Last update April 2020

TRANSLATIONS – GENERAL GUIDELINES

There are different types of translations that are either sent to your email or they appear in your
timelog (full time and remote agents). Remote translators will always receive them by email.

How to log translation?

Translations should always be logged on the timelog following some rules.

Everybody has a predefined Main translation tasks which should be used by external translators or
minor quick tasks.
Otherwise, you should projects and tasks following these guidelines:

LORETO TO INSERT HERE WHICH PROJECT CATEGORIES NEED TO BE CREATED

The system will identify a task as a translation task on all the below cases.

1- You use the main translation task already predefined

2- You create a project called "Translation XX" XX being your language code. All tasks inside
this project will be identified regardless of task name.
3- Any task on other projects which have "translation XX" at the end (at the end only, not
beginning or middle) . XX can be like this or on brackets (XX)

Please note that translation related tasks such as spotchecks of revisions which are not real
translations CANNOT be logged as the above.

What types of translations are sent?

This really depends on the language. We run several websites and, some of them, are not translated
to all languages. We may send translations for Languagecourse, Adorini, Humidor, Agnato,
University Guru or Vocabulary Trainer.

This is the link where the majority of the translations can be found:

[Link]

XX is substituted by the language code:

ES Spanish JP Japanese ZH Mandarin FI Finnish VI Vietnamese BN Bengali

EN English NL Dutch PT Portuguese DA Danish HR Croatian IW Hebrew

FR French SE Swedish TH Thai NO Norwegian MS Malay HU Hungarian

IT Italian PL Polish BG Bulgarian FA Farsi HI Hindi RO Romanian

DE German AR Arabic CZ Czeck SL Slovene TR Turkish UK Ukrainian

RU Russian KO Korean EL Greek SK Slovak CA Catalan

Once you click on the link, it will take you to the system we use for the translations. All the pending
translations will be there. If you click on the top link “pending translations”, you can access them
one by one. The reason we recommend to click on them one by one is that when the amount of
translations is very high, the translations might not be saved properly.

So, if you click on the link next to the red arrow, you will see a dropdown with all pending
translations. Click on one of them and the texts sent for that specific translations will appear. As
you finish them, they will disappear from the pending translations list.

On the right side, you can see a red square containing all pending translations that might not be
included in this link (like student evaluations, for example). If you see that red square, you can do
these translations too.

As you can see in the picture above, there are 3 columns. The first column contains the task ID,
sometimes a picture (if it is a product we sell), the deadline AND instructions if the person that sent
the translations included guidelines. Please do not disregard this column. Instructions are
important. If there are none, then fine. The second column contains the text in English. The third
column is where the translation should be entered.

Is this column empty? Probably not. For short words, the google translator might help and save you
time. But, in general, the text should be rewritten.

We should always keep the format as it is in English. The word order will change depending on the
language, which is fine. The translations should sound natural in your language, just make sure that
the words that are highlighted in English are highlighted in your language, the words inside a
hyperlink should still be the same words inside a hyperlink in your language.

Every text should be spell checked to avoid mistakes.

You basically need to make sure of your google settings and this is how.

Google Chrome – How to change spell check language

1. With Google Chrome open, click on the menu bar at the top right of the window then
‘Settings’ e.g. chrome://settings/
2. At the bottom of the settings window, click on ‘Advanced’ button
 3. Under the ‘Languages’ heading, go to section "Use spell check for" enable the languages.

4. If your native language to which you translate does not show up then add it in field
"Language"

TRANSLATION CENTRAL

These are usually sent by the ITs or the designer. These translations are very important as the ITs
will need these translations in order to implement new features.
These translations maybe for languagecourse, humidor and agnato (appendix with separate
instructions), university guru, Vocabulary Trainer or any other site we run.

Many translations sent by the ITs or the designer will contain HTML variables or links. Sometimes
these need to be moved around in your language so that it makes sense. For example:

$language courses in $city

could be used to say:
Spanish courses in Madrid
or
French courses in Nice
or Chinese courses in Beijing
(etc.)

There are many different variables. They should not be translated, just make sure that when the
variable is substituted by a word, it will make sense in your language. Never change the format of a
variable. In fact, google translator sometimes adds spaces to the variables. Just make sure the
variable is exactly as it is in English, embedded in your text so it makes sense in your language.

The same thing happens with the links. A link will open and close. The sentence/word inside the
link should be the same in your language (translated if need be), but you need to make sure you
identify this word/sentence and include it within the hyperlink text in the translation.

Some examples:

Living Languages courses are the <AMAZON_BOOK_LINK_START&&>#1 bestseller in the

language instruction category on [Link]<AMAZON_BOOK_LINK_END&&> with
hundreds of positive reviews. They contain 9 audio CDs, course books and access to some online
content.
The text above contains a link. To identify the text that should be inside the link (which will be the
text you click to access the link) is between both <links>. The first contains the words link_start and
the second contains the words link_end. So the text that should remain as a link in your language
is: #1 bestseller in the language instruction category on [Link]

However directly on the <LL_LINK_START&&>Living Language

website<LL_LINK_END&&> they offer access to an online course for <PRICE_ONLINE&&>
per month.

The text above contains 1 link and 1 variable. The link is easy to identify, just see the link_start and
link_end. The text that will contain the hyperlink is Living Language website (as explains in the
first example). The text also contains the variable <PRICE_ONLINE&&>. This should not be
translated but should be embedded in the text. In this case, the variable is a price so you should
leave it on the text with that in mind. Where should it be placed in the sentence it instead of a
variable it was, for example, 50 euro?

Or click here for the <AMAZON_KEYWORDS_LINK_START&&>most popular items on

amazon to learn <LANGUAGE_LEARN&&> specifically made for native
<LANGUAGE_NATIVE&&> speakers<AMAZON_KEYWORDS_LINK_END&&>.

The text above contains 1 link (link_start and link_end) and the text in the hyperlink is: most
popular items on amazon to learn <LANGUAGE_LEARN&&> specifically made for native
<LANGUAGE_NATIVE&&> speakers.

And there are also 2 variables: <LANGUAGE_LEARN&&> and <LANGUAGE_NATIVE&&>

If these variables were substituted by a word, let's say English and Spanish:

most popular items on amazon to learn English specifically made for Spanish speakers.

The point of the variable is that we can use this text to refer to Spanish natives speakers or French,
German, etc. and the same for the language you wish to learn. The sentence with the variable can be
used for all languages. When you do the translation, you need to bear that in mind and make sure
the variable is placed correctly in your language so it makes sense one the variable is substituted by
a word in your language.

CAREFUL: sometimes google translator/deepl translates variables or modifies them. Make sure the
variables are exactly as they are in the EN text.

Once the translation is finished, you should click on the dropdown menu under the translation box
and select the option “translation finished”. Translations are then saved automatically. If you refresh
the page, that translation will not show anymore. You do not have to refresh after every translation,
but you should select translation finished to avoid losing your work.

SCHOOL PROFILES - LanguageCourse

There may be translations all year round but, from September to December, there is a high number
of school translations. As the partner team approves schools, the translations are sent around. EN is
revised by an English native speaker but you are welcome to let us know if you see anything that
should not be there.

The school profiles are divided into different links: top 60s, regular and small schools. New schools
will soon be on a separate link.

If the course/accommodation existed the previous year, the text will be displayed. Often the changes
are minimal so you can copy the text and then make the modifications you need.

If this is a completely new text, there maybe a google translation or it maybe empty. In both cases,
the translation needs to sound fluent and not robotic. Only manual translations.

There is a style guide for the comments in English. We do not have a guide per language but you
should take a look at the website to see the style used in your language so that the translations are
consistent.

EVALUATIONS - LanguageCourse

The idea is to keep them up to date and every Friday bring them down to zero. Obviously when we
have big translation projects, this is not possible.

There are 2 chunks of reviews:

- the ones written in your native language (priority) that are revised in your native language and
translated into English

and

- the ones written in English (or in other language and already translated into English). These need
to be translated into your native language.

You need to:

- filter in short periods (1-2 months). If you filter too many at once, the computer is likely to freeze.

- Revise the text in your native language written by the students AND translate it in English.

- Every review has 4 fields. At the bottom of each review, there is a tick to specify that it is ready. If
the evaluation is written in your native language, you need to validate both columns, your language
and English. Only when you validate it in both languages will it be sent to the rest of the translators.

- Submit every 15 minutes or so. When you scroll down, you will see a button called "submit".
Please do so. When we submit a lot of them at the same times it tends to freeze.

What TO AVOID:
* swearwords. Those need to be deleted
* websites or emails need to be deleted

Bad comments about schools are published. If ever in doubt, please ask Loreto.
Bad comments about LanguageCourse will depend on how bad. We cannot publish comments
about us that are dreadful. If in doubt, ask Loreto.

I made a video to make it a bit clearer. It is a bit noisy though so I hope you understand my
voice :-)

testimonial translation Watch Video

[Link]

HUMIDOR/ADORINI/AGNATO WEBSITES

You may receive translations about the website itself, buyer’s reviews or the products we sell.

These are all included in the translation central link specified in the previous section. The reviews
are usually short and in English to be translated into other languages. The translations for the
website may contain HTML variables. In that case, variables are embedded in the text, just as it is
explained in the translations for LanguageCourse. You may receive translations of product names
and descriptions.

Before you get started, it is a good idea to familiarise with the terminology of the website so that
translations are consistent. You can access the website here: [Link]

At the bottom of the page, there is a flag. If you click on it, you can go to the translated version of
the website. Take a look and get acquainted with the names used in your language and the style.

In terms of format and word order, here are some guidelines. Please make sure you follow them.

Product Names:

Word Order:
Brand / Model / Keyword / Finish / Product ID or defining characteristic

Keywords:

Keyword refers to the type of product: Humidor, Humidifier, Lighter, Cutter, Pipe, Pen… etc

It’s important to vary the keywords when adding new products.

For example, with new pipes to add variety and make us more “Google-Happy” we also use the
following terms: Smoking Pipe, Tobacco Pipe, Briar Pipe, Bruyere Pipe, Handmade… etc.
Personally, I like to add a reference to the shape of the pipe there i.e.: Calabash Pipe, Bulldog
Pipe, Billiard Pipe… particularly where the shape is remarkable or really defines the pipe.

NOTE: create upfront list of synonyms of common product categories (e.g. "cigar cutter", "cutter",
"guillotine cutter", "double blade cutter". Use then these synonyms occasionally. If there are
different color variations of one item, then it is particularly useful to vary the term.
- If there are products with same product name and they are really different products, then make
the criteria that differentiates them part of the product name

Capitalization:

It varies according to the language used:

English: all words in the product name should be capitalized as they are treated like a title.
German: only the nouns and brands are capitalized. Adjectives (colours, etc) are small case.
French: first letter of the product name, brand, model and proper names are capitalized.
So the Briquet Xikar Tech Jet flamme simple bleu should be: Xikar/Tech/Briquet Jet flamme simple/ bleu…..
Italian: same as French
Russian: same as French
Spanish: same as French

Punctuation:

Avoid all use of punctuation, wherever possible.

Brands:

For little-known brands we occasionally don’t bother to include the brand name in the product
name.

Adorini Branding:

The name adorini, in general, is not capitalized. The exception being if it is found at the start of a
sentence. At the start of a product name it is not capitalized.
IMPORTANT re: TRANSLATIONS of product names:

Regarding translations of Product Names: It is important that the translators are told to respect this
word order and that they know which words they should not be translating. e.g. Xikar VX V-Cut
should be the same in all languages. It should not be translated as Coupe V (for example). If a
translation of the model name is necessary, both the original and the translation should appear
(i.e. V-Cut (coupe V)...)
FAQs

- What do I do if I find a mistake on the English text?

You can contact Loreto on partner@ and she will check who needs to change the text.

- I submitted the translation by mistake but would like to change it?

If you check the upper right side of the screen, at the very top, there is a link called “see
finished translations”. This will take you to the texts you have submitted. Please be careful
with long translations such as school profiles. If you go to the “finished translations” you are
not likely to find the text because there are too many.

- What happens if I refresh the page?

Except the evaluations, all the others are automatically saved when you click “finished”. So,
if you refresh they will disappear. The evaluations need to be clicked and submitted, so if
you refresh before, you will lose the translations.

- Which translations should I prioritise?

If in doubt, ask Loreto. But, as a general rule:
● short translations(<2 minutes) should be translated as they arrive in your inbox. Pay
special attention to missing city names or special offers that will not be displayed
until they are translated.
● IT translations. These go first.
● School profiles. From September to December, there will be many of these.
Prioritise the top 60 and new schools, then regular schools and finally small schools.
● evaluations: these are done regularly so they don’t pile up.
● Other evaluations: there will be a deadline specified.