and physicians; scientific articles; 916-407640, Fax: 34-916-378023, E-mail: hermestr@hermestrans European and Asian language combinations. Our global press releases; product launches; clinical trial documentation; .com, Web: www.hermestrans.com See ads on pages 43, 47 network of more than 1,000 approved and highly qualified medical news; and articles from medical journals. translators, our comprehensive project management pro- MediLingua Medical Translations BV Poortgebouw, Rijnsbur- ISO 9001:2000 Certified Translation Services cesses which cover translations, proofreading, editing and gerweg 10, 2333 AA Leiden, The Netherlands, 31-71-5680862, Fax: Languages All major languages Description Idem Translations, desktop publishing (QuarkXPress, InDesign, PageMaker, 31-71-5234660, E-mail: [email protected], Web: Inc., is a full-service translation/localization company, special- FrameMaker), and our experience with CAT Tools (TRA- www.medilingua.com See ad on page 61 izing in the life sciences, legal and IT industries since 1983. DOS, SDLX) allow us to provide a premium quality ser- Our expert translation teams combine linguistic excellence vice in accordance with the provisions of ISO 9001:2000 with strong backgrounds in a variety of fields. We maintain standard to which we were certified in May 2005. specialized client glossaries and memory databases to ensure Lido-Lang Technical Translations ul. Walerego Slawka 3, 30-653 consistent terminology. Our ISO 9001:2000-certified transla- Krakow, Poland, 48-2-2546-123, Fax: 48-12-2546-122, E-mail: offi [email protected], Web: www.lidolang.com tion and quality processes guarantee a service that meets the Merrill Brink International highest industry standards. We offer a unique combination of Languages All Description With one of the largest full-time, industry-specific experience, knowledgeable translation teams in-house staffs of professional translators and 60 locations and friendly, client-oriented service. worldwide, we’re ready to handle the largest multilingual Idem Translations, Inc. 550 California Avenue, Suite 310, Palo Alto, projects accurately and efficiently. We have 25 years of expe- CA 94306, 650-858-4336, Fax: 650-858-4339, E-mail: info@idem translations.com, Web: www.idemtranslations.com See ad on page 67 rience working with a broad range of leading global compa- nies and are able to provide clients with turnkey, integrated LinguaLinx Language Solutions, Inc. language solutions. Working with the latest tools for enhanc- Languages All Description LinguaLinx is a full-service ing the quality and efficiency of their work, our teams deliver translation and localization agency specializing in the ad- some of the fastest turnaround times in the industry. Talk to aptation of marketing and communications material into us about service beyond the expected for translation, local- most of the world’s languages. Our enterprise language ization, technical writing, design and formatting, electronic solutions range from glossary development and mainte- delivery, printing and distribution. Internet job initiation. International Communication by Design, Inc. nance to translation memory deployment and global con- Merrill Brink International 6100 Golden Valley Road, Minneapolis, Languages All major languages, including double-byte tent management. In today’s highly competitive, global MN 55422, 763-591-1977, Fax: 763-542-9138, E-mail: info@ Description An ATA member, ICD delivers accurate environment, it is becoming increasingly difficult to merrillbrink.com, Web: www.merrillbrink.com See ad on page 4

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require accuracy, measurable productivity and excellence Translations.com in communication. How can one firm specialize in areas Languages All Description Translations.com provides such as high technology, medical products and technical software and website localization, as well as enterprise mt-g medical translation manufacturing? By blazing the path in translation since language solutions, to clients in virtually every major 1979, we utilize knowledgeable translators in the United industry. Translations.com’s business services are focused Quality and Reliability for Our Clients States, Europe and Asia in every field and every specialty. on the strategic needs of organizations seeking to com- Languages All Description mt-g provides medical and Services include technical translation, software localiza- municate and conduct business in international markets. pharmaceutical translations of the highest quality. Specialist tion and multilingual website development. Our customers Translations.com has an established global presence on translations, localization, DTP/layouting, technical docu- from Ametek to Unisys like the fact that we function as an three continents and continues to pioneer new techniques mentation, project management, process optimization and extension of their teams. and technologies for the rapid development of multilin- consulting plus the innovative software products mt-24 and One Planet 820 Evergreen Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15209, 888- gual business solutions. For more information, visit the global-term form the main areas of our expertise. mt-g has 677-1010, Fax: 412-632-1071, E-mail: [email protected], Web: Translations.com website, www.translations.com, or e-mail www.one-planet.net See ads on pages 35, 61 become one of the most successful companies for specialist the company at [email protected] medical and pharmaceutical translations. Leading manufac- Translations.com Three Park Avenue, New York, NY 10016, 212- turers all over the world put their trust in mt-g. Top-quality 689-1616, Fax: 212-685-9797, E-mail: [email protected], Web: services coupled with the latest communication media set the www.translations.com See ad on page 28 benchmark. This expertise defines mt-g’s service know-how: quality and reliability for our clients. Translations are a mat- ter of trust. Challenge us. We look forward to it. mt-g medical translation GmbH & Co. KG Eberhard-Finckh- Translation and localization into Polish Strasse 55, 89075 Ulm, Germany, 49-731-17-63-97-42, Fax: 49-731- Language Polish Description Ryszard Jarza Translations is an 17-63-97-50, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.mt-g.com established provider of specialized Polish translation, localiza- tion and DTP services, primarily for life sciences, IT, auto- TripleInk Multilingual Communications motive, refrigeration and other technology sectors. We work Languages All major commercial languages Description As a with multilanguage vendors and directly with documentation multilingual communications agency, TripleInk has provided departments of large multinational customers. Our in-house industrial and consumer products companies with precise team (12 full-time specialists) is comprised of experienced translation and multilingual production services for audio- linguists with medical, engineering and IT backgrounds. We visual, online and print media since 1991. Our experience in guarantee a high standard of quality while maintaining flex- adapting technical documentation and marketing communi- NCS Enterprises, L.L.C. ibility, unparalleled responsiveness and reliability. cation materials covers a wide range of industries, including Languages All Description With NCS you’ll find that the focus Ryszard Jarza Translations ul. Barlickiego 23/22, 50-324 Wroclaw, biomedical and health care; building and construction; finan- Poland, 48-601-728018, Fax: 48-71-3414441, E-mail: info@jarza cial services; food and agriculture; high-tech and manufactur- is on our clients and their translation projects. From the small- .com.pl, Web: www.jarza.com.pl See ad on page 61 est product label requiring desktop publishing to the largest, ing; and hospitality and leisure, as well as government and multilingual, online help text, our project managers will make nonprofit organizations. Using a total quality management the process smooth and painless. We find the right team of process and state-of-the-art software and equipment, our team native-speaker professional translators and editors with indus- of foreign language professionals delivers the highest quality try-specific knowledge for each project. Our working knowl- translations in a cost-effective and time-efficient manner. edge of all types of software makes sure the translations are TripleInk 60 South 6th Street, Suite 2600, Minneapolis, MN 55402, delivered as required. Even with being ISO 9001:2000-com- 612-342-9800, 800-632-1388, Fax: 612-342-9745, E-mail: info@ tripleink.com, Web: www.tripleink.com pliant and using the latest technology, it’s about the people, Skrivanek Translation Services communication and commitment to service. Call us at 412- Languages All, with a focus on Central and Eastern Europe 278-4590 to see how this translates into quality. Description Skrivanek is a leading language-service provider focusing on translation, localization and language teaching. Es- NCS Enterprises, L.L.C. 1222 Hope Hollow Road, 2nd Floor, TRANSLATION TOOLS Carnegie, PA 15106, 412-278-4590, Fax: 412-278-4595, E-mail: tablished in the Czech Republic in 1994, it has quickly achieved [email protected], Web: www.ncs-pubs.com See ad on page 31 a dominant position on the Central European translation mar- ket, creating a network of outlets in 51 European cities, and is continuing to expand. With a staff of professional translators and experienced project managers, software engineers and pro- grammers, Skrivanek is able to provide translation and localiza- tion services in any language and has built up a diverse clientele, including Hewlett-Packard, Nikon, Kraft Foods and L’Oreal. Its Applications Technology, Inc. quality strategy is backed up by EN ISO 9001:2001 certification. Multiple Platforms Nova Language Services Skrivanek Translation Services, Ltd. Nad Zaloznou 499/6, 180 Languages All Description Machine Translation (MT) sys- Languages All Description Located in Spain, Nova Language 00 Prague 8, Czech Republic, 420-233-320-560, Fax: 420-224- tems (TranSphere): Fully automated (parsing + statistics), Services provides translation and interpreting services fo- 321-556, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.skrivanek.com special-domain dictionary stacking/update. Language pairs: cusing on health sciences, especially for medical, technical, See ad on page 54 English, Arabic, Turkish, Persian, Dari, Pashto, Korean, Chi- regulatory affairs and communication departments of health nese, Japanese, Hebrew, German, French, Italian, Spanish, care companies. The documents that we regularly deal with Portuguese, Russian, Polish, Ukrainian and Dutch. Cross include marketing authorization applications, SPCs, prod- language pairs new releases: Arabic-French/Arabic-German/ uct monographs, clinical trial protocols, SOPs, technical Turkish-German. Translation Memory: Statistical parallel cor- reports, manufacturing guides, scientific publications and pora-based system decoupled/integrated with MT. Webtrans: medical devices, among others. Major European pharma- Web page translation — target language page reconstructed ceutical companies have come to depend on the quality with hyperlinks, images, applets, objects and embedded of our services when looking for language solutions, from Syntes Language Group, Inc. scripts. MT API: For MT system integration (all languages translating documents to creating audiovisual products, and Languages All Description Syntes Language Group is a with various solutions). NameFinder: Proper noun detection for technical management of conferences. The quality of our leading quality provider of customized language solutions (languages with no capitalization). MLIR (Multilingual Infor- services has been certified under ISO 9001:2000. to business, government and professional clients. We de- mation Retrieval): retrieval of multilingual content, including Nova Language Services c/ Còrsega, 371, planta 5ª, 08037 liver a full line of service in translation, interpreting and query translation, morphological and thematic searches (geo- Barcelona, Spain, 34-93-4126500, Fax: 34-93-3175625, E-mail: conference coordination; product, software and website graphic, personal, corporate) name/event combinations. [email protected], Web: www.nova-transnet.com See ad localization; desktop publishing; multimedia production Applications Technology, Inc. 6867 Elm Street, Suite 300, McLean, on page 11 and voiceovers; and consultation in both project-specific VA 22101, 703-821-5000, Fax: 703-821-5001, E-mail: info@ and long-term planning for the incorporation of foreign apptek.com, Web: www.apptek.com language elements into your business. For 15 years, we’ve offered proven expertise in all major fields of industry, Idiom Technologies delivered by accomplished, experienced professionals. All Multiple Platforms of this means that you get the ultimate in customer care Languages More than 120 Description Idiom Technologies and the best value for your project dollars. optimizes the globalization supply chain by aligning global One Planet Syntes Language Group, Inc. 7465 East Peakview Avenue, Centen- enterprises, language service providers and translators. Award- Languages All Description What makes One Planet differ- nial, CO 80111, 888-779-1288, 303-779-1288, Fax: 303-779-1232, winning WorldServer™ software solutions expand market ent? A deep understanding of corporate culture. Our clients E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.syntes.com See ad on page 41 reach and accelerate multilingual communication with a proven

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platform for automating translation and localization processes. a division of SDL International, is the world’s largest pro- Idiom works with global organizations including Adobe, Au- vider of trusted technology solutions for global informa- todesk, Continental Airlines, eBay, Motorola and Travelocity tion management (GIM), which benefit corporations and to cost-effectively translate global websites and applications, institutions, language service providers and freelance trans- streamline software localization and delivery, and speed time- lators worldwide. SDL has over 130,000 software licenses to-market for international product documentation. Idiom deployed across the translation supply chain and has dem- Solutions for Terminology, also partners with consulting firms, systems integrators and onstrated proven ROI in over 150 enterprise solution in- Full-text and Bitext Management technology vendors to help customers achieve high-quality stallations. SDL delivers innovative software products that Windows and Web results and maximize existing enterprise infrastructure. accelerate global content delivery and maximize language Idiom Technologies, Inc. 200 Fifth Avenue, Waltham, MA 02451, Languages Windows: All Roman alphabet; LogiTerm- translation productivity. The new launch of SDL Trados WebPlus: Unicode Description A single software package 781-464-6000, Fax: 781-464-6100, E-mail: [email protected], Synergy 2006 empowers enterprises to efficiently manage Web: www.idiominc.com See ad on page 64 to manage your terminology and databanks. Efficient and translation projects across multiple suppliers and ensure effective consultation of terms and texts. The most robust total visibility of all project elements across the entire trans- alignment tool on the market. More consistent use of ter- lation supply chain. minology and phraseology in-house and by freelancers. In- SDL International 5700 Granite Parkway, Suite 410, Plano, TX ternal and external repetition detection and pretranslation. 75024, 904-683-9259, Fax: 904-683-9259, E-mail: naproductsales The web version allows access to your terminology, bitexts @sdl.com, Web: www.sdl.com See ad on page 92 and documents by translators, writers and subcontractors from anywhere in the world. The best of both worlds… Terminotix Inc. 240 Bank Street, Suite 600, Ottawa, ON, K2P 1X4 TextBase meets Translation Memory Canada, 613-233-8465, Fax: 613-233-3995, E-mail: termino@ Multiple Platforms terminotix.com, Web: www.terminotix.com See ad on page 67 Languages All Unicode languages Description MultiTrans 4 is an innovative software solution integrating TextBase Trans- Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation (Required by 39 USC 3685) lation Memory (TM) with best-in-class terminology manage- 1. Publication Title: MultiLingual. 2. Publication Number: 1523-0309. 3. Filing Date: ment. The unique and revolutionary text alignment capabilities SYSTRAN 9/29/2006. 4. Issue Frequency: Monthly except Apr+May, Jul+Aug, Oct+Nov bi- of the TextBase TM allow unlocking linguistic assets by rapidly Multiple Platforms monthly. 5. Number of Issues Published Annually: 9. 6. Annual Subscription Price: creating very large TextBase TMs and extracting relevant termi- Languages40 language combinations Description SYSTRAN $58 in US; $85 International. 7. Mailing Address of Known Offi ce of Publication: nology. MultiTrans 4 deploys linguistic assets through desktop is the market leading provider of language translation soft- 319 North First Avenue, Suite 2, Sandpoint, ID 83864-1403. 8. Mailing Address of Headquarters: Same. 9. Publisher: Donna Parrish; Editor: Donna Parrish, at ad- and centralized enterprise applications for authors, project ware products and for the desktop, enterprise and internet dress above. 10. Owner: MultiLingual Computing, Inc., at address above. 11. Known managers, in-house translators and revisors, LSPs and freelanc- that facilitate communication in 40 language combinations bondholders, mortgagees and other security holders owning or holding 1% or more ers. MultiTrans 4 is a value-added alternative to conventional and in 20 domains. With over three decades of expertise, re- of total amount of bonds, mortgages or other securities: None. 12: N/A. 13. Publi- TM and is widely adopted by corporations, institutions, gov- search and development, SYSTRAN’s software is the choice cation Title: MultiLingual. 14. Issue Date for Circulation Data below: October/No- ernments, LSPs and freelancers in over 30 countries, including of leading global corporations, portals and public agencies. vember 2006. 15. Extent and Nature of Circulation (Average No. Copies Each Issue the Translation Bureau of the Government of Canada, several During Preceding 12 Months followed by Actual No. Copies of Single Issue Nearest Use of SYSTRAN products and solutions enhances multi- Filing Date). 15a. Total number of Copies (Net press run): 4036, 3550. 15b. Paid and/ United Nations’ organizations, Ford, Pfizer and Kraft. lingual communication and increases user productivity and or Requested Circulation: 15b1. Paid/Requested Outside-County Mail Subscriptions MultiCorpora 102-490 St. Joseph Boulevard, Gatineau, QC, J8Y 3Y7 time-savings for B2E, B2B and B2C markets as they deliver Stated on Form 3541: 1173, 1335. 15b2. Paid In-County Subscriptions: 0, 0. 15b3. Canada, 819-778-7070, 877-725-7070, Fax: 819-778-0801, E-mail: real-time language solutions for search, content manage- Sales Through Dealers and Carriers, Street Vendors, Counter Sales, and Other Non- [email protected], Web: www.multicorpora.com USPS Paid Distribution: 1657, 1355. 15b4. Other Classes Mailed Through the USPS: ment, online customer support, intra-company communi- 0, 0. 15c. Total Paid and/or Requested Circulation: 2830, 2690. 15d. Free Distribu- cations, and e-commerce. tion by Mail. 15d1. Outside-County as Stated on Form 3541: 0, 0. 15d2. In-County SYSTRAN as Stated on Form 3541: 0, 0. 15d3. Other Classes Mailed Through the USPS: 197, North America 9333 Genesee Avenue, Plaza Level, Suite PL1, San 150. 15e. Free Distribution Outside the Mail: 0, 0. 15f. Total Free Distribution: 197, 150. 15g. Total Distribution: 3027, 2840. 15h. Copies not Distributed: 1009, 710. Diego, CA 92121, 858-457-1900, Fax: 858-457-0648 15i. Total: 4036, 3550. 15j. Percent Paid and/or requested Circulation: 93.49, 94.72. Europe Paroi Nord - La Grande Arche, 1, Parvis de la Défense, 92044 I certify that the statements made by me above are correct and complete. Donna Paris La Défense Cedex, France, 33-825-80-10-80, Fax: 33-1-46-98- Parrish, Publisher, 9/29/2006. Number of readers of online digital version (as of SDL TRADOS Technologies 00-59, E-mail: [email protected], Web: www.systransoft.com reported issue, in addition to print): 5324. Average Readers per Printed Copy: 2.95. Languages All Description SDL TRADOS Technologies, See ad on page 50 Total Readership: 11,877, 15,705.

ADVERTISER INDEX ACP Traductera 59 Lingo Systems 14 SEPROTEC 17 across Systems GmbH 2 Lionbridge 3 Skrivanek Translation Services, Ltd. 54 ADAPT Localization Services 74 The Localization Institute 9 STAR Group America, LLC 91 Alchemy Software Development Ltd. 68 Logoscript 43 Symbio 19 All Tasks Traduções Técnicas 43, 67 Logrus International Corporation 48 Syntes Language Group, Inc. 41 Binari Sonori srl 38 McElroy Translation Co. 16 SYSTRAN 50 Celer Soluciones, S.L. 47 MediLingua BV 61 Tek Translation International 36 Common Sense Advisory, Inc. 15 Merrill Brink International 4 Terminotix Inc. 67 CPSL 66 milengo Inc. 10 TM Marketplace LLC 19 E4NET 82 Moravia Worldwide 18 Tradnologies 43 EuroGreek Translations Limited 67 NCS Enterprises, L.L.C. 31 Translated in Argentina 40 ForeignExchange Translations 24 Nova Language Services 11 Translation Automation User Society 13 Globalization & Localization Association 60 NovaWord 46 Translations.com 28 Golden View (China) Technologies Inc. 61 Ocean Translations S.R.L. 43 TSG — Glotas 41 Hermes Traducciones 43, 47 One Planet 35, 61 Ushuaia Solutions 39 Idea Factory Languages 41 PASS Engineering GmbH 7 VistaTEC 33 Idem Translations, Inc. 67 Ryszard Jarza Translations 61 Welocalize 21 Idiom Technologies, Inc. 64 Sajan 58 WHP 52 Jonckers Translation & Engineering s.a. 12 Schaudin.com 84 Language Engineering Company 43 SDL International 92

www.multilingual.com December 2006 MultiLingual | 89

81-89 Buyer'sGuide #84.indd 89 11/1/06 10:25:42 AM Teddy Bengtsson

Argentina – a reality check Takeaway

Argentina is growing in demand as a place to do As a potential buyer, make sure to choose a partner who meets Spanish translations. The country has all the key your requirements in terms of capability and capacity. If you need scale, fl exibility, reliability and a full set of services, you probably fundamentals for becoming an industry leader need a solid company infrastructure, not just a company name Afor translation and localization, but is it really the and a good-looking website. promised land? Time for a reality check. Compare like with like when it comes to pricing. A freelance net- work can operate at a fraction of the cost compared to an enter- The plus points are many, as I discovered when researching the prise operation. As one of the three GALA companies in Argentina market four years ago. I eventually exchanged a comfortable life with more than 10 employees, Idea Factory Languages, Inc. (IFL), in Europe in favor of pioneering a language service business here is frequently faced with clients making pricing comparisons with in Argentina, so you can easily conclude that in my opinion the “other suppliers in our market.” It seems odd to directly compare advantages far outweigh any drawbacks. Much has been written pricing from a company such as IFL that has close to 50 employees about these potential benefi ts, including the growing signifi cance with a team of three freelancers. It is, of course, up to my company of Spanish as a world language, the well-educated resource base, to sell its services on its own merits and resist being drawn into the cultural alignment with Europe, the convenient time zone for pricing competition against smaller operators with lower overheads. North America and so on — not to mention the low cost, of course. There is a danger, however, that a lack of buyer awareness can lead I have no intention to discourage language services buyers from to misunderstandings and unsatisfactory results and thus be detri- looking toward Argentina — remember, I have a vested interest in mental to the development of the market as a whole. bringing business here. Still, an emerging market inevitably faces The cost advantage held by Argentina remains signifi cant and its challenges, and the language industry here is very much a “work looks set to continue for the foreseeable future, although we in progress.” It is dominated by individuals and small groups, and should expect some gradual erosion over time. Infl ation fi gures companies with an enterprise infrastructure are still few and far be- in excess of 10% annually will put pressure on pricing, especially tween. A search in GALA’s membership database reveals that among for larger companies as offi ce rentals and employee overheads are the 13 Argentine companies listed, only three have more than 10 increasing even faster. employees. The others have between one and ten, with the average My advice for buyers is to view Argentina not as a bargain- in this group most likely very close to the former, as the only em- basement location but rather as a place where it is possible to fi nd ployees tend to be those with an ownership stake in the business. In excellent value. High-quality service will always be a marketable contrast, the same search in Spain suggests that 19 of the 26 listed commodity and represents what in the long term is in the best GALA member companies have more than 10 employees. interest of clients. The challenge faced by the market is to fi nd a Employment and career opportunities are thus limited to within path that combines cost effi ciency and sustainability. Argentina’s very few companies. Many translation graduates work as lan- future for translation and localization depends on gaining in- guage teachers, bilingual secretaries, or in-house translators in ternational reputation and recognition, something that can only companies outside the language industry, such as banks, law fi rms be achieved by establishing a credible industry led by credible and so on. Freelancer forums on the web bring the lure of po- companies. M tential high earnings by applying rates that are excessive locally, but may still be seen as attractive internationally. In reality, many After 15 years of localization experience in management roles discover a market with limited cross-learning and development with IT companies such as Oracle, Microsoft and Aldus, Teddy opportunities, as well as high levels of fi nancial and professional Bengtsson is CEO and founding partner in Idea Factory Languages, uncertainty. Inc., which has its production center in Buenos Aires, Argentina. For the market to normalize, translation buyers need to distinguish between the services offered by individual freelanc- Takeaway is an opportunity to comment on language-industry issues. ers or cooperatives, small businesses and full-service companies. Contributions are welcome. Send them to [email protected]

90 | MultiLingual December 2006 [email protected]

90 Takeaway #84.indd 90 11/1/06 10:26:43 AM Different Perspective – New Insights

Successful businesses are increasingly integrating electronics and software into their products as well as increasing product diversity in response to the growing demand for customized products and the pressure to reduce time to market.

Conventionally produced technical documentation can no longer keep pace with the complexity of the new generation of products. Only by constant development and ongoing innovation in the field of technical communication and information management can customers, partners and suppliers around the world be provided with the latest information in all languages and media. STAR Group America, LLC 5001 Mayfield Rd, Suite 220 To overcome these challenges, STAR looks at problems from a different perspective to Lyndhurst, OH 44124 gain new understanding of the requirements. We develop concepts and methods, tools Phone: +1 (216) 691 7827 and solutions that ensure you will have open, future-proof information structures that Fax: +1 (216) 691 8910 can reveal new perspectives and possibilities for the communication of your product E-mail: [email protected] information. www.us.star-group.net

Your Single-Source Partner for Information Services and Tools

Austria
Brazil
Czech Republic
Egypt
Finland
France
Germany
Hungary
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91 Star ad #84.indd 91 11/1/06 10:27:37 AM Work just got easier Announcing the release of

• Real-time project dashboards enable greater productivity • Drastically cut the set-up time for multiple-language projects • 360° project visibility allows complete view of all elements of translation projects • Share multipleTranslation Memories either offline or online

Includes

The only translation management solution that eliminates 100% in Context review. SDL PerfectMatch™Technology,designed to save customers thousands,in just minutes.

Now available at www.sdl.com/synergy

92 SDL ad #84 92 11/1/06 10:28:47 AM