there are many commonly used industrial terms in the software localization industry, and non-professionals or newcomers who have just entered the industry are often confused by these terms. In addition, the software localization industry belongs to the information industry. With the rapid development of information technology, new terms are constantly produced. Therefore, even professionals with many years of experience in localization industry need to track and learn these new terms.
This article lists the most commonly used localization terms, some of which are also widely used in the general information technology industry. Briefly explain these commonly used terms and give corresponding English.
an accelerate key or shortcut key. Often used in Windows applications, press a series of key combinations at the same time to complete a specific function. For example, Ctrl+P is the shortcut key for printing.
accented character. For example, add stress markers above or below Latin characters, for example,? . There is no such problem for Chinese characters.
alignment. The process of creating a translation database by comparing source language documents with translated documents. This process can be completed semi-automatically by using translation memory tools.
bi-directional language. For Hebrew or Arabic languages, words are displayed from right to left, while English words or trademark symbols are displayed from left to right. For Chinese, it is displayed from left to right.
build. An internal version compiled for testing during software development. A large-scale software project usually needs to test multiple internal versions, so it needs to compile multiple versions for testing as planned.
build environment. A collection of column files used to compile software applications.
build sanity check. Software compilers quickly perform basic function checks on the just compiled version, and after passing the checks, testers conduct formal detailed tests.
cascading style sheet -CSS. An external document that defines the display style of files such as html.
character set. Character mapping from writing system to binary code set. For example, the ANSI character set uses an 8-bit length to encode a single character. Unicode, on the other hand, uses a length of 16 bits to indicate a character.
simplified Chinese, Japanese, Korean, traditional Chinese (CJKT). It can also be expressed as SC/JP/KO/TC or CHS/JPN/KOR/CHT, which is the abbreviation of simplified Chinese, Japanese, Korean and traditional Chinese.
code page. Character set and character encoding scheme. For each language character, it is represented by a numerical index.
collateral. A relatively small entry in a software localization project. For example, quick reference cards, disk labels, product packaging boxes, marketing materials, etc.
computer-aided translation-cat. Computer aided translation. A technical term that automatically or supports translation from one natural language to another by computer technology.
Concatenation. Add words or strings to form a long character transmission mode.
Controlled language. A subset of natural languages, often used in the writing of technical documents, using more structured and easy-to-understand languages.
cosmetic testing. Application user interface testing.
desktop publishing-DTP. The process of using computer software to format and style documents, graphics and images for printing and output.
double bytes character set-DBCS. A character coding system that represents a character with a length of two bytes. Chinese, Japanese and Korean are all represented by double-byte character sets.
double-byte enablement. In the international design of the software, it supports the processing ability of Asian double-byte characters such as input, display and output.
dynamic web site. A website that combines database, style sheet, scripting language and HTML dynamic reality webpage content.
Extensible Markup Language-XML. A language used for language analysis, which creates a custom markup for a specific purpose. XML is a subset of SGML, specially designed for Web language.
French/Italian/German/Spanish (French/Italian/German/Spanish-figs). Major European languages to be considered when localizing software.
full match. The source text part is exactly the same as the sentence previously stored in the translation database tool.
functional testing. By running the software, test whether the function of the product meets the design requirements.
fuzzy matching. A method used in translation memory tools to identify the consistency between text fields and previously translated sentences.
globalization-g1n. Relevant business activities for entering the global market. Including the correct international design of software, software localization and integration, as well as the whole process of marketing, sales and support in the global market.
glossary. A translation comparison table containing keywords and phrases in source language and localization language for software translation/localization projects.
hard-coding. Localized characters directly embedded in the program source code. Hard-coded characters cannot be easily localized.
help compiler. Tool software for compiling online help documents. Compile source files and images such as HTML into searchable binary online help documents.
hot key. Underlined letters or numbers in menu commands and dialog box options. By pressing the Alt key and the underlined letters or numbers, you can open the machine or commands and options.
Hypertext Markup Language. A subset of SGML language. A set of identifiers is defined to control how the page content is displayed.
Input Method Editor-IME. An application tool for inputting local Chinese characters by pressing multiple keys of the keyboard. For Chinese characters, commonly used are Microsoft pinyin input method, standard input method, five-stroke font input method and so on.
internationalization-i18n. In the process of programming and document development, function and code design can deal with many languages and cultural traditions, so that it is not necessary to redesign the software engineering method of source code when creating different language versions.
international testing. Test method of software internationalization support and localization ability.
Kanji. Some Japanese characters from Chinese characters are exactly the same as the current Chinese characters, but they are pronounced in Japanese.
kick-off meeting. The meeting before the official start of a new localization project is generally attended by the main representatives of the original software developers and localization service providers. This paper mainly discusses the project plan, responsibilities of all parties, submission results, contact information and other contents closely related to the project.
layered graphic. In order to facilitate translation, the translatable text is stored separately in the image of the text layer.
reuse. In the process of translation/localization, the method of reusing and recycling the previously translated content.
language testing. Perform language-related content testing activities on localized products.
localization industry standard association-Lisa. Founded in Switzerland in 199, it has become the leading association of localization and internationalization industries, and has now joined more than 4 members. LISA's goal is to promote the development of localization and internationalization industries, and provide mechanisms and services to enable companies to exchange and * * * enjoy information on processes, tools, technologies and business models related to localization, internationalization and related entities.
localization-l1n. A software production activity that processes a product according to the needs of a specific country/region or language market to meet the special requirements of users in a specific market for language and culture.
localization kit. A series of file sets provided by software developers, which are packaged with files, tools and guidance documents. Before the localization project starts, the software developer provides it to the localization service provider.
localization testing. The activity of testing the language and user interface of localized software to ensure the quality of software localization.
localization vendor. Organizations that provide localization services, including software translation, software engineering, testing and project management.
machine translation-mt. Methods and techniques for automatic translation from one human language to another by using glossary, grammar and syntax techniques.
markup language. A collection of logos and tags combined with text, which will be processed by applications (such as HTML web browsers) and displayed in the correct form.
multi-byte character set. A character set where each character is represented by a single byte or two bytes.
multi-language vendor-MLV. A service provider that provides localization capabilities for multilingual software. Most multilingual service providers mainly focus on the project management of multilingual projects, which are composed of multiple branches and partners around the world.
national language support-NLS. Allows users to set software functions such as regions. Identify information such as language, date and time format used by users. It also includes fonts that support keyboard layout and specific languages.
outsourcing. For software localization, the activity of entrusting some localization tasks to a third party. Source software developers deliver software localization projects to localization service providers, and many localization service providers hand over translation work to freelance translators.
pseudo translation. The automatic or manual process of replacing translatable strings in software with long localized characters is mainly used to find potential problems when compiling and executing localized files.
quality assurance-QA. Steps and processes to ensure the quality of final products.
Request for quotation-RFQ. Quotation sent by software developers to localization service providers, including project contents and quotations.
Return of Investment-ROI. Indicators for judging project input cost and benefit return.
adjusting. Adjust the size and position of the translated dialog box elements, such as buttons, list boxes, static controls, etc., to ensure the complete and beautiful display of the translated characters.
resource dynamic link library (Resource-only .dll). A dynamic link library that contains resources that can be localized, such as menus, dialogs, icons, and screen prompts.
screen capture, screenshot). The process of capturing software interfaces such as menus and dialogs by using image capture software.
Post Project Report-PPR. Project documents on project implementation, problems found and suggestions filled out by the main members of the software developers and software localization service providers. Fill in this report after completing the localization project.
proofreading. The process of checking the language and format of the translated document content is generally proofread by me who has rich experience in the localization company.
review. The process of language checking of translated documents is generally reviewed by experienced external product experts hired by localization companies or language experts of software developers.
Simplified Chinese-SC. Chinese characters, mainly used in Chinese mainland and Singapore, have simpler strokes than traditional Chinese characters.
simultaneous ship-simship. Source language software is released at the same time as localized software. To achieve simultaneous release, software localization must be synchronized with software development.
single language vendor-SLV. A localization service provider that can only provide one localization language service.
software consistency check. A quality assurance step. The translator compares the consistency of the software interface characters to be translated with the online help and document file character translation.
standard generalized markup language-sgml. An international standard for information exchange. In the document, the three-layer standard format of the document is defined by using the specified logo: structure, content and style.