Resources for translating common programming terms for UI into other languages

Question

I'm not even sure this is entirely programming related...but here goes:

I need to translate some forms into different languages, specifically Spanish and French. Obviously, it would be good if I knew these other languages fluently, but I don't. Besides doing a Google translate, babel fish, etc. are there any resources which can assist in this? Mainly I am trying to find out what the translation of OK and Cancel are.

Moreover, I looked to find some programs which have the UI written in these other languages and all I could find were language learning programs.

How do other programmers handle doing this?

I know this is an old thread. But use **Google translate** – Anurag Awasthi Apr 26 '17 at 09:02 — Anurag Awasthi, Apr 26 '17 at 09:02

score 21 · Accepted Answer · answered Nov 12 '11 at 19:19

21

Take a look at the Pootle Terminology project:

http://pootle.locamotion.org/projects/terminology/

and Microsoft's UI translations:

http://www.microsoft.com/Language/en-US/Translations.aspx

Both provide translations for common UI terminology in a range of languages.

answered Nov 12 '11 at 19:19

Alex Peattie

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Definitely the Spanish PO file taught me a bunch of programming words that I only knew in English and I speak Spanish fluently. Thanks for the resource. – 2upmedia Apr 04 '14 at 21:20
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Both those links no longer exist – DroidOS Jul 05 '19 at 07:59
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An alternative MicroSoft resource can now be found here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/language/ – Fat Monk Apr 05 '21 at 16:45

score 4 · Answer 2 · answered Feb 10 '10 at 22:46

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If you want to do it right, it seems like you need to hire a person to translate for you. Preferably a native speaker. I'm sure you can find some services through a quick google search.

answered Feb 10 '10 at 22:46

Cheryl Simon

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score 4 · Answer 3 · answered Feb 10 '10 at 22:47

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The best resource for this is probably a translator who speaks the language in question fluently and has experience translating user interfaces.

Here's just one example of a company that provides this service:

http://www.ricintl.com/software-localization-services.htm

answered Feb 10 '10 at 22:47

Andy West

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Leads to a dead, not secure empty page – DroidOS Jul 05 '19 at 08:00

score 1 · Answer 4 · answered Feb 10 '10 at 22:42

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For spanish is ok to user: "Ok and "Cancelar"

answered Feb 10 '10 at 22:42

OscarRyz

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Interesting, I actually thought that it was a command and needed to translate "Cancel" to "Cancele" instead of the infinitive. – Anthony Potts Feb 10 '10 at 23:00
Yeah, the same goes for Portuguese. Always use the infinitive (Abrir, Sair, Excluir). – Dielson Sales Sep 11 '14 at 22:08

Resources for translating common programming terms for UI into other languages

4 Answers4