Translation Software: Frequently Asked Questions

What do you mean by the term MT or Machine Translation?

MT stands for Machine Translation, also known as Automatic Translation or Translation Software. It is a Translation Software program that runs on a computer and translates one natural language into another natural language.

A Professional Machine Translation looks at the grammatical structure of each language and makes use of linguistic rules to translate the grammatical structure of the source language (text to be translated) into target language (translated text). We have more information on our website about machine translation and technology. Machine Translation

Can I use Translation Software instead of a Human Translator?
The answer depends upon the level of accuracy needed. Human translators cannot be completely replaced by Translation Software due to the complexity of language and the cultural differences. Translating software can help in reducing the time and costs involved in translating documents. It is designed to give you the gist of of a document. The software can be used to generate a rough draft and then be trained by adding your own terms to dictionaries. This can increase the accuracy of the translation results dramatically. Moreover, the additional tools in the software can be used to identify one’s style of writing. See actual samples of translation software results.

Are there different types of Translation Software?
Yes, some translating programs use word for word translation. All Systran Software products use "word phrasing". This means the translation engine looks at the sentence structure, linguistic rules and grammar of a sentence during translation. This gives you a much higher level of accuracy. Systran combines both rule based and statistical translation technology.

Does the software allow me to translate web pages as I surf the Web?
Yes, many of our translating products allow you to translate web pages by using Internet Explorer. Explorer will add a button to the top of your tool bar; you can then go to the web page that you want to translate, click translate and it will translate the entire web page.
  

I am a web designer; how can I keep the coding, formatting and links intact while translating text on HTML pages?
Yes. This is possible. Many web design companies use translation software by Systran to help in translating web pages for their customers. The translator can translate the pages keeping the html format, coding and links unaltered.
Thousands of websites are translated daily using Systran Translation Software! Learn more about language translation for websites.

Can I Translate Email into other languages?
Yes, many of our translating software products are equipped with a Microsoft Outlook plug-in. This allows you to translate e-mails from within the software. If you have Microsoft Outlook installed on your computer a button on the tool bar will appear and allow you to translate the email to and from the languages we support.

Can I scan documents and then translate them?
Scanning a document means you must use OCR software to turn the image of text into actual text format. You need to use a good OCR (Optical Character Recognition) software. An important thing to note is that the scanning process can bring in errors, mispellings and inaccuracies. These errors must be corrected before you translate the document. For instance, there can be mistakes during the scanning process; these must be corrected to ensure proper translation of the document.

Can I check the accuracy of the translation by translating the document into another language and then back again?
No. Translation software is not 100% accurate so when you translate there will be some words not translated or some of the sentence structure can change one word. If you translated this same sentence back the errors will be compounded. The probability of imprecise translation increases when translation is done from one language to another and back and forth.

What do you mean by a unidirectional language pair?
A unidirectional language pair is a pair that will only translate in one direction. For example, From one language to another, Spanish to English.

What is a Bi-directional language pair?
A bi-directional language pair translates in both directions. For example, English into French and French into English.

What is an Industry Specific Dictionary?
Systran Enterprise and Systran Professional Premium Language Translation Software includes 20 industry specific Topical Glossaries which are Industry Specific. Using an industry specific dictionary can improve the language translation quality. They consist of Glossaries having industry specific terms that overide the general term and have the proper translated word in the glossary for usage. For instance, if you have the word 'server' and your software is running the general dictionary, it will decipher into "waiter". However, if you have the Computer dictionary running, the word 'server' will be translated associated to a computer server.

What is a CSD or Customer Specific Dictionary?
Our Dictionary Manager permits you to build a Customer - Specific Dictionary (CSD). CSD lets you create your own personal dictionaries of exclusive words and phrases and the definitions in a CSD will dominate Systran's main general dictionaries. Thus, you can customize the language translation software and personalize it for your own usage. You can also build several dictionaries for your use. This gives you the added advantage of controlling your translation results and improving the accuracy of translations.

What do you mean by Translation Memory?
Translation Memory is one of the most powerful tools in Systran. This helps in increasing the accuracy of translation. Think of it like a larger version of the CSD but it allows you to build a database of pre edited sentences. Many human translation companies use this feature to reduce repetative translations.

How can I exclude certain words that I don't want translated?
Our more professional versions of the software allows you to create something known as “Do Not Translate list of words.”This list is very useful when the text has addresses, names, or other such material that you do not want the software to translate.

Besides the standard tools, what other tools can I put to use to enhance my language translation accuracy?
The tools available vary depending upon the product you choose. The higher priced packages are comprised of many additional tools that allow you to increase the accuracy and train the software. For example, spell checker, translation memory, sentence analysis, alternate meanings and custom dictionary builder features play a significant role in increasing the precision of translation.

Can I upgrade the product after I have bought it?
Yes. If you buy a product and within 30 days make a decision that you need an advanced version, your product can be exchanged. On the other hand, if it is past the 30 days, you can acquire an upgraded version.

Does the Systran language translation product support a Mac Version?
Currently, a Systran language translation product is only available for use with Windows 2000, XP and Vista. (We hope to have a Mac version available in the future)