atw: Re: Translation and multi-language output - information required

Welcome aboard.

 

That's a tough one, Felicity. I'm looking forward to the replies. I hope
you get a lot more help than I can offer.

 

The immediate pitfalls I can see are the character fonts you're going to
need, especially for the Chinese and Korean versions. And, of course,
you'll want skilled translators so you don't end up with amusing and
potentially useless or damaging phrases. 

 

My experience in creating manuals (hardcopy only) that were
multi-language (primarily Japanese and English) that were created using
software off the ark to put the text around boilerplate graphics and
tables, one of the key issues was making sure each 'text box' was large
enough to take the text for the longest translation. If you're just
flowing text through the pages, it's not such an issue. If you want to
populate tables, graphics etc, it can be.

 

Cheers,

Terry

 

________________________________

From: austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Felicity Brand
Sent: Thursday, 5 November 2009 4:19 PM
To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: atw: Translation and multi-language output - information
required

 

Hi All,

 

I have been reading for a while, but this is my first post to the ATW
list. Please be gentle :-)

 

I am seeking information regarding processes and tools for translating
Help to other languages.

 

I work in the documentation team for a software company, and we will
soon need to produce our Help in Korean, Mandarin and German. This is
new for us.

 

We are going to embark on a project to determine the best solution for
us, including the right authoring tool (we currently use RoboHelp) and
3rd party translation services.

 

I'd like to consult the ATW brains trust for any information regarding
how to approach the translation process.

 

I am interested in hearing your experiences, and would greatly
appreciate knowing any potential pitfalls. Are there any Help authoring
tools that lend themselves to the translation process?

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

 

Felicity

felicity_brand@xxxxxxxxxxx

 

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