Information About Software Translation
Many customers new to translation are confused by the terms «translation», «localization» and «internationalization.» Although each term describes a distinct process for multilingual software projects, translation and localization are often used almost interchangeably. This blog clears up the mystery around these basic concepts, which are closely related to one another.
Software translation is also known as «software globalization.» In order to «translate» software into other languages, you will probably need both internationalization (I18N) and localization (L10N) services. Most translation companies or language service providers (LSPs) use the term globalization for the combination of internationalization and localization.
The terms globalization, localization and internationalization are frequently abbreviated to numeronyms: for instance, I18n (where 18 stands for the number of letters between the first i and last n in internationalization.) The capital L in L10n helps to distinguish it from the «I» in I18n. You will note these abbreviations in parenthesis in the chart below.
What is software globalization?
Internationalization (I18n) is defined as the process of developing a program core whose feature design and code do not make assumptions based on a single language or locale and whose source base simplifies the creation of different language editions of a program. This involves enabling the back end of your software to handle different languages, character sets, currencies, submit form data, site search capabilities, etc. Internationalization can be highly involved, depending on the complexity of the software which is to be internationalized. In brief, it refers to the automatic rendering of an application in the user’s chosen language. Internationalization relates not only to displayed text in a software application, but also to numbers, date format, and currency values. Special symbols and alphabetical sorting in different languages bring interesting challenges with them.
Localization (L10N) is defined as the process of adapting a software application for a specific international market, which includes translating the user interface, resizing dialog boxes, customizing features, and testing results to ensure that the program still works in the target language as well as it did in the source language. Localization also involves the process of adapting internationalized software for a specific language or region by translating text and adding locale-specific components. As an example, localization may involve Brazilian Portuguese as a target language in contrast to the continental Portuguese language.
Key steps in software internationalization
Each translation agency or language services provider will have its own methods and best practices for software internationalization. The methodology that usually includes the following 4 steps:
- Discovery
- Assessment
- Implementation
- Testing