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Subject:Re: Visio translatable? From:Bill Burns <BillDB -at- ILE -dot- COM> Date:Mon, 11 Jan 1999 10:16:24 -0700
Scott writes:
> Does anyone know if Visio drawings as easily translatable? They're vector
> graphics, so they should be. Question is if translators know about Visio,
> like it, hate it, etc. Thanks.
>
Really, the issue here isn't translation but localization--the reengineering
of the files to accommodate these other languages.
Since my experience is more on the internationalization side of things (the
source development leading up to localization), I asked a colleague from our
localization DTP group about working with Visio files. Here's what I heard.
These files require a LOT of rework, since translated text has to be
manually pasted back into the files (as Andres noted). Since text expansion
is pretty likely, many of the objects will have to be resized, and some of
the layout may need to be changed to accommodate the expansion. Visio is
sometimes not too faithful about displaying what the output will actually
be. That means mutliple visual proofs at localization, possibly multiple
passes for resizing.
I'm not clear on support for other character/code sets, but I can confirm
that Visio supports Latin 1 and Japanese. In any case, the consensus seems
to be that design tools for lay folk tend to be very difficult to use for
localization.
If you have any specific questions, I could ask around and see what I hear.
Bill Burns - Eccentric Technology Consultant
ILE Communications Group
billdb -at- ile -dot- com
Call me fishmeal.
