• In MS Word 2003 click on Tools -> Word Count. In MS Word 2007 simply click on Words: (see bottom status panel)
• Divide the number given for “characters (with spaces)” by 55.
• That’s it! You have the DIN line count.

Bear in mind that MS-Word doesn’t count text contained in graphics, text boxes etc. In such cases it is advisable to use software such as Practicount or AnyCount.

Good translation - good foreign businesses

 The EU is getting bigger and opportunities for selling your products and services abroad are multiplying.

If, that is, you are able to communicate accurately and professionally with your potential clients or business partners in their own language. In this connection there are some things that need to be explained…

Did you know that even within the present territory of the EU there are around 380 language combinations? 

With the planned expansion of the EU this number will rise to over 600(!).

Even if you only want to present your products in the most important EU languages you will need to have half a dozen translations made.

But …

a translation cannot be just any translation!

There are enormous differences in quality and care is needed!

There are some important criteria of quality which enable you to tell whether your material has been professionally translated into a foreign language: 

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Will your text be translated by a native speaker? Is the translator really a native speaker of the target language? A translator who undertakes translations into several target languages should arouse suspicion. Be careful!

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Your product first starts to come to life in a foreign language with a translator. You should therefore also be sure that your translator has the appropriate qualifications, experience, and ability in your technical field. 
Checking will give you more confidence.

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Professional translation services have a standardized project implementation process (according to EN 15038) and apply DIN 2345 when calculating translation costs. 
Be sure to agree on a transparent billing method in order to avoid unpleasant surprises.

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EU regulations make multi-lingual product descriptions and instructions compulsory for most products. In addition, errors in the instruction manual – in any EU language – can lead to claims of product liability (!)

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If you regularly need to update product manuals in foreign languages, it is worth establishing a long-term relationship with translators who will “think” themselves into your products. This will save you time and money, because the translators will be familiar with your product philosophy and your ways of doing things.

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Your one-stop shop

Your one-stop shop
Of course, you don’t need to worry about all these things yourself.

That’s what Mondolingua is there for!

At Mondolingua your translating work is carried outpromptly, professionally, accurately and at value-for-money prices. 

We enjoy working closely with clients in order to get to know their product world.
This is the only way to ensure that your product and plans are really understood abroad.

>> See what we can offer

>> Send request

Before you begin a new translation project, there are a few – but important – points to consider. 
This article is meant to be a small introduction for you.

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Planning ahead is “half the battle”!

Based on experience, the subject of internationalization / localization in the planning of a new project usually has low priority. 

In software projects, for instance, functional (provisional) prototypes (usually in English) are transformed into production systems very quickly. In doing so, the logic with regard to contents and the suitability of the user interfaces from the perspective of the target language are usually not sufficiently tested. 
Print projects are similar. Printouts that are concentrated with regard to content are developed very quickly here without being clear about the consequences of a prematurely designed layout that is usually too restricted and overloaded with regard to content.

Tip!
Before you even write one line of source code in a software project, first create a schematic preview of the user interfaces, a so-called mockup. This mockup should give your customers or your focus group an initial impression in the planned languages, an impression of how the spatial distribution and positioning of the contents affects the user interface and whether essential program sequences are coherent for the end user. 

The advantages:
► Customer wishes can be substantiated, visualized, and agreed to much earlier (and ensure fewer unpleasant surprises towards the end of the project).

► Different ideas from all project participants are clearly unified.

► Crucial errors and misunderstandings in content, the layout structure, and in the operation sequences can be clarified earlier. 
Even with basic tools such as MS PowerPoint, simple mockups can be implemented quickly and relevant processes can be simulated.
The advantage of PowerPoint versus specialized mockup tools is that PowerPoint is more well-known and prevalent.

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Translations take time!

A translation is your gateway to a country/culture that speaks a foreign language; therefore, translations for high-quality products require an appropriate amount of time. 
Time for research, for consultation, and fine tuning between you and the language service provider.

You can inflict massive damage with hasty rush translation offers / contracts on projects to which you have already devoted much time to carefully adapt content details. At best, all of your efforts would then become unwanted humor in the respective foreign country. (For this, see our homepage link titled “Humor.”)

Tip: 
Plan / request a foresighted and realistic timeframe for your translation.
A professional language service provider will be happy to assist you with this.

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Translations require space!

Different languages have different text lengths. Therefore, an English or German source text can be twice as long in Polish or Hungarian for example. With layouts that are too small and that are without “expansion spaces,” space problems arise in the translation. Costly revisions of the layout (for each language) are frequently the result.

Tip: 
Before you begin your software or print project, provide for ample expansion space in the first draft for all content that is to be translated. Also bear in mind that the text lengths of the target language may contract in relation to the source language. 
Therefore, always use dynamic text fields and design elements for programming software and Web applications. Reserve expansion space around every text string according to text direction (for example, see Arabic languages).
It is also advisable to allow for “buffer zones” around text items in the entire layout for print media. 
Therefore, avoid compact layouts (text and image in the tightest space) in order to only save pages. Tight layouts can get out of control later and result in expensive and unplanned layout revisions for each language.
This can cause delays in your project roll-outs.
Also avoid complex, nested, and “playful” designs if text strings that must be translated are involved.

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Tables provide orientation!

Text items that have columns, generated only by spaces and/or tabs, can also cause difficulties in localization (translation). Through lengthy or short text lengths in the foreign language, this soft column formatting can easily be disrupted. As a result, significant additional expenses can arise in order to restore the original formatting.

Tip: 
Always create multi-column listings of contents with the table functions provided for this purpose. Hard columns and row divisions thus arise that remain as a structure in the translations and can also serve as an orientation for non-linguists.

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Freedom for original texts!

Locked / blocked / proprietary formats
Proprietary file formats such as PDF ensure that texts are not editable but only readable. PDF is a pure publication format that should not be and cannot be edited any more.
That is why source texts that only exist in PDF file format are a very poor source basis for translation projects; they are often accompanied by project delays and costs for expensive reconstruction in an editable file format.
A similar situation arises if text was inserted into a document as an image. Such a situation typically arises if paper texts (without text recognition) were scanned and copied into a digital document.

Tip: 
The following should be prepared for every print medium that is to be translated:
A PDF copy of the original file (as an object for comparison)
A copy of the editable original file indicating which software product the original was created in.
For software and Web projects, the entire translatable text should be prepared as a list of individual text items. Every text item should be assigned a unique variable/code (unique text key).
If the source text contains HTML tags or embedded object parameters, etc., these could be inadvertently altered in the translation. This will then lead to unpredictable malfunctions whose repair will cost you money again.
It is therefore recommended that variable text always be swapped out to external XML (e.g., native XML, TMX, XLIFF), include, or .po files or that text be dynamically integrated by means of a database.

Important: 
Ideally, text contents should be stored cleanly and separately from every style and program logic!
Hard-coded texts should always be avoided in every software and Web application. 
This applies especially to graphical texts as they are frequently used in decorative designs or flash animations. Here too, it is recommended that external text sources be integrated and that attention is given to the variability of text lengths for every language.

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Language – short, simple, and concise!

Texts with advertising messages are inclined to utilize wordplays, idioms, neologisms, and double meanings as elements. 
Unfortunately, these items are usually very culture-specific and cannot easily be translated 1:1. 
Sometimes creative inventions – as brilliant as they are – are impossible to convey in another language.

At this point, a translation runs into its upper limits.
The source text must therefore be entirely newly texted/invented in the respective foreign language and its cultural context.
Thus, project delays can occur and additional costs can arise here again.

Tip:
For this reason, avoid “highly creative” content that is only understood within the cultural area of the source language. 
Ask your language service provider even in the creation phase of the source text.

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Simple sentence structure!

Long and convoluted sentences are susceptible to misunderstandings and mistranslations.

Tip:
Short and concise sentences save time and costs in the translation.
They also anchor themselves better in the memory of your (foreign) clients.

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Undiluted text items pay off!

Both in print media and in software products, text items become a translation problem as soon as text sentences are interrupted by embedded design elements such as logos, small illustrations, buttons, or icons. These “foreign text bodies” frequently lead to additional efforts (with obligatory costs) in the translation since they require graphical adaptation and alignment.
Occasionally, sentence constellations occur in the respective foreign language that make a meaningful adaptation of the embedded item impossible. 

Tip:
Try to keep the text items free from embedded elements. 
Organize (essential) graphical items as follows:

► Next to a corresponding text item and outside of a possible text frame/container that contains the text.
The advantage: The reader is supported by a clearer structure while reading.

► If not possible in another way: Organize the items at the beginning or at the end of a complete sentence.

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Text as decoration instead of content: text wallpaper!

Bei der Erstellung eines Ausgangstextes ist es ratsam zu hinterfragen, ob soviel Text überhaupt nützlich ist. Ist es unbedingt notwendig so viel Text (der übersetzt werden muss) zu erzeugen, nur um einen bestimmten Inhalt zu transportieren.

Tipp!
Weniger ist mehr. Konzentrieren Sie sich auf die wesentlichen Kernaussagen, ohne üppiges Textbeiwerk und Wiederholungen. Das schont Produktions- und Übersetzungskosten und kommt der Wahrnehmung Ihrer Endkunden entgegen.

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Now it gets hard. Line breaks!

An unfortunate but frequently occurring phenomenon in print and software media texts is sporadically inserted hard line breaks (manual returns). Indeed, they fix small imperfections in the visual distribution of the text flow of the original, but such “hard” line breaks can lead to significant text displacement after translation (due to varying text lengths). Disarrangement can result, which makes every revision – regardless of whether for print or for software projects – very difficult, if not impossible.

Tip!:
Try to divide the text flow – where visually necessary – into multiple text frames, containers, or sections so that compensation can be made for text displacements that arise.
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