Global Talk

The Global English Style Guide: Writing Clear, Translatable Documentation for a Global Market, by ITC SIG member John R. Kohl, has recently been published by SAS Press.

This detailed, example-driven guide illustrates how much you can do to make written texts more suitable for a global audience. Accompanied by clearly explained examples, the Global English guidelines show you how to write documentation that is optimized for non-native speakers of English, translators, and even machine-translation software, as well as for native speakers of English.

Focusing primarily on sentence-level stylistic issues, problematic grammatical constructions, and terminology issues, this book addresses the following topics:

• Ways to simplify your writing style and make it consistent
• Ambiguities that most writers and editors are not aware of, and how to eliminate those ambiguities
• How to make your sentence structure more explicit so that your sentences are easier for native and non-native speakers to read and understand
• Punctuation and capitalization guidelines that improve readability and make translation more efficient
• How language technologies such as controlled-authoring software can facilitate the adoption of Global English as a corporate standard

Author John R. Kohl has worked at SAS Institute as a technical writer, technical editor, and linguistic engineer since 1992. For the past several years, John has devoted much of his time to terminology issues and to refining the Global English guidelines. As a linguistic engineer, John customizes and supports tools and processes that help make SAS documentation more consistent, easier to translate, and easier for non-native speakers of English to understand. John has been interested in machine translation and other language technologies for many years, and he is a charter member of the Association for Machine Translation in the Americas.

You can view the table of contents, a sample chapter, and reviewers’ comments at http://support.sas.com/kohl. You can also order the book from that site, though you can get it at a discounted price through other online booksellers.

As the ITC SIG manager, I wanted to thank all of the volunteers who helped with the ITC/GALA Pavilion this year.  We had a nice bit of traffic, and we had some lovely comments from folks participating in the sponsor activities and the Passport.  I remember a couple of women in particular said, “We never would have known about localization at all, except we wanted to do the Passport.  Thanks for educating us!”  

The winner of the  Passport activity was Lisa Rowan (name released with permission), and she is very excited!  

Thanks, too, to all who came to the ITC breakfast meeting. There was good energy in the room, and I truly appreciate all of the folks who stepped forward to take on some volunteer work for the ITC SIG.  I feel some good things are coming along this year.

In particular, I want to thank Laura Brandon who was so valiant in helping me put together the Pavilion. She’s with GALA, but she gets an ITC crown from me. As well, Phil Gray was so very helpful to me all during the hours of the Pavilion, willing to take on any ol’ task that came along. It was much appreciated.

Our sponsors were great, and I had a great time connecting with the via the Pavilion and at their booths. We look forward to working with them in the future. This year, we were sponsored by TOIN, LinguaLinx, TransPerfect, CETRA, Localization World, International Communication by Design, MultiLingual , OmniLingua, and SH3 (in no particular order). We truly appreciate their participation in the Pavilion and the Passport activity…and we hope it was a fruitful partnership with them, as well.

–Traci Nathans-Kelly ITC SIG Manager

Here, we can see folks paricipating in LinguaLinx’s Wheel of Fortune! at the Pavilion.

Linked below is a PDF of  ITC activities for the 2008 conference.  Included in this document are also sessions/talks/ that are of particular interest to ITCers.

ITC activities and sessions, STC 2008 conference

Contact the ITC manager (Traci Nathans-Kelly) if you have other items of interest to add.

Highlights:
STC Summit, 2008: Philadelphia, PA, USA
Sessions and Activities of Interest:
International Technical Communication

Every day, all Exhibit Hall hours, the  International Pavilion is open!  Come visit the Pavilion and participate in the Passport activity, which has a grand prize of a $500 airline voucher!Your Passport activity card will be in your conference bag or you can pick one up at the International Pavilion. Sponsored by ITC and GALA! 

International Pavilion Speakers and Activities
Monday
11:00am—Bob Caskey of OmniLingua
11:30am—Aki Ito of TOIN
2:00pm—Bob Caskey of OmniLingua
Tuesday
10:00am—Aki Ito of TOIN
11:30am—Mark Lawyer of LinguaLinx presents Wheel of Fortune!  ITC style!
12:00-1:00—ITC SIG Luncheon
1:30-2:30—ITC Progression (see below)
3:00pm—Mark Lawyer of LinguaLinx presents Jeopardy!  ITC style!
Wednesday
10:00am—Passport due at International Pavilion
11:00am—Passport winner announced!
 
STC Sessions
Monday, June 2
Communication Strategies of Successful Virtual Teams
3:30-4:30 PM  (Room: 103B)
Format: Discussion
Skill Level: All
Effective technical communications are paramount for successful virtual teams. Add diversity of cultures, locations, and functional ability, and you have strategic communication decisions to make. Come learn from some veterans. 

When Did Google Become a Verb? American English as a Moving Target
5:00-6:00 PM  (Room: 112AB)
Format: Presentation
Skill Level: All
American English changes fast, and words that today are considered slang or mashed together can appear in dictionaries tomorrow. Plus, technology tests the bounds of terminology and usage. This session helps tech communicators make usage decisions. 

How Quality at the Source Affects Global Customer Satisfaction
5:00-6:00 PM  (Room: 103A)
Format: Presentation
Apart from offering the desired product/service, a global organization must emphasize all stages of customer communication. A satisfying experience happens only when communication is clear, consistent, error-free, and in the customers’ native language. This session focuses on new trends and technologies in the forefront of customer communication. We’ll discuss processes that integrate the whole linguistic supply chain, with special focus on authoring assistance.

Tuesday, June 3
Unifying Content Development and Localization at Palm
9:00-10:00 AM  (Room: 103A)
Format: Case Study
Skill Level: All
This case study looks at what happened when Palm made a dramatic shift to marry two antagonistic organizations in order to improve its ability to serve global audiences. By tightly integrating informatino development and localization, Palm has been able to increase the volume of accessible content without sacrificing quality.
 

Global Ideas and Global Information: Creating Content for a Worldwide Audience
9:00-10:00 AM  (Room: 111AB)
Format: Presentation
Skill Level: All
Information today is inherently global information. Today’s organization, however, can be overwhelmed with the choices for global authoring, including structured versus unstructured authoring, XML and DITA, about using tools to bring style guides to life, or about improving authoring consistency, quality, and efficiency. Learn about best practices and the exciting solutions from Adobe and SDL that make authoring for a worldwide audience simple and easy.

Cross-cultural Communication Issues
10:30-11:30 AM  (Room: 106AB)
Format: Research Report
Skill Level: All
Two research reports examine international issues. The first examines the impacts of globalization on documents written in China for the international market, using rhetorical analysis, content analysis and visual analysis. The second analyzes changes in graphics between the English and Spanish versions of medical pamphlets.

Authoring for Globalization (Processes and Controls)
10:30-11:30am
Translation and localization of content are often managed operationally, but not strategically. How can we bring visibility to top management? What value do we provide, and how do we demonstrate it? And, most important, what makes your CEO excited about what you are accomplishing for the organization through globalizing its business processes?

Pictures & Profits: Innovations in Visual Instruction and Multi-ethnic Usability Research
10:30-11:30 AM  (Room: 113A)
Format: Presentation
Skill Level: All
Learn visual design and international usability research strategies that helped build three innovative, visual guides. From building the guides to running the research, learn how simple, cheap ideas can lead to spectacular profits.

Convergence of Authoring and Translation in the Web 2.0 World
10:30-11:30 AM  (Room: 102A)
Format: Discussion
Skill Level: All
The concept of Web 2.0 is gaining much attention in the popular media. What impact do new technologies and workflows stemming from the next generation Web have on the way technical authors and translators work together

Working in Multicultural Environments
1:30-2:30 PM  (Room: 105AB)
Format: Progression
Skill Level: All
International issues that encumber the everyday technical communicator can be overwhelming. Experiences from experts who have knowledge of these issues and some resolutions can be of help to all.

Developing Content for the International Marketplace
1:30-2:30pm
Need to develop content once that is applicable to both the domestic and international markets? What do you need to know to write once and use everywhere? This session will show you what caveats, strategies, and best practices you can employ to meet global, diverse users expectations in your documentation.

Why Can’t My Software Talk to My CMS?: Why Open Standards for Multilingual Document Production Matter to You
3:00-4:00pm
Open standards are like the air we breathe: you only notice them when they aren’t there. In technology-driven fields, like multilingual document authoring and production, they play an especially important role by allowing tools and processes to work together rather than in conflict with each other. In this session a panel of experts will discuss the various standards, their impact on technical communication processes and workflows, and what you as a technical communicator need to know to make effective use of these standards.

Doing More With Less: Optimizing a Localization Budget
3:00-4:00 PM  (Room: 109B)
Format: Case Study
Fluke Corporation, a manufacturer of hand-held devices, planned to localize its content into nine languages; the budget only allowed five. Using ABREVE from Translations.com, the content retained usability and accuracy, and was localized into seven languages.

Improving Source Content Quality for Global Audiences
4:30-5:30 PM  (Room: 109B)
Format: Presentation
Skill Level: All
Find out how Avaya implemented global authoring strategies to dramatically improve authoring productivity. By automating stye guide and reuse checks, the time and cost of global authoring have been greatly reduced.

Delivering on the Promise of Lower Localization Costs
4:30-5:30 PM  (Room: 113C)
Format: Presentation
Skill Level: Advanced Topic
Lowering localization costs requires more than writing, translation, and technology best practices. SMEs, vendors, and writers must be managed effectively. This case study analyzes cost metrics, lessons learned, and the reality of localization projects.

Wednesday, June 4
International Collaboration in Technical Communication
9:00-10:00 AM  (Room: 113A)
Format: Discussion
Skill Level: All
As communication technologies improve, the barriers of geography are becoming less significant. Geographically separated groups are being replaced by collaborative teams that cross cultural, geographic, and time-zone boundaries. This panel features participants and managers of collaborative teams that have spanned the globe. Come to hear their advice and success stories.

10:00am—Passport Activity due at the International Pavilion!

11:00am—Passport Activity winner announced!

Globalizing Garmin: Finding the Way and Other Points
10:30-11:30 AM  (Room: 108B)
Format: Featured Speaker
Skill Level: Advanced Topic
 Spent a million dollars lately? Whoever said talk is cheap obviously didn’t have it translated! Learn how to establish a localization group in your company and factors you should consider.

Documentation Goes Global
10:30-11:30 AM  (Room: 102A)
Format: Featured Speaker
Skill Level: All
The ability to produce high quality and accurately localized documentation quickly and cheaply can make or break a successful product launch. Aberdeen Group’s Documentation Goes Global study found that leading companies launch products with localized documentation up to three working months faster than their peers while simultaneously controlling localization spend. Come find out how!

Translation Management Solution (TMS) Benefits During Localization
1:30-2:30 PM  (Room: 108B)
Format: Presentation
Skill Level: All
Translation Management Systems (TMS) are making inroads to enhance localization processes, communications, and meeting requirements. A must-attend session if you’re involved in localization and don’t know what TMS is.

Pictures from STC 2007’s International Pavilon!

As the STC conference approaches, you will be seeing more communication notices from the ITC Leadership Board. General information of ITC-based activities at the conference can be seen below by date.

INTERNATIONAL PAVILION (ITC AND GALA)
We are very excited about our main activity for the year: the International Pavilion, inside of the Exhibit Hall at the conference. We have nine sponsors this year, along with GALA and support from STC! During the conference, sponsors will have speakers talking at the Pavilion at various times along with other activities, like the Passport activity, detailed below.

PASSPORT ACTIVITY
ITC and GALA are sponsoring the Passport to International Technical Communication activity. With a grand prize of a $500 airline voucher, we hope that this activity will pull STC conference attendees to the International Pavilion to learn more about international tech comm while also pushing traffic to our sponsors in the Exhibit Hall. The Passport will be in every attendee conference bag, so there will be a good amount of exposure for the Pavilion, ITC, GALA, and international tech comm overall.

PAVILION HOSTS NEEDED
The International Pavilion could use some help in staffing the hours open.
Pavilion hosts are asked to:
–arrive at the time committed
–greet passers-by with info about ITC, GALA, and the Pavilion Passport Activity
–announce any sponsor speakers that may be presenting during your shift

Pavilion hosts will not:
–be speakers themselves (unless they are with a Pavilion sponsor). We are only looking for hosts to be a presence in the International Pavilion. There is no prep needed.
–have to do any clean up.
–leave the Pavilion unattended (we will have some expensive equipment there…).

If you are interested, please email Traci Nathans-Kelly (ITC manager) . For the most part, we need Pavilion hosts during Monday and Tuesday from 9am to 4pm, usually in half hour or 1hour shifts. You are welcome to pair up with a friend!

We also try to have ITC folks identify themselves as possible language translators for any conference attendees that may need additional support. We provide buttons to ITC members that they can wear on their conference badges that identify them as a translator. If you are interested, again, please let me know by May 5, 2008.

OTHER WAYS TO VOLUNTEER
We would love to be able to provide to ITC members a targeted list of session that may be of interest to ITC members. If you would be interested in creating this list, please return an email to Traci Nathans-Kelly. As well, if you are presenting at the conferemce, let me know and I will start a listing, too, to send around to ITC membership.

——————–

SCHEDULE (not complete, but a good start)
STC Annual Summit: ITC activities and opportunities for ITC SIG members

June 1
–Welcome Reception (for all STC members) 7-8:15pm in the Convention Center
–Leadership Day 8am-5pm (see STC website)
–Set up for International Pavilion, time tbd

June 2
–International Pavilion (ITC and GALA) opens in Exhibit Hall, 10:30am-6pm
–International Reception 6pm-7pm, Exhibit Hall (tentative)

June 3
–7:30am to 8:30am: ITC SIG meeting, Marriott room 302, for ITC Leadership Board
–International Pavilion in Exhibit hall open 9am-6pm
–ITC Progression, 1:30-2:30, room TBD
–ITC SIG luncheon at 12pm-1pm

June 4
–International Pavilion in Exhibit Hall open 9am-1:15pm
–ITC/GALA Pavilion Passport activity due at Intl Pavilion at 10am
–Drawing for Passport winner at 11am
–Break down of Pavilion structures, etc.

For the second year in a row, the International Technical Communication (ITC) SIG and the Global and Localization Association (GALA) have partnered to present the International Pavilion at The Society for Technical Communication conference, held this year in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA from June 1-4, 2008.  With the International Pavilion, we have a great opportunity to educate and build awareness about international technical communication, globalization, localization, and translation.
The International Pavilion is hosted by partners ITC and GALA with support from STC. This year, we have a prominent 20 x 20 exhibit space in the front Exhibit Area which will once again be a gathering place for all conference attendees interested in international issues while providing cultural and industry educational presentations. It will also be home base for the Passport to International Technical Communication activity, which is designed to foster interaction between conference attendees and our sponsors while highlighting international technical communication topics.

The prize this year to one lucky conference participant is a $500 airline voucher!

To become a sponsor, please see the attached form.  There are two levels of sponsorship:  $500 Diamond Level and the $250 Ruby level. 

As well, we will need volunteers to staff the booth AND to speak at the International Pavilion.  If you are interested, please contact Traci Nathans-Kelly, the ITC SIG Manager at kelly@epd.engr.wisc.edu .

Hello ITC members!

As the  ITC manager, I just wanted to post a few updates and requests for help.

1.  We are actively making plans for the 2008 conference in Philadeliphia, PA, USA.  ITC and GALA are excited to once again host the International Pavilion, with help from the STC office. Watch for updates AND be thinking of short presentations that you may want to give if you are attending the conference.  As well, ITC members can volunteer to help translate for STC attendees and/or staff the pavilion for short periods of time.  More details will be posted here in January/February 2008.

 2.  Theodora Landgren has done a fantastic job organizing a progression session for the 2008 conference.  We will have notes on participants as they become available.

3.  The STC publication, Intercom, is now in the process of working with articles and authors for the May 2008 issue which will focus on international technical communication. 

4.  The STC handbook is in a near-final phase of this version.  Along with members of the ITC leadership team, I have been editing the handbook to address specific issues for international members and SIGs.

5.  We are currently looking for a new volunteer to handle membership for ITC and the listserv.  If you are interested, please email me at kelly@epd.engr.wisc.edu.

6.  We could also use some volunteers to help us with a conversion of content from our old website (http://stcsig.org/itc) to this one.  Interested?  Please email me at kelly@epd.engr.wisc.edu.  Ann Wiley has been a driving force for this project, but we could use more people to help us out.

Have a great end-of-year!

Traci Nathans-Kelly,  ITC manager

by Traci  Nathans-Kelly, ITC SIG Manager 

This is a quick overview of the state of the ITC SIG.

As the new manager of the International Technical Communication SIG for STC, I am making many efforts to continue the great work inherited from Kit Brown, those managers before her, and the leadership teams.  Below are some notes about the 2007 conference in Minneapolis (with our beginning plans for the conference in 2008), along with other calls for help for some ITC projects.

–2007 Conference:  ITC hosted the first “International Pavilion” at the STC Conference in May 2007 in Minneapolis.  We had corporate and academic sponsors, along with great speakers that addressed issues in many areas of concern to ITC professionals and technical communicators as a whole.  We had a large area with seating, which was substantially more than the table/2 chairs provided for others in the vendors/SIG info space.  It was incredible, and a large team of people really worked hard to make it a success.

–2008 Conference. The next annual conference is scheduled for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, June 1-8, 2008.  We are planning to host the International Pavilion again, and we hope to be more fully integrated into the overall conference format and schedule.  The ITC Leadership Team has already begun work towards this goal.

ITC SIG members are encouraged to submit proposals to the 2008 conference.  There is more information at  http://stc.org/cfp/index.aspx

–We have provided a Community Status Report to the STC SIG advocate that noted that our SIG is in good health.  We have over 1000 members worldwide, we have projects that have come to fruition (like the International Pavilion), and we have plenty of good energy.

–We requested and were approved for a modest budget by the STC office.  Most of the money goes towards our SIG’s activities at the annual conference.  Other money goes for operating costs, such as leadership team phone calls and the like.

–We are working hard to make this website/newsletter a valuable resource for SIG members and the field of international technical communication. If you have ideas or would like to help, write to kelly@epd.engr.wisc.edu

–As well, if you would like to work as a volunteer editor for a section or content area of the website/newsletter, please register on this site and send a message to ann@annlwiley.com asking to become a Contributor. Then make a post in plain text and Ann will write to you about the role you’d like to play.

Thank you, and please contact me with any questions or comments.  We need volunteers to act as liaisons to regions/areas.  We need volunteers to help us update our website content, and so forth.  Let us know if you are interested!

The International Technical Communication SIG is holding its first election for officers and to approve the bylaws. Members will receive the slate and voting instructions very soon. The proposed bylaws have been posted here. As soon as the election is over we’ll announce the new ITC SIG leaders.

As of February 28, 2007 the ITC SIG had 1260 members and STC had 16,802 members.

We regret that 187 members made other selections in the renewal process from December through February, and wish them well. We welcome our 75 new members who joined in February, our 69 new members who joined in January, and our 49 new members who joined in December.

ITC SIG members Jon Baker of Boston, Massachusetts, Mike Markley of the Snake River chapter, and Frank Tagader of the Aloha and Rocky Mountain chapters, were elected Associate Fellows of STC at the February Board meeting. Congratulations, Jon, Mike, and Frank!

Frank, Mike, and Jon join our SIG founder, Carolyn Luttrell, as newly elected Associate Fellows. Carolyn’s election was reported earlier. Again, congratulations Carolyn!

Carolyn Luttrell, founder of the International Technical Communication SIG, was elected an Associate Fellow of STC at the last Board meeting in Arlington, VA, February 2 and 3, 2007.

Global Talk will publish Carolyn’s citation when it’s available, as well as the names of other members elected Associate Fellow and Fellow when they are announced.

Congratulations, Carolyn, and thank you for your continuing support for the ITC SIG.