Auto-translation in CCMS Web

Auto-translation is the process where the CCMS can "bring forward" previously-translated content into the files included in a localization kit.

For example, say you translate a map and topics to French and import the translations into the CCMS. Some time later, after making updates to the map and topics, you translate them again to French. The CCMS compares each segment in the current revisions of each object to the same segments in the previously-translated revisions of each object. Where the segments are unchanged, the CCMS brings the previously-translated content into the current revisions.

Note: In auto-translation, a segment is an element with an @ixia_locidattribute. A segment can be a block element such as <note>, <p>, or <li>, or it can be an inline element such as <ph>, <keyword>, or <uicontrol>.

The result of auto-translation is that the content you send to the Language Service Provider (LSP) can be a combination of the source language and the target language.

Important: Not all LSPs want to receive a mix of source and target languages. In some cases, the mix can interfere with the agency's translation memories and might end up being more expensive for you. Before implementing auto-translation, verify with your LSP that they are prepared to deal with mixed content. Auto-translation is not a substitute for translation memory!

Use cases for auto-translation

In most cases, your LSP's translation memory will do a better job of identifying matches than CCMS auto-translation, which was not designed for that purpose.

On the other hand, if you work in a regulated industry and need to ensure that once content is translated and approved, it is never re-translated (unless the source changes), then CCMS auto-translation is a good fit.

For example, you might translate a topic into French and have that translation approved by your regulatory body. Later, you send an updated copy of the topic to the LSP without auto-translation, meaning the entire topic is in the source language. It is up to the LSP to apply the translation memory. While applying the memory and checking over the topic, a translator believes they have a better translation for a word or phrase and so they update the memory accordingly. This change has not been approved by the regulatory body and you might now be out of compliance without realizing it.

Auto-translate ensures that approved and unchanged content is always sent pre-translated to the LSP so there is less risk of an individual translator introducing these kinds of changes without your knowledge.

Another use case for auto-translation is to reduce the amount of content sent to translation, which is the important for many companies that author in languages that are more expensive to translate, such as Japanese.