[This is an archive of the original IMUG web page. Click here to return to the event archive index.]
Date: November 20, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Renato Beninatto (Common Sense Advisory, Inc.)
Topic: Design Practices for Global Gateways
Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino
Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into
Cupertino, turn left onto Mariani Avenue, left into
Infinite Loop.
Admission: $4, free for IMUG members
Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981
http://www.imug.org/contact.htm
Common Sense Advisory, an independent market research and analysis firm, analyzed the websites of the top 25 revenue-producing companies in 16 countries from Western Europe, Asia, and the Americas. This sample encompassed 28 market segments, including aerospace, beverages, consumer products, pharmaceuticals, retail, and telecommunications. Renato Beninatto, a partner at Common Sense Advisory, will present the findings of this report.
Renato Beninatto has served on the executive teams for some of the industry's most prominent companies, most recently as Vice President and Director of Alpnet Inc. and Berlitz GlobalNET, respectively. He focuses on strategies that drive growth on a global scale. He specializes in making companies successful in global markets and in starting businesses that span across borders. As a partner of Common Sense Advisory, he conducts buyer-focused independent research and analysis of the localization Industry.
Date:
October 16, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Markus Scherer (IBM Corp.)
Topic: International Components for Unicode (ICU)
- An Introduction
Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino
Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into
Cupertino, turn left onto Mariani Avenue, left into
Infinite Loop.
Admission: $4, free for IMUG members
Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981
http://www.imug.org/contact.htm
This presentation gives an overview of the International Components for Unicode (ICU) libraries, which provide a wide variety of Internationalization functions in C/C++ and Java. They support basic Unicode string and character handling, codepage conversion and normalization, as well as higher-level services like collation, formatting and regular expressions. The presentation also discusses the latest version of the Unicode Standard, version 4.
http://oss.software.ibm.com/icu/ Markus Scherer is a software engineer at IBM developing ICU and other Unicode/Globalization solutions. He has contributed to many parts of ICU including character conversion, bidi, normalization, Unicode properties and collation and is currently the technical team leader of ICU4C. After graduating from the University of Kaiserslautern, Germany, in computer science he worked on projects for wireless and mobile computing with IBM. A strong interest in languages brought him into the Internationalization parts of the projects, followed by his current focus on Unicode and Globalization.
Group: International Macintosh Users Group (IMUG) (A Forum for Multilingual / Multiscript Computing) Date: September 18, 2003, 7-9 p.m. Speaker: Claudia Galván (Adobe Systems, Inc.) Topic: Automating Globalization End-to-End Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into Cupertino, turn left onto Mariani Avenue, left into Infinite Loop. Admission: $4; free for IMUG members Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981 http://www.imug.org/contact.htm
Simultaneous release is often an elusive target. Products are not properly internationalized, processes are not followed and slipping schedules make this goal difficult to achieve. Operating systems and development frameworks are not set up for facilitating internationalization and localization. Libraries and tools are often created to work around these limitations. Automating globalization end-to-end is a concept that starts with internationalization technology targeted at easing the product localization, as well as the establishment of key automated processes that manage the information flow among key stakeholders. We will discuss our proposed solutions, in terms of architecture, process and best practices to achieve this worthy goal. Claudia Galván is currently responsible for the development and deployment of shared libraries and tools that support product Internationalization/localization as well as electronic software delivery (ESD) technologies for all Adobe products. At Adobe she co-authored a patent pending technology to allow 100% string leverage. Before that she was the National Language Support Manager for the Oracle Tools division, where she established processes and technologies that allowed shipment of 29 languages simultaneously. Claudia has worked in three different countries developing shrink wrapped software products in graphics, database development tools, school administration, and testing. She is also a former presenter at the Unicode conference as well as the Stanford Society of Women Engineers.
Date: August 21, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Horacio Franco (SRI International)
Topic: Development of Phrase Translation Systems for Handheld
Computers: From Concept to Field
Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino
Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into
Cupertino, turn left onto Mariani Avenue, left into
Infinite Loop.
Admission: $4, free for IMUG members
Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981
http://www.imug.org/contact.htm
We describe the development and conceptual evolution of handheld spoken
phrase translation systems, beginning with an initial unidirectional
system for translation of English phrases, and later extending to a
limited bidirectional phrase translation system between English and
Pashto, a major language of Afghanistan. We review the challenges posed
by such projects, such as the constraints imposed by the computational
platform, to the limitations of the phrase translation approach when
dealing with naďve respondents. We discuss our proposed solutions, in
terms of architecture, algorithms, and software features, as well as
some field experience by users of initial prototypes.
Horacio Franco is the Chief Scientist at the Speech Technology and
Research (STAR) Laboratory at SRI International. He has been a member of
the research team at the STAR Lab since 1990, where he contributed to
the development of SRI's speech technology in several aspects of
acoustic modeling and recognizer architectures as well as speech
technology for language learning. Dr. Franco has been a principal
investigator for several DARPA funded projects, in particular he has
been leading the team involved in the software development of the
"Phraselator", a phrase translation system funded by DARPA. He has an
Electrical Engineer Diploma and a Doctor in Engineering degree both from
the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Date: July 17, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Edward Cherlin (Encore Technologies and Earth Treasury)
Topic: Simputer - Effectively Bridging the Digital Divide
Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino
Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into
Cupertino, turn left onto Mariani Avenue, left into
Infinite Loop.
Admission: $4, free for IMUG members
Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981
http://www.imug.org/contact.htm
The Simputer was designed for illiterate people without access to
electric power, telephones, or money. It also works as a server,
an embedded system controller, and a component of enterprise
systems providing ubiquitous mobile computing. The result is the
ability to attack global poverty on a sustainable for-profit
basis. Apple once tried to address the Indian rural market but
failed. The presentation will examine the differences between
the technologies of then and now.
Simputer projects include completing Unicode support for modern
languages, text-to-speech software for multiple languages, voice
recognition for multiple languages, health, education,
microbanking, an instant emergency Internet Service kit, a
realization of the Alan Kay Dynabook, and much more.
Edward Cherlin is the Evangelist for the Simputer, a Linux
handheld for poor people. Ed has been in high tech for 26 years,
doing market research, software development, writing, editing,
and publishing. He is also setting up a non-profit corporation,
Earth Treasury, to fund non-commercial Simputer projects.
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Check it out! It's currently not up-to-date, but we're working on
fixing that.
For a map of our meeting location go to: http://www.imug.org/events.html
and click on the map link.
We also post our meeting announcements and handouts at Yahoo! Groups:
http://www.yahoogroups.com, under the group name "imugi18n"
(IMUG-i-eighteen-n).
Admission: $4; free for IMUG members
Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981 http://www.imug.org/contact.htm
Date: June 19, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Bill Hall (MLM Associates) www.csharpi18n.net
Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino
Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into Cupertino, turn left onto
Mariani Avenue, left into Infinite Loop.
Developers as a group would rather not think about the problems of
writing code that supports world wide use. Yet, some of the most
interesting problems arise here. In this talk, we show how to build a
simple program that introduces .NET date, time, and calendar handling
capabilities in combination with a range of interesting technologies.
Specifically, we show how to write a program in .NET that uses the
Internet to access the National Institute of Standard and Technologies'
very accurate clock and renders the time and date in as many formats as
are available for any selected .NET culture. Along the way, calendars
from Hebrew and Hijri to Japanese Era and Thai Buddhist are encountered,
Julian and modified Julian Days are explained, a bit of socket
programming and direct operating system calls are explored, and how XML
can help in managing a list of service providers.
This presentation was previously given at the 23rd Internationalization
& Unicode Conference in Prague, Czech Republic (March 2003).
Since 2000, Bill Hall has worked as a Globalization Consultant for
Convey Software, Inc., Internationalization Director at SimulTrans, L.
L. C., and more recently for his own company. His main duties include
the analysis and repair of client and web software for customers who are
interested in creating a worldwide presence. He has also been involved
in delivering training material on internationalization of various
platforms including Win32 and WinCE, Microsoft .NET, and on languages
such as C++, CSharp, and Java.
Bill had been a software and systems developer having held positions in
the industry that included OEM ports of early versions of Windows to
diverse hardware at AT&T Information Systems, as well as taking complex
software programs through internationalization and localization cycles
and developing graphics software for network management systems at
Novell.
In previous lives, Bill has been a military aviator, commercial civilian
pilot, and flight instructor, an associate editor of Mathematical
Reviews, and a university professor of mathematics. He has published 65
papers on mathematics, teaching, computer programming, and
internationalization including several recent ones on .NET. He talks
frequently at international meetings including Unicode. The publication
list can be found at
http://www.mlmassociates.cc/newpubs.htm.
He has five university degrees including a Ph. D. in areas such as
electrical engineering, computer science, and mathematics from both
American and English Universities.
Phone: 408-241-6983
Email:
billhall@mlmassoc.com
Websites: http://www.mlmassociates.cc
& http://www.csharpi18n.net
Admission: $4; free for IMUG members
Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981
http://www.imug.org/contact.htm
Date: May 15, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Nancy Rains
Topic: Writing for International Audiences and Translation
Nancy Rains will discuss issues involved in making your English language documents more appropriate for worldwide audiences and easier to translate. The material covered is suitable for technical writers. It is also particularly helpful for other professionals who find themselves suddenly more involved in product information and translation handoffs--perhaps due to company downsizing.
Nancy will describe issues such as:
Checking for cultural bias in your materials and reviewing the many types of data that are culture specific.
Developing a writing style that is accommodating to all your readers Standardizing vocabulary and how common word choice errors are more troublesome for those who speak English as a second language Special symbols commonly used in the US that don't have universal meaning. Also, potential pitfalls of graphics and document production will be covered. Participants are invited to share their own experiences in taking their documentation to different countries.
Nancy Rains has been a technical writer in Silicon Valley for over 10 years. For several years, she managed the Localization and Internationalization SIG for the local chapter of STC (Society for Technical Communication; www.stc.org). She has written documentation for localized software, localization tools, and globalization standards.
She speaks Spanish and Italian and has a bachelor's in Language from the University of California. Nancy Rains can be reached at: nrains@attglobal.net.
Date: April 17, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Renato Beninatto (Common Sense Advisory, Inc.)
Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino
Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into Cupertino, turn left onto
Mariani Avenue, left into Infinite Loop.
Admission: $4; free for IMUG members
Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981 http://www.imug.org/contact.htm
To understand how companies with ambitions beyond their own markets think about and measure localization efforts, Common Sense Advisory interviewed 50 managers responsible for setting or implementing localization strategy at U.S.-based organizations.
Localization comprises the business practices by which a company prepares its product or service offering for worldwide markets. Without this practice a company would never bridge beyond its own borders. In preparing their report - "Beggars at the Globalization Banquet" - Common Sense Advisory found that localization investment happens to be very small compared to the big international revenue it enables. Even so, most American firms shortchange their budgets for translating and adapting products, services, support materials, and output for non-US markets - but continue to expect increasingly more productivity.
This presentation will include many of the findings of our research as well as recommendations to help you transform localization from cost into investment.
Renato Beninatto has served on the executive teams for some of the
industry’s most prominent companies, most recently as Vice President and Director of Alpnet Inc. and Berlitz GlobalNET, respectively. He focuses on strategies that drive growth on a global scale. He specializes in making companies successful in global markets and in starting businesses that span across borders. As a partner of Common Sense Advisory, he conducts buyer-focused independent research and analysis of the localization Industry.
Date: March 20, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Bjorn Austraat (Austraat Globaliztion Solutions)
Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino
Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into Cupertino, turn left onto
Mariani Avenue, left into Infinite Loop.
Admission: $4, free for IMUG members
Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981
Globalization Image Assistant (GIA) is a tool for total life-cycle management of large-scale image globalization projects. I will present my findings on some of the more exotic 'quirks' of .NET components used in the project (complete with workarounds), how to patch up the gaping security holes of .NET distributable EXE and DLL components, and an example of the System.Globalization namespace at work.
Bjorn Austraat is the Principal Consultant of Austraat Globalization Solutions. Prior to launching Austraat Globalization Solutions, he was the Director of the Globalization Consulting group with Convey Software in San Francisco, CA. Bjorn has more than 15 years of experience in the areas of globalization, translation and localization.
His responsibilities at Convey Software included the creation of globalization roadmaps for complex Web properties, internationalization tool development, targeted technical consulting and executive training as well as leading internal and external knowledge transfer projects.
Bjorn also taught a highly successful seminar on software and Web globalization at the Monterey Institute of International Studies, a private graduate school in Monterey, CA.
Before joining Convey Software, Bjorn served as Senior Localization Specialist at Berlitz International and led a comprehensive Machine Translation research project at IDOC, Inc. (now Bowne Global Solutions).
He holds a Master’s Degree in Conference Interpretation from the University of Vienna and a Master’s Degree in Translation and Interpretation from the Monterey Institute of International Studies.
Location:
Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino.
Directions: Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into Cupertino,
turn left onto Mariani Avenue, left into Infinite Loop.
Admission:
$4.00, free for IMUG members
Contact:
Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981
Date: February 20, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Srinivas Annam (Deshweb.com)
Topic: Input for Indian Languages Made Easy!
Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino
Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into Cupertino, turn left onto
Mariani Avenue, left into Infinite Loop.
Admission: $4, free for IMUG members
Contact: Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981 http://www.imug.org/contact.htm
This presentation will describe the hurdles software designers face when implementing Indian languages on computers and suggestions for overcoming them. In the past, it was common practice to implement Indian languages on computers using "hacked" fonts because of the lack of standards. Now that there is Unicode, and Microsoft and other OS makers have started supporting Indic via Unicode, how is this changing the scene? We will also look at the problem of lack of decent input support on Windows platforms and how "Aksharamala" is solving it. Also, how does Unicode support on Office XP, Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, Open Office and such applications make features such as spell checking, data storage, sorting, email, etc. available for Indian language users?
Srinivas Annam, President & Founder of Deshweb.com, architected and created the software product called "Aksharamala" for empowering Indian languages for Internet and computer use. In addition, he envisions solutions for enhancing productivity using the very latest in technological developments and standards.
Date: January 16, 2003, 7-9 p.m.
Speaker: Jim DeLaHunt (Adobe Systems, Inc.)
Topic: Gaiji: Characters, Glyphs, Both, or Neither?
Location: Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino
This talk will describe the "gaiji" requirement, survey the leading gaiji
mechanisms in use by the Japanese publishing and personal computer industries,
and look at the interesting light which gaiji glyphs (or are
they characters?) cast on the Unicode character-glyph model.
Unicode encodes Han characters by the tens of thousands, but fonts typically
have only thousands of glyphs. Some fonts may have more glyphs, some may have
fewer. And since the Han character repertoire is fundamentally open-ended, there
will always be characters which are not encoded. The characters legal for the
script, but not in your font, are known as "gaiji". Writers and publishers
insist on being able to use gaiji, so the Japanese publishing and computer
industries have come up with a number of gaiji mechanisms. Looking from the
viewpoint of a publishing software and font developer, we describe and evaluate
a few of the most important gaiji mechanisms. Finally, we look at gaiji in terms
of the Unicode character-glyph model. Are they glyph variants, or characters, or
both, or neither?
Jim DeLaHunt is an engineering manager at Adobe Systems, responsible for
Japanese fonts and gaiji. He was introduced the gaiji requirement when he first
joined Adobe thirteen years ago, and still isn't satisfied with
any gaiji mechanism he has found in the market.
Location:
Apple Computer, Apple Campus, 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino.
Directions: Take Saratoga/Sunnyvale exit off 280, turn South into Cupertino,
turn left onto Mariani Avenue, left into Infinite Loop.
Admission:
$4.00, free for IMUG members
Contact:
Roger Sherman, (650) 859-5981
We also post our meeting announcements and handouts at Yahoo! Groups:
http://www.yahoogroups.com under the
group name "imugi18n"
(IMUG-i-eighteen-n).
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