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Barry Cliver responded to my suggestion of screenshots with callouts:
<<Screen shots are beautiful things, but they're a huge problem if
you're translating documentation for the simple reason that they can't
be translated.>>
On the contrary: If the interface won't be translated, then you use
exactly the same screenshots, and all that changes is the callout text
(which uses the new language). If the interface will be translated,
then you simply swap in the screenshots from the new interface. The
only difference is the screenshots, and in most cases, the locations of
all the interface widgets won't change by more than a few pixels, which
means you won't even have to reposition the callouts.
This is slightly more complicated than a unilingual situation, but by
no means a "huge problem". I say this having managed a French/English
doc set with no tools other than SnagIt, Word, and RoboHelpMe, and with
nobody else around to help. You do raise a good point, however, in that
this is an extra task, and can't simply be ignored. It does take some
planning.
<<Furthermore, screen shots are high maintenance because developers can
change them faster than we can snap them.>>
The solution to this is exactly the same as when you're producing
unilingual docs: use placeholders until the interface freeze, then swap
in the actual screenshots at the last possible moment. Moreover, it's a
task you can easily delegate to the localizer/translator. It costs a
bit more, but that's true of any localization project.
--Geoff Hart ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca
(try geoffhart -at- mac -dot- com if you don't get a reply)
www.geoff-hart.com
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