Need a few comments about translating for open source
Hi folks! I'm just putting the final touches on an article about contributing (yes that same one I started aeons ago) and need a quote from someone about TRANSLATING for open source projects. If you've done any kind of work with translating news, wikis, and so on, please share. The aim is to encourage people to come and help, especially those with limited technical ability who might think they have nothing to offer. So it might include things like how you choose what items to translate and what not to do, how information is best presented (for example in an own-language newsletter or website), collaboration, problems that you encounter (for example with idioms or technical language) and importantly, resources that translators can access to help with their work. I'd be really happy with any comments you might like to make - I only have about two paragraphs to devote to translation for this article (it might be worth doing a full-length article in the future, with proper interviews with people) so I will probably have to edit comments for brevity. BTW please include your full name if it isn't in your sig, so I can make sure I credit the right people. thanks heaps Helen -- IRC: helen_au helen.south@opensuse.org helensouth.com -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+help@opensuse.org
Am 29.05.2011 11:31, schrieb Helen South:
If you've done any kind of work with translating news, wikis, and so on, please share. The aim is to encourage people to come and help, especially those with limited technical ability who might think they have nothing to offer. So it might include things like how you choose what items to translate and what not to do, how information is best presented (for example in an own-language newsletter or website), collaboration, problems that you encounter (for example with idioms or technical language) and importantly, resources that translators can access to help with their work.
I'd be really happy with any comments you might like to make - I only have about two paragraphs to devote to translation for this article (it might be worth doing a full-length article in the future, with proper interviews with people) so I will probably have to edit comments for brevity.
BTW please include your full name if it isn't in your sig, so I can make sure I credit the right people.
Well, if somebody wants to translate something, he or she just need to know the two languages. First the one, in which he will translate the text and then the one, he needs to translate. I translated an article for the German wiki from the English and it was kinda easy. You get your article but you don´t need to translate 1 to 1. That means when there´s the text: openSUSE use for installation YaST2 you can also translate openSUSE uses YaST2 for software management. At the same point, the technical language of the modern computer world is de facto English. In Germany, we try to keep the English words normally alive, but in France, they made them "compatible" to their language (ordinateur for computer in French; Computer for computer in German). You need sometimes creativity because you have to translate some phrases to your language, which are typical for the translated language, but not for your language. (Example: It´s raining dogs and cats in English -> "Es regnet wie aus Eimern" in German, but "Eimern" doesn´t mean dogs or cats, it´s meaning some kind of big glass where you can fill in water.) So, you don´t need techincal knowledge so much, but more creativity and knowledge about languages. Hope that helps -- Kim-Dennis Leyendecker openSUSE Ambassador / openSUSE Wiki Team DE HAVE A LOT OF FUN! http://www.opensuse.org | http://www.suse.de Have you tried SUSE Studio? Need to create a Live CD, an app you want to package and distribute , or create your own linux distro. Give SUSE Studio a try. www.susestudio.com. -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+help@opensuse.org
imho translation is hard work. this is not enough to know your
langugae and the source (English) well, but you need lots of other
knowledge.
- if you translate wiki, you have to know and understand the wiki syntax
- if you translate the software (e.g. yast) you have to be familiar
with glossary, the hotkeys in the text, the translation memery, svn
and sometimes you have to deal with gettext as well.
I think this is the biggest problem. we need more than a translator
when we talk about software translation, we need a technical
background as well.
- if you would like to translate the book, you will need to know how
the things work in the susedoc package, how you could buid a book to
see and double check your works.
so, i strongly recommend to find a mentor who could help you in the
first 1-2 months.
I believe it's a must and worth it :)
k
2011/5/29 Kim Leyendecker
Am 29.05.2011 11:31, schrieb Helen South:
If you've done any kind of work with translating news, wikis, and so on, please share. The aim is to encourage people to come and help, especially those with limited technical ability who might think they have nothing to offer. So it might include things like how you choose what items to translate and what not to do, how information is best presented (for example in an own-language newsletter or website), collaboration, problems that you encounter (for example with idioms or technical language) and importantly, resources that translators can access to help with their work.
I'd be really happy with any comments you might like to make - I only have about two paragraphs to devote to translation for this article (it might be worth doing a full-length article in the future, with proper interviews with people) so I will probably have to edit comments for brevity.
BTW please include your full name if it isn't in your sig, so I can make sure I credit the right people.
Well, if somebody wants to translate something, he or she just need to know the two languages. First the one, in which he will translate the text and then the one, he needs to translate.
I translated an article for the German wiki from the English and it was kinda easy. You get your article but you don´t need to translate 1 to 1. That means when there´s the text:
openSUSE use for installation YaST2 you can also translate openSUSE uses YaST2 for software management.
At the same point, the technical language of the modern computer world is de facto English. In Germany, we try to keep the English words normally alive, but in France, they made them "compatible" to their language (ordinateur for computer in French; Computer for computer in German).
You need sometimes creativity because you have to translate some phrases to your language, which are typical for the translated language, but not for your language.
(Example: It´s raining dogs and cats in English -> "Es regnet wie aus Eimern" in German, but "Eimern" doesn´t mean dogs or cats, it´s meaning some kind of big glass where you can fill in water.)
So, you don´t need techincal knowledge so much, but more creativity and knowledge about languages.
Hope that helps
-- Kim-Dennis Leyendecker openSUSE Ambassador / openSUSE Wiki Team DE HAVE A LOT OF FUN! http://www.opensuse.org | http://www.suse.de Have you tried SUSE Studio? Need to create a Live CD, an app you want to package and distribute , or create your own linux distro. Give SUSE Studio a try. www.susestudio.com.
-- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+help@opensuse.org
-- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+help@opensuse.org
Kálmán Kéménczy wrote:
imho translation is hard work. this is not enough to know your langugae and the source (English) well, but you need lots of other knowledge.
- if you translate wiki, you have to know and understand the wiki syntax - if you translate the software (e.g. yast) you have to be familiar with glossary, the hotkeys in the text, the translation memery, svn and sometimes you have to deal with gettext as well. I think this is the biggest problem. we need more than a translator when we talk about software translation, we need a technical background as well. - if you would like to translate the book, you will need to know how the things work in the susedoc package, how you could buid a book to see and double check your works.
Indeed. However, even if one is neither good at English nor familiar with such methods, (s)he can still help translators by proofreading translations, because (s)he definitely is good at the target language (= his/her native tongue). Translators always need feedback to polish their translations. But on the other hand, 'it's easy' or 'you can do' is not enough. I have been translating openSUSE Weekly News into Japanese and posted call for help to -ja list every week for 2 and half years, but unfortunately there are only few who would step forward to help us. People won't be motivated even if the task is easy. It must be fun, or at least, be to one's great profit.
so, i strongly recommend to find a mentor who could help you in the first 1-2 months. I believe it's a must and worth it :)
I wish a mentor would not only teach new comers technical knowledge on translating, but also show them how fun and beneficial to translate documents. So, translators, please also share your experiences how fun to translate documents and what kind of benefits you have got from translating. For me, what's fun and benefits are: - could have a substantial vocabulary on technology - could got leading-edge information and trends on FLOSS What are yours? :-) Best, -- _/_/ Satoru Matsumoto - openSUSE Member - Japan _/_/ _/_/ Marketing/Weekly News/openFATE Screening Team _/_/ _/_/ mail: helios_reds_at_gmx.net / irc: HeliosReds _/_/ _/_/ http://blog.zaq.ne.jp/opensuse/ _/_/ -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+help@opensuse.org
2011/5/29 Helen South
Hi folks!
I'm just putting the final touches on an article about contributing (yes that same one I started aeons ago) and need a quote from someone about TRANSLATING for open source projects.
If you've done any kind of work with translating news, wikis, and so on, please share. The aim is to encourage people to come and help, especially those with limited technical ability who might think they have nothing to offer. So it might include things like how you choose what items to translate and what not to do, how information is best presented (for example in an own-language newsletter or website), collaboration, problems that you encounter (for example with idioms or technical language) and importantly, resources that translators can access to help with their work.
I'd be really happy with any comments you might like to make - I only have about two paragraphs to devote to translation for this article (it might be worth doing a full-length article in the future, with proper interviews with people) so I will probably have to edit comments for brevity.
BTW please include your full name if it isn't in your sig, so I can make sure I credit the right people.
thanks heaps
Helen
-- IRC: helen_au helen.south@opensuse.org helensouth.com -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse-marketing+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse-marketing+help@opensuse.org
Hi Helen, I'm cross-posting this on the translation mailing list, just in case anybody has something to say (and I know they will) I've been translating openSUSE since 11.0, and I also participated in other translations. I think what is the most important in attracting new contributors is making clear that: - for translating, it's more important to be familiar with the product than to be a technical person - there is often a webservice where translations are coordinated (like tradu.softwareliber.ro for Romanian), you don't really have to worry about source control and stuff like that - there are groups of translators for different products who collaborate in order to provide translations which are as close as possible to each-other. They also offer support and advice to newcomers. Thanks, Strainu (to be credited as-is if you think what I said above is useful) -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+unsubscribe@opensuse.org For additional commands, e-mail: opensuse-ambassadors+help@opensuse.org
participants (5)
-
Helen South -
Kim Leyendecker -
Kálmán Kéménczy -
Satoru Matsumoto -
Strainu