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Difference between revisions of "Localization and Internationalization"

Localization and Internationalization (view source)

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-[[wikipedia:Genesis|Genesis]]
-[[wikipedia:Genesis|Genesis]]


==Introduction==
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The Software industry started in US,and traditionally software that allows only English input and output has been forced upon global users. This is based on this question from developers: "Why can't they all speak English?". However if a user is given two software products that offer same features, most people would choose one in their native language.
Now a days software development centers are concentrated in countries like India, Australia, Mexico and Israel. As software is developed in different parts of world, successful companies believe that it is critical that their software products interact with their users in their native language and local conventions. Monolingual and mono cultural software products are not competitive.
 
Let us illustrate the problem of monolingual programming practice by an example.
Below given is a program to check the valid inputs from a user.
    char c;
    //Get user input
    if((c>='A' && c<='Z') || (c>='a' && c<='z')){
    //Accept the input
    }else{
      //Error Handling
    }
What is the problem with this code? This code is wriiten in the assumption that users are going to input english text and letters are between A to Z. The above code will not work in Danish. Danish alphabet has 3 more letters after Z. This will frustrate Danish users. Now imagine what would happen if a chinese user tried to enter data?
 
Converting an American software package into a multi-lingual product or "Americanizing" foreign software entails more than translation. A properly localized software package allows the local user to exploit the software's power to do exactly the same things that the original software does for the original user, but according to the local user's own rules and conventions. The local user will not be distracted by imprecise or ambiguous features that can result from inadequate attention to cultural and linguistic differences, nor from the nature of the software and engineering constraints on equipment.
 
Around the world local conventions exist for number formatting, currency, dates, times, names, addresses, measurement, calendar. Besides local conventions software developer must consider cultural diversity issues related to numbers and colors. In Asian countries white denotes death in general but in western countries it is black. In Latin America death is denoted by purple. In US 13 is considered  unlucky, 69 has sexual connotations, and 666 is the sign of the devil. In Hong Kong the number 7 is unlucky, while in India some people consider 7 as lucky number.
 
Even English is not same across the world. See the following examples:
  '''  US english'''                    '''  UK english''' 
    Aluminum                        Aluminium
    Center                          Centre
    Internationalization            Internationalisation
    Flavor                          Flavour
    Tire                            Tyre
    Elevator                        Lift
    Hood                            Bonnet
    Mutual Fund                    Unit Trust
    Pavement                        Road
    Sidewalk                        Pavement
    Trunk                          Boot
 
Mere translation of the strings will not solve the problem. See the following examples.
 
Here are signs from hotels around the world showing what can happen if you don't have knowledgeable translators:
 
  ''Please leave your values at the desk'' - France
  ''You are invited to take advantage of the chambermaid''- japan
  ''Ladies are requested not to have children at the bar''- Norway


==Customized Localization==
==Customized Localization==
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==Globalization==
==Globalization==
The term globalization (G11N) is often used synonymously with internationalization.  But usually it encompasses both Internationalization and Localization. It is a process which involves design, implementation and localization.
The term globalization (G11N) is often used synonymously with internationalization.  But usually it encompasses both Internationalization and Localization. It is a process which involves design, implementation and localization.
== The Importance of Localization ==
Currently, people who want to use computers must first learn English. In a country with low [[w:Literacy|literacy rates]], this blocks access to [[w:Information technology|information and communications technologies]] (ICTs), especially for the rural poor and women who do not have equal access to education. Even after having learnt English, users must pay hundreds of dollars to license foreign software, or resort to widespread illegal copying of software, in order to gain access to ICTs. In short, access to information technology is one of the keys to development, and localized FOSS applications remain a crucial missing link in communications infrastructure.
[[w:Localization|Localization]] brings the following benefits:
# Significantly reduces the amount of training necessary to empower end-users to use a computer system.
# Facilitates the introduction of computer technology in [[w:Small and medium enterprises|Small and Medium Enterprises]] (SMEs).
# Opens the way for the development of computer systems for a country's national, provincial and district level administration that will allow civil servants to work entirely in the local language and manage databases of local language names and data.
# Facilitates the decentralization of data at provincial and district levels. The same applies to utility companies (electricity, water, telephone), who will develop local language databases, thereby reducing costs and giving better service to citizens.
# Allows citizens to communicate through e-mail in their own language.
# Empowers local software development companies to work for the administration, the public sector and private companies.
# Provides the local design industry with good fonts.
# Helps universities train more software engineers.
The beneficiaries of this multi-stakeholder project are:
# Directly, all local computer users, who will have easier access to the use of computers as they will not have to learn English first.
# Indirectly, through improvements in governance using native computer systems, all local citizens in the quality of their dealings with the administration.
# The local government who will have the opportunity to develop databases and applications in the local language. Sufficient technology and empowered local development companies will be available. The government will also have the tool to coordinate applications among similar administrations (e.g., provinces), so that IT-based improvements in governance can be made at the lowest possible cost.
# The [[w:Software industry|software industry]]. The government's use of standards-compliant computer technology encourages software companies to start developing compatible computer systems that will be used by the different bodies of the administration, thereby creating a stable software industry in the country. Once this expertise is developed (using FOSS), these companies will be empowered to undertake similar projects for foreign companies at extremely competitive prices, facilitating sales beyond the local market.
Source: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/FOSS_Localization/Introduction


==Culturally Biased wrong Assumptions==
==Culturally Biased wrong Assumptions==
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*'''Words contains consonants and vowels''':Arabic and Hebrew don't require vowels.
*'''Words contains consonants and vowels''':Arabic and Hebrew don't require vowels.


===Rules of Thumb for Software Internationalization===
==Rules of Thumb for Software Internationalization==
Internationalized software must enable easy porting to other locales. A locale defines language and specific cultural conventions. The process of adjusting internationalized software to a particular locale is called localization (a common acronym for this term is L10N). You can think of software internationalization as a prerequisite for localization. Localization consists of more than just translating the user interface. Consider North America and Britain, for instance. Seemingly, they use the same language. However, not only do these locales differ in spelling (program vs. programme, realize vs. realise, color vs. colour etc.), certain cultural conventions such date formatting (in Europe the date format is DDMMYYY whereas in north America it's MMDDYYYY), currency, and measurement system. Other locales exhibit additional cultural differences. In Germany and other European countries, the sign of a decimal fraction (also called radix) is a comma, e.g., 10,5. In North America, the radix is called "decimal point", and as the name suggests, it's represented as follows: 10.5.
Internationalized software must enable easy porting to other locales. A locale defines language and specific cultural conventions. The process of adjusting internationalized software to a particular locale is called localization (a common acronym for this term is L10N). You can think of software internationalization as a prerequisite for localization. Localization consists of more than just translating the user interface. Consider North America and Britain, for instance. Seemingly, they use the same language. However, not only do these locales differ in spelling (program vs. programme, realize vs. realise, color vs. colour etc.), certain cultural conventions such date formatting (in Europe the date format is DDMMYYY whereas in north America it's MMDDYYYY), currency, and measurement system. Other locales exhibit additional cultural differences. In Germany and other European countries, the sign of a decimal fraction (also called radix) is a comma, e.g., 10,5. In North America, the radix is called "decimal point", and as the name suggests, it's represented as follows: 10.5.


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#[[wikipedia:Unicode | Wikipedia page on Unicode]]
#[[wikipedia:Unicode | Wikipedia page on Unicode]]
#[http://unicode.org Unicode.org]
#[http://unicode.org Unicode.org]
==Internationalized Resource Identifiers==
Internationalized Resource Identifiers (IRI) is also known as Multilingual Web Addresses.
Currently Web addresses are typically expressed using Uniform Resource Identifiers or URIs. This restricts Web addresses to a small number of characters: basically, just upper and lower case letters of the English alphabet, European numerals and a small number of symbols. Recent developments enable you to add non-ASCII characters to Web addresses.
Detailed information is available from [http://www.w3.org/International/articles/idn-and-iri/ An Introduction to Multilingual Web Addresses]


==Input Methods==
==Input Methods==
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==Related Links==
==Related Links==
*[http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/FOSS_Localization FOSS Localization]
*[http://developer.gnome.org/doc/tutorials/gnome-i18n/developer.html Gnome L10N Guidelines for Developers by Christian Rose]
*[[wikipedia:Date and time notation by country|Date and time notation by country]]
*[[wikipedia:Date and time notation by country|Date and time notation by country]]
*[[wikipedia:List of languages by name|List of languages by name]]
*[[wikipedia:List of languages by name|List of languages by name]]
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*[[ಕನ್ನಡ| ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)]] - Kannada FOSS Team
*[[ಕನ್ನಡ| ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)]] - Kannada FOSS Team
*[[తెలుగు|తెలుగు (Telugu)]] - Telugu FOSS Team
*[[తెలుగు|తెలుగు (Telugu)]] - Telugu FOSS Team
  Feel free to edit this page and share your knowledge/experience in this subject - [[User:Santhosh|Santhosh Thottingal]]
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