Most Pharmaceutical Companies are enormous. They are global corporations – “factors such as economies of scale in manufacturing and R&D, and an increasingly harmonized regulatory framework mean that more often than not, pharmaceutical producers research, manufacture and market their products in global markets.”

Why Localization is Important for Pharmaceuticals

With globalization come emerging markets. Pharmaceuticals are seeing an increase in revenue from countries such as Brazil, Russia, India, China, Mexico, Turkey and countries in South East Asia (ref: Booz & Co report ).

What does this mean for Language & Translation Service Providers?

“Among the key challenges facing pharmaceutical companies in emerging markets is the ability to successfully localize their market-specific efforts. They must also be sure to meet the regulatory standards in each country as they relate to medicinal product translation.

As the Booz & Co report highlights, the biggest mistake companies make in emerging markets is the “insufficient tailoring of approaches to local needs,” according to 27 percent of the pharmaceutical executives surveyed.”

In order for pharmaceuticals to ensure success in these countries, it is  imperative that their approach carefully considers localization and translation strategies to maximize performance.

When pharmaceutical producers market overseas, companies are necessarily forced to communicate and make their products available in local languages in every region. This need is driven by existing directives and regulatory compliance requirements, which prescribe what content – and when and how – needs to be available to local users.

“Accuracy, clarity and consistency form the cornerstones for translation in the pharmaceutical industry. The reasoning is clear: consumers and healthcare workers rely upon product packaging to guide them in making the right product choice and in using pharmaceuticals properly. Without exaggeration, an error in either of these areas could mean injury, death and years of legal fallout.”

For this reason we suggest that to ensure quality localization you:

• Ensure the translator is a native speaker
• Ensure the translator has medical and/or pharmaceutical experience
• Ensure the translations are proof-read for absolute accuracy
• Try to get a local medical lawyer to check the regulatory requirements have been localized correctly.

With the exception of  the fourth bullet point, ICanLocalize can help you. We have completed numerous pharmaceutical projects and would be happy to help.

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.

The 70th language  is Swahili, which is spoken by some 140 million people:

“The Swahili language is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique. Closely related languages, sometimes considered dialects, are spoken in the Comoros Islands and Somalia. Although only five million or so people speak Swahili as their mother tongue, it is used as a lingua franca in much of East Africa, and the total number of speakers exceeds 140 million. Swahili serves as a national, or official language, of four nations: Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.” (wikipedia)

Swahili Language Countries

List of All ICanLocalize Registered Languages

If you have requirements for  another language we are always happy to recruit, or if you are a translator in another language please feel free to submit an application here.

Our recruitment policy is tough. We require all of our translators to be native speakers of the target language so that they understand the cultural nuances. This is the essence of localization rather than simple translation which is essential for website and mobile app translation. In addition we require them to have proof of translation studies at Masters level. We have recently introduced an entrance test as well which is checked by our top translators and works on a rating system. This ensures that nobody can send us fraudulent documents and get in.

You can view all our language pairs here.

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.

This is ongoing work but we are pleased to be able to share with you some new developments in the set up process for Office Documents in Document & Plain Text Projects.

Document & Plain Text Projects with ICanLocalize

You can now:

• Make payments for all languages simultaneously (instead of having to tick boxes for each language)
• See all the project information in a much clearer and concise way on the project page
• Only release your project if you have uploaded your file (this is for the benefit of our translators)
• Change your uploaded file at any time (unless work has commenced)
• Enable or disable the review option at any time (provided it is not already in progress)

These changes make the system more flexible whilst at the same time introducing time-saving options. Which we all need these days!

ICanLocalize has many more exciting updates planned and in progress. Watch this space!

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.

So, how do you reconcile the constant requests for “free test translations” with the need to get some minimal commitment from the client?

When new (potential) clients approach us and ask for test translations, our goal is to build engagement. Engagement is a two-sided process. On our side, we do some work for free and on the client’s side, they evaluate this work, give feedback and will consider us for their translation work.

Free Test Translations at ICanLocalize

How to Get Test Translations

In our opinion, the best way for giving test translations is from the project chat.

Clients invite translators to apply for their projects. This is already the beginning of a fruitful engagement. Translators need to spend time responding to these invitations, so translating a paragraph would not be much more effort.

We can encourage clients to send a test paragraph when inviting and interviewing translators (mainly for large website projects). This would give clients what they want and would also give us what we need (direct interaction with the client).

Length of Test Translation

How long should test translations be? Naturally, they need to be meaningful, but they shouldn’t turn into projects. In addition, we don’t want to be doing test translations the whole day. It’s supposed to show clients how we work, not do the whole job as a test.

After thinking it through we think a maximum of 200 words is fine for a large project of 2,000 words or more.

Clients, translators – any thoughts?

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.

These applications rarely have any borders, they are globally useful, however, to get the most of them localization is required.

Localization of Mobile Apps

Apps Localization

Localization is the process of adapting a product to a particular country,  market or region. This process nearly always involves language translation and therefore has an extremely important role in the success of the app.

Development

If it is the first time you are localizing we can offer some helpful advice that can help you save lots of time and money.

The most important advice that we can offer is:

Take localization into  account at the development stage!

When you design an application adapted for multiple languages you avoid problems that may arise further on.
Mobile display screens are limited size-wise and an app that looks great in English may not read well in languages that require more (or less) space.

Important Things to Remember

Different languages act differently. An example is that your mobile app could require double-byte characters (for East Asian languages) or have to support bi-directional display (for Middle Eastern languages).

You may also have to consider:

• The use of international images, photos and icons;
• The choice of colours that are not associated with cultural, religious or political statements;
• Avoiding the use of abbreviations as much as possible, translators may not always understand what they mean;

If you want to localize your app you have come to the right place!

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.

Support Different Domains for Languages in WordPress Multisite

If you are running a large multisite network for your different websites, you can now assign different languages to different domains.

For complete details, read Languages in Domains for WordPress Multisite Mode.

Mobile-friendly Language Switcher

Up until now, the only mobile-friendly language switcher for WordPress sites was the footer link (or a custom-built language switcher). We have added a ‘mobile-friendly’ mode to WPML’s drop-down language switcher, allowing usage from tablets and phones.

The mobile-friendly language switcher looks exactly like the ordinary one. The difference is in the way it works. When you select a mobile-friendly language switcher, visitors click once to show the list of languages and twice to select their language. There is no ‘hover’ operation, which doesn’t exist on mobile devices.

You can enable the mobile version, for mobile browsers (recommended).

Allow Login from Different Domains

Previously you could only log in on the domain corresponding to the default language while using the multiple domains options for language urls. The new version offers the possibility of logging in on each separated domain.

Drag-and-Drop Ordering for Languages

It is unfortunate when languages move around in our footer for every language. There is some logic behind it, yet it seems so illogical.

WPML 2.8.1 includes a new interface that lets you drag languages and order them.

The ordering from this GUI will be the default language order for WPML’s language switchers. If you are using WPML’s API to build your own language switchers, you can choose between this ordering, language name or ID.

Languages Order

Correct Sources for WordPress Core Translations

This version of WPML changes the location from which WPML loads translations for WordPress. Instead of the old and abandoned SVN repo (don’t worry if you don’t know about it), translations are now coming, in real time, from the WordPress Translation project.

If this is new to you, you can read all about it here: automatically downloading WordPress translations.

It’s the same GUI as before, but now, the translations are coming from the best location.

WordPress Translation – importing translations (1)

WordPress Translation – importing translations (2)

Bugs Fixes and Tweaks

This new version brings introduces a series of bug fixes and refinements.

• WPML Media – problems with duplicating attachments
• Added a filter for _parse_wpml_config – allow setting translation properties to custom types, fields etc without using a wpml-config.xml file
• Fixes for parsing wpml-config.xml for certain situations when multiple configuration files were present
• Tags of secondary language get deleted when editing posts
• Translate by WPML option is disabled
• Admin language as edit language is not working
• Media Translation produces incorrect URLs in Windows
• Warnings approving and replying to comments
• Notices and Warnings when resetting a language
• Translation Editor: Insert/edit link dialogue does not filter by page list by language

Updating WPML

The recommended way to install and update WPML is by using our Installer plugin. Installer will let you get WPML updates directly to your WordPress admin.

You can always download WPML manually from your account.

Interested in WordPress 3.6 Support?

WPML 2.8.1 runs pretty well on the latest WordPress betas. There are a small glitches that we’re handling and we’ll be ready with an update for WordPress 3.6, before the new WordPress is released. If you try WPML 2.8.1 with WP 3.6 and see any issues, please report this in the WPML technical forum.

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.

Kill Time Literally by Toobapps

*Kill Time Literally*

“Kill Time Literally” is an iPhone game available on App Store. This is probably the only official game for killing time!

Stuck in traffic? Not yet bedtime? Bored at meetings? If you’ve got time, don’t just kill it…slaughter it!
Crush, smash, slash every second that comes your way, the killing possibilities are endless. Show no mercy, but watch out, every second could also be your last…

“Kill Time Literally” – The latest original title with addictive gaming experience.

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YyOmwIhcvo

This is what Walter Wu (CEO) had to say  about ICanLocalize:

“ICanLocalize.com is really helpful and responsive. The more you ask for, the more powerful you can feel from their user-friendly system and comprehensive tools”.

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.

Let’s concentrate on how to include the iTunes description with the iPhone application translation project in ICanLocalize (the same counts for Android apps) but for simplicity’s sake we will stick to one.

Viewing iTunes Like Foreign Clients Do

There are two language settings in iTunes. The interface language and the store language.

What we are interested in is the store language. This determines the language of the items in the iTunes store. The interface language only changes the texts in the iTunes programme menus.

In iTunes, go to the app store and scroll all the way down. You’ll see the country selection.

Then, choose a different country.

I try Spain, my Spanish knowledge is basic but I’m keen to see the results as it is an extremely popular language.

Let’s look for something. For example: “solitaire”.

You can see that everything on the page is in Spanish, except the app description. If you think it looks bad in Spanish, just try it in Japanese…

You can translate the iTunes description for a few dollars, making it easy for new customers to choose you over the competition.

Translating the iTunes Description with Your iPhone App

So now that I have hopefully convinced you, let’s get started with the how-to.

If you don’t have an account at ICanLocalize, create one now. Then, log in to your account, click on Start New Project -> Software localization and create a new one.

Fill in the project details and you have a new translation project, ready for your iPhone app.

Next, upload the app’s resource file.

Our system scans your resource file and extracts all the texts for translation. If you have added comments, we’ll pick them up too and these will be shown to the translator.

Then you add the iTunes description.

Scroll down and click on Manually add a string to the project.

You will see a new screen where you can paste in a new string to the project:

So you are adding a new string to the project. The ‘text‘ is what gets translated. To make it clear to the translator, you set the label and enter a descriptive comment.

The Completed Translation

When the translations are complete, you can go back to the project page and download them.

Then, go to the string that you manually added (the iTunes description), copy and paste its description and add that to the application.

Now, both your app and its description show in the right language!

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.

I’m not talking about outer-space, the final frontier, but the space you have allocated for strings on the GUI.

In many languages, especially German, French and Spanish, translations are often around 150% the length of the originals. Since mobile apps have to run on a compact screen, these texts may overflow and cause display issues.

Unfortunately, this will always happen for the most important texts.

You will not have space issues with ICanLocalize

Think about it for a moment. Which text would you carefully style? The most important, short ones or the long explanations?

Limiting translation size with ICanLocalize

By using ICanLocalize you can avoid running into these problems completely.

Our Software Localization projects support a feature that allows setting absolute limits for translation lengths.

Once set, translators cannot complete strings with the size over your maximum.

For example, you can’t write “contact us” in French using very short text. Instead, the translator can enter “Contacter”. It’s not the precise translation for “Contact us”, but it’s good enough and fits your space budget.

Now that you’ve set a hard limit on the length, the translator will know that Contactez-nous doesn’t fit and will check with you for alternatives (see above illustration).

Setting limits on string size

There are two ways for you to specify maximum length for strings. You can either enter it into the resource file, as a comment, or manually by editing the strings in our system.

Using comments in the resource file

To set as comment, include icl_max_langth=LENGTH! anywhere in the comment. For instance, this would work:

/* The contact us button icl_max_langth=110! */
"contact" = "Contact us";

Our parser checks the comments for any string. If it finds icl_max_langth=LENGTH! (with the exclamation mark, as terminator character), it sets the maximal length for that string.

The maximal length is specified as a percentage of the length of the original string.

Through the translation editor

The other option is to use the translation editor.

Go to the project, click on ‘View or edit translations’ and then edit a string.

Click on the button to set the maximum length.

Checking length problems in completed projects

Once you have set maximum lengths for strings, translators cannot complete them with texts that don’t fit.

But, what about previously completed projects? Not a problem.

Head over to the String lengths report (you can access it from the bottom of the project page).

You will see a table with the breakdown of string lengths in your project. There’s a row there that says “Above user defined maximal length“.

It tells you how many strings overflow the maximum length in each language. Click on the label to see the strings themselves.

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.

The most popular translation languages for mobile apps are French, Spanish, German, Japanese and Italian. We hardly have any projects that doesn’t include at least one of them.

Simplified or Traditional Chinese?

When translating to Chinese, we’re asked which Chinese variant to choose. There are about 1/2 billion people speaking both Traditional and Simplified Chinese, so it’s a tough call, but the numbers speak for themselves.

A quarter of all our projects include Simplified Chinese, while only 8% include Traditional Chinese. I guess that this settles it.

European or Brazilian Portuguese?

Again, our clients vote with their feet. 17% for Brazilian Portuguese and only 3.4% for European Portuguese. This probably has something to do with the fact that Brazil has a population of over 160 million.

Other Points

Almost all of our iPhone localization jobs also include the iTunes description. This is very important, in order to get more sales with these translations. Thanks for listening to us nagging you about it!

About 2/3 of the projects include both translation and review.

Getting a second independent translator to proofread the localized application is a great way for improving the quality of the translation from good to great. It also provides the assurance that what you’re releasing is actually ready for release.

Shameless Pitch

If you’re reading this and thinking about localizing your iPhone or Android application too, look no further.

Create a free account at ICanLocalize and start your software localization project.

ICanLocalize (http://www.icanlocalize.com) is a leading translation service provider that works with the best mother-tongue professional translators, translating into more than 40 languages. We are the experts in Mobile Apps localization (including iPhone and Android localization), Website localization and Software localization. Our website translation and app localization technology platform lets translators work over 50% faster. We pass that saving onto you. Please contact us on hello@icanlocalize.com or Skype (icanlocalize) for further information.