Simplicity can save you both time and money, especially when it comes to a software localization project. Looking for a few simple ways to keep the process streamlined and efficient? Think concatenation will solve all your problems or that you have enough room in your current design for translated text? Read on to see what simple steps can save your next project’s budget.
September signals the end of Summer and the start of classes, and for companies who follow Agile software development methodologies, this post welcomes you back to school, too. It’s time to become a student of localizing for global releases in an Agile development cycle.
So if you’ll pardon our extended metaphor, sprint your way onto Acclaro’s big yellow school bus and we’ll teach you seven simple lessons to help you ace your first big test when it comes to localizing releases within an Agile development environment.
After all, no one wants to be held back a grade while their competitors graduate to a wider global customer base.
Where software is concerned, agile development has a lot going for it: quick and frequent releases, adaptability to changing conditions, increased efficiencies for error correction, and more team involvement. However, hiccups in the process need to be addressed quickly by team members, no matter where in the world they may be. When you’ve got multilingual software to consider, you will want to make sure the process is as smooth as possible. Today’s post, and our newsletter article, cover some things to think about if you’re agile — and global.
If the idea of launching your software in multiple languages sounds mind-bogglingly complex, you’re right, it is. But like any project which seems daunting at the outset, a little mental metaphor for the steps involved can help package those complexities into something more manageable, and give you the clarity and motivation to get started.
In that spirit, this post dissects the software localization process to that most humble of domestic improvement projects: repainting a room. True, you won’t find yourself translating strings and cleaning code while you’re taping off the molding in your study, but three major steps in a painting project can help shed light on the major moves in a software localization launch.
So put on your overalls and let’s get ready to refresh your software with in a brand new (international!) color.
You’ve got a lot of things to think about when taking your mobile app global. Carriers, networks, bandwidth, languages, devices…it’s a lot to consider. You want your global users to have the same experience with your app as your domestic ones, right? Right. So where and how do you get started?
Well, since you’re already here, we’ve got some tips on how to make the process more user-friendly. Read on for our tips on just how to do that.
Everyone needs a little help sometimes. That’s why no software product release is complete without user assistance and support documentation. And any software release that includes multiple markets in multiple languages will, of course, require technical translation of the help section. User assistance documentation translation is usually is the last step before product release, yet this final stage of the release process is complex enough to warrant a process of its own, which can be costly and time consuming if you don’t plan for it. Here are some of our best tips for smoothing the process.
The goals of software localization are pretty clear cut: If you really want to capture the minds of consumers in new international markets, you must speak the language. For over a decade, Acclaro has done exactly that, helping brands large and small localize their software for markets across the globe.
But what’s really under the hood of a smooth-running software localization machine? Quite a bit! To make sure it all works together in perfect synchronicity, we bring an array of tools and talent to each project.
Curious about the nuts and bolts of software localization? Read on, and let our localization mechanics give you the executive tour.
Localized software, like its English counterpart, benefits from pre-launch testing to ensure a smooth release. You may need to look beyond your English testing scope, however, as different languages present their own testing challenges, and there may be code-level variables that need to be adjusted for specific global markets. In today's post, we will cover the most common types of testing we offer and why they're important.
Are you launching your next global app for Android? Android currently holds the lion’s share of global markets, with a whopping 59% of global operating system share and a healthy lead in device share. (Google revealed earlier this year that there are currently one million Android device activations and fifteen billion Google Play app downloads per day!)
One of the well-known downsides to Android is how fragmented its market is, being that it’s multi-carrier, multi-OS, multi-device, multi-screen resolution, etc. However, you can alleviate some of these challenges with a little preparation.
As you begin to craft a localization strategy for going global with your application, let’s take a look at four Android-specific tips that can help you plot your course.
If you're considering creating a mobile app but aren't sure if a global audience will respond, let us reassure you: they will. Mobile apps are hot, and especially so outside the US. In fact, a majority of the fastest-growing mobile markets are found beyond American soil, and mobile app localization has moved from nice-to-have to an absolute must.
However, localization of mobile apps requires some unique considerations, such as the screen size and how much "real estate" it will afford, how much your content will expand or contract in translation, fonts, styles, images, and the various operating systems on which your app will be displayed.
But fear not. Read on for our tips on how to tackle mobile app localization with confidence.
In this cost-savings blog series, we offer tips from our in-house localization experts on how to shave dollars off of your translation budget. Software localization can be especially unruly when it comes to managing costs. This post reviews four ways to set yourself up for serious savings and keep your software localization project on track with your finances.
2012 marks Acclaro’s 10th anniversary and we’re taking a look back at how the translation industry has changed over the past decade. This month, we’re all about software. Mobile devices, in particular, have changed the way software is developed and presented, and our localization and testing procedures change too, as more and more companies offer software to global users. Read on to find out more about the changes we’ve seen and how we’ve adapted.
Unless you work at the UN, real-time translation isn’t always easy to find. Mobile translation apps make it easy to take a translator with you wherever you go. Unlike language apps that teach you a foreign language, translator apps can help you have a face-to-face conversation in an unfamiliar tongue, decipher street signs, and decode foreign phrases without having to acquire an entirely new vocabulary.
When is a software localization project truly done? Is “satisfactory” in the eyes of your user truly enough to protect and promote your business globally? A savvy translation partner will make sure you’re covered in all aspects of going global with your software, not only with the basics of localization, but also with the devilish details described in today's post.
Complete software localization means taking the time to go beyond code prep, translation, editing, cultural analysis and mission-critical testing. In this post we’ll look at six often neglected aspects of software localization and explain why leaving these areas out of your localization project could be a costly mistake.
Launching your software in new languages within global markets doesn’t have to be a “break the bank” proposition. While many companies fear that localization will meet or exceed the costs of their English release, sensible strategic preparation, a little enlightened testing, and a streamlined process can help ensure your software localization project is on time and under budget.
In this post we’ll provide an overview of the top ten tips from our Q4 2011 newsletter article to help you tackle technical translation projects affordably. Taken directly from our experience working with clients on global releases, each tip is designed to minimize headaches and maximize your localization dollar.
When thinking about translation, we know idioms commonly used in English (like "it's raining cats and dogs" or "lame duck") are difficult to translate. But what about simpler things such as names and dates? As it turns out, they’re not so simple when it comes to software localization, as LinkedIn found out in this post on their website. With languages like Chinese, Japanese, and Russian you must understand not only new character sets, but also date ordering (month/day/year? year/day/month? day/month/year?) and even spacing — in our world, these fall under the umbrella term of "internationalization". Let’s take a proper look at proper names in translation.
A localized mobile application is a great way to reach your global customers. However, it's not always as simple a process as making sure your app's language matches that of your user's mobile device or smartphone. There are some things to think about on the development side, which we've neatly summed up in our full newsletter article from earlier this year.
The First Three Steps
of Software Localization
Now that you’ve decided to enter into the rich global software market (after internationalizing your product, of course), what’s next? Well, it’s a fascinating – and fairly complex – process. You’ll definitely want to partner with a localization company that’s skilled and experienced in adapting software to make it easy to use and appealing to your future customers around the world.
Let’s take a look at what goes on behind the scenes at your vendor as they localize your software. We’ll sketch out the first three steps below. And if you’re serious about your pending software localization project, we invite you to read our more thorough explanation here, complete with all six major steps.
Step
1: Preparation and Analysis
The first step is to identify the source files that contain the localizable
text, zip them up and send them off. Your source files may be in formats such
as java properties files, .net resx files, traditional windows resources, xml
or even just text or table formats. Your agency will prepare them for
translation, carefully locking down the non-translatable code to ensure that
the localized software functions exactly as it does in English.
If you’re developing, selling, or
marketing web-based software, standard desktop software, or mobile 
apps, you’ve
probably already heard about internationalization, and you know why it’s
important. If not (or if you’d like a quick refresher), read on.
Internationalization is the process through which you enable your software to handle the language and conventions of your target global markets. Internationalization wipes your product’s slate clean of language bias and removes the assumptions of a “default” culture.
Why is it so important to internationalize your product?
Once upon a time,
a chicken and a pig met and decided to open a restaurant that served only the
best ham and eggs in the land. The pig would supply the ham, an assignment she
took quite seriously as the ham would come literally off her own back. The
chicken would supply the eggs, naturally without the same sense of sacrifice as
our friend the pig.
This charming fable is often used to explain the characters involved with agile software development, with its continuous software releases, self-organizing teams, and fluid team assignments during sprint times.
Scrum masters and
facilitators, dev team members, and product owners are the pigs, with a lot of
skin in the game. Vendors, customers, and managers are the proverbial chickens,
who can 
continue their normal, day-to-day lives.
To understand how localization plays into agile software development, let's imagine that our chicken and pig will soon be opening a restaurant in Mexico that serves chicharrones and huevos.
How can they localize their product for the new language market in a way that makes sense? What questions do they need to answer ahead of time? And what role will each play in the process?
Read on for our quick take on the question of how to get your software localized when developing via the agile model. And get the whole story in this full-length article.
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