Translation software tools may be useful in company expansions

According to USA Today, although many companies decide to expand their businesses overseas, it is sometimes not as easy as it sounds. There are many obstacles in doing so, with one of the biggest challenges being a new language and culture.


SME Web recently reported that many companies that have expanded their businesses have seen the devastating effects of incorrect translations. For example, when the American video game Call of Duty was released in Japan, gamers in this Asian nation misunderstood how to play the game due to a translation error. In English, one character says, "Remember, no Russian." However, when this was translated to Japanese it said, "Kill 'em; they're Russians," leaving Japanese players mistakenly killing Russian characters in the game.


The news outlet stated that when companies are preparing to translate their texts, they should focus on more than getting the words right. Culture must also be taken into consideration. For example, when Colgate expanded into France they named their toothpaste Cue. Unfortunately, they did not know enough about French culture to know that this is also the name of a popular pornography magazine.


Corporate professionals who are planning to expand their businesses may want to invest in translation software tools before making an embarrassing grammar or spelling blunder. 

IPO Candidate WhiteSmoke Generates Revenue of $3.3 Million Last Quarter

Posted on GoArticles.com. See full article here

IPO Candidate WhiteSmoke Generates Revenue of $3.3 Million Last Quarter
By Katherine Belle
WhiteSmoke Inc., an English writing and translation software company seeking to go public in the U.S., published their latest numbers from quarter 1 of 2011 in the company's latest initial public offering prospectus on Monday, June 27th, 2011. The company offering is being underwritten by Rodman & Renshaw LLC and EarlyBirdCapital Inc., popular companies in the IPO scene.
WhiteSmoke has applied for Nasdaq listing under the ticker symbol “WHSM” while targeting the Education, Government and Business markets, all showing a growing demand for what this small hi-tech company offers. WhiteSmoke Inc. claims in their prospectus that though there are other companies they consider competitors in similar markets, they have yet to see anything similar to or at the level of their own solution. The Education, Government and Business markets are huge, and with the statistics in the “Industry” section of their prospectus showing the growing need for English as a common language on a worldwide scale, it seems this company has a bright future ahead of them.
The company has developed a PC solution that corrects grammar, spelling, style, punctuation and structure errors in texts as well as translates full texts and single words to and from nine languages. In addition, their product includes a Templates tab allowing the user to choose from a multitude of letter templates for instant use. A Mac version identical to their current PC version will be available by the end of this fiscal year. Also predicted to be launched by the end of this year is the WhiteSmoke Facebook application. In addition, applications for iPhone, iPad and Android are predicted to be launched by the end of 2012.
WhiteSmoke Inc., mentioned Monday that additional funding is needed to finance operations for the next 12 months. Evolution Venture Capital Fund, investors of WhiteSmoke Inc., have told the company that they are willing to provide the company with funding they require.
In addition to their flagship product, WhiteSmoke Writer, the company also offers a free trial version available for download together with toolbar applications from third-party monetization companies. Since the launch of this free product last year, it has become a huge revenue source for the company.
WhiteSmoke generated a total revenue of $3.3 million last quarter, a substantial grown from less than $1 million the year before and expect to continue to grow their operations by opening offices and hiring personnel worldwide.

The Importance of English to the Spanish Economy

Spain Increases English Lessons to Decrease Unemployment

Author: Katherine Belle

Spain Increases English Lessons to Decrease Unemployment

Spain currently has an unemployment rate of about 20%, which is twice as high as the European average. According to the New York Times, more and more Spaniards are searching for employment opportunities abroad. Unfortunately, many are experiencing difficulties due to poor foreign language skills, specifically their lack of knowledge of basic English. Many adults are returning to school to learn or improve their English or another foreign language.

While the current job seekers are having a hard time because of language barriers outside of Spain, education reforms are being made to ensure that future generations will not encounter such troubles. A third of Madrid's primary schools are bilingual, and by 2015 they are hoping at least half of the schools will be teaching more languages. In addition,  more and more schools have begun employing English speaking teachers.

Spain has a long way to go because in addition to struggling with vocabulary and pronunciation, even the campaign has poor grammar. The campaign to promote bilingual education boasts the slogan "Yes, we want!". Richard Vaughan, owner of Vaughn Systems, an English teaching company, estimates that less than five percent of graduates of engineering, law or business have even a working knowledge of English.

A useful tool to help improve one's English is WhiteSmoke Software. WhiteSmoke works with hi-end technology based on both statistical algorithms and NLP, or Natural Language Processing. This allows the software to actually learn how the human mind works when it comes to writing and better understand how to correct your mistakes. In addition, WhiteSmoke 2011 includes a full-text translator that allows you to translate to 9 different languages and a multilingual dictionary that translates single words and gives you usage examples of every word you translate, allowing you to see how your translated word is used in a sentence.  For those who want to improve their English, a Writing Review feature is available as well. The Writing Review gives you a detailed score of your original text with personalized improvement tips. WhiteSmoke 2011 with the WhiteSmoke Translator is a fantastic tool for those looking to improve their English.

 

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/economics-articles/spain-increases-english-lessons-to-decrease-unemployment-4898319.html

Google Translate API - True or False?!

While countless people all over the world prepare themselves for the day when Google Translate is no longer available in an API solution (supposedly in December), others refuse to do so and beg Google to reconsider.
Rumors are spreading that Google may have succumbed to the insane demand for their Translate API service and will continue to offer their Translate API - but for a price.
The question business people, marketers, developers and affiliates are asking all over the world is - so what's true?
Whatever the truth really is, Google has to give an official statement with a final decision as to what will be going on with their Translate API. People all over the world depend on this service to run their businesses and must have time to consider alternatives. These alternatives will not be easy to find. Apparently there are only four companies in the whole world with this kind of translation technology and now Google, which was one of them, is no longer an option (or is it?).
Microsoft is trying to ride the wave now with their own translation service, however a simple test of two or three sentences between Google and Microsoft show that MS simply aren't as good! A good recommendation would be WhiteSmoke Translator - their translation is as precise as Google and sometimes shows even better results. The only question now is - do they have their translator in an API service and if not, would they be willing to do so and "ride the wave" like Microsoft?

Only time will tell, unfortunately time is running out. We're all waiting for more news from Google and will update our faithful readers once something comes up.

Google Translate API - OUCH!

For those of you who think it's just a rumor, it's not. The terrible news is out - Google is cancelling their translation API! PRs and blogs, posts and Facebook pages - all appearing all over the web with pleas to Google to reconsider.

This is Google's notice in their code.google.com page for their translator:
Important: The Google Translate API has been officially deprecated as of May 26, 2011. Due to the substantial economic burden caused by extensive abuse, the number of requests you may make per day will be limited and the API will be shut off completely on December 1, 2011. For website translations, we encourage you to use the Google Translate Element

A lot of people relying on their API to promote their websites and products will be harmed by this move as well as many independent affiliate marketers and even known companies such as Babylon Translation!

Companies with alternatives are doing everything they can to promote their service since now is the best time to do so. Searching Google for "Translation API" or "Translator API" will lead you mostly to sites and forums related to Google's latest notice. However, there are a few alternatives popping up in search results. The most popular one seems to be Microsoft's (or Bing's) translation API. There are a few others, of course, but if you're going to replace huge company like Google, why not do it with a huge company like Microsoft, right?

WRONG!

We tried several different random sentences and translated to and from 8 languages. The results in Google Translate were much better than those of Bing, but the results of WhiteSmoke's Translator were also better than Bing!
So - is there an alternative to Google that actually works better that Microsoft?
WhiteSmoke's Translator is definitely better, easily allowing you to translate full texts.
The question is, do they have an API for us folk?

Critics: German Classic too Slow to Translate to English

According to the New Zealand Herald, a book that has become a bestseller was almost lost to English speakers after it was originally turned down for translation.
Hans Fallada's Alone in Berlin, which has been renamed Every Man Dies Alone in America, was originally published in Germany in 1947. A year later, it was reviewed by a British publisher, who turned down the offer to translate it into English. It was again rejected for translation in 1996.
It was not until 2009 that Fallada's masterpiece was translated into English by Penguin.
In its first 13 months of sales, Penguin sold 300,000 copies of the translation in Europe, with sales in the US topping 200,000. Alone in Berlin is now Penguin's bestselling classic, out-selling books by Jane Austen, George Orwell and Emily Dickens.

In a book review by the New York Times, writer Liesl Schillinger complained only that the book had not been translated sooner.
"A signal literary event of 2009 has occurred, but if publishers had been more vigilant, it could have been a signal literary event in any of the last 60 years," she said.
Individuals who are interested in books written in foreign languages may want to research translation software tools.

American Publishers Reveal New Bible Translations

As many Christians settle into the Lenten season, American publishers have released two new translations of the Bible, the Washington Post reports.
The new translations include the New American Bible - the Catholic version - and the New International Version - the Evangelical version - and are the first translations of the Bible in over 40 years.

According to Fox, The New American Bible, Revised Edition is an easier read for modern Christians, as outdated terminology in the Old Testament has been removed. For example, words such as "booty," "despoilers" and "holocaust" have been replaced with more modern terms such as "plunder," "robbers" and "burnt offerings."
The Washington Post reported that the new Bible edition also includes controversial changes, such as the removal of gender-neutral language that was added to a half-released 2005 version. In response to complaints from religious conservatives, words such as "human beings in our image" have been changed back to "mankind."
Despite an economic downturn, publishing company Zondervan spokesman Brian Burch said he predicts sales will be high.
"We have seen little movement in Bible sales between recessions and good times," he said.
Individuals who work with texts that are not in their native language may want to consider using translation software tools.

Translators May Save Individuals Embarrassment in Stressful Exchanges

During the 2010 Miss Universe Pageant, Miss Philippines Maria Venus Raj was asked how she overcame any mistakes in her life. She replied, in English, that there was "nothing major, major - I mean problem - that I've done in my life," according to the Deseret News.
She was likely penalized for her choice of words and sentence construction, and ended up finishing as fourth runner-up in the competition. Miss Universe 1969 Gloria Diaz mused that Raj was most likely "thinking in Tagalog," in which a phrase like "major, major" makes sense, the news source reports.
In contrast, winner Jimena Navarrete of Mexico decided to use an interpreter for her answers. English is not her native language. According to the paper, the professional translator may have helped protect Miss Navarrete from any miscommunication.
Understandably, missteps can occur while making a live speech in one's non-native language before millions of television viewers. Even in less public transactions, such a private business conference, language limits may be detrimental. Navarrete's choice highlights the usefulness of an automated or human translator.
In these situations, simultaneous interpreters (SI) are often used to translate, in real-time, the two languages being spoken. SIs, who are often called upon at multinational conferences, must demonstrate complete mastery of both languages, according to the website of the American Bureau of Professional Translators. 

In Business, a Professional Translation Device may be Preferable to Beginner Language Skills

Playing down one's linguistic skills - no matter one's facility - may prove beneficial in certain business communications, according to the Deseret News. Certain cultures value modesty. Also, some professionals may frown upon a beginner's stumbling attempts at their native language.

For instance, American business professionals may want to decide against communicating in beginner's Japanese with their clients. Such attempts may risk one's looking less than capable, particularly if he or she is not fluent or in grasp of the nuances of the language, according to the news source.
An automated translator or online translation tool would be handy in such a situation, as it could facilitate easy communication between parties. English-speaking professionals can shield themselves from linguistic missteps, the Deseret News adds.
However, not all cultures perceive beginning speakers as incompetent. They may even appreciate the attempt of an English-speaker who tries out non-fluent language skills.
Language errors can be incredibly costly to a company. In his book Blunders in International Business, David A. Ricks notes that translation mistakes are some of the most common in professional communication. Ignorance of multiple meanings of a word, for instance, can potentially lead to gaffes, insults and broken deals.