Originally, the Internet was all about reading pages. Then, in about 2004, Web 2.0 came along: using the Internet became much more interactive and communicative. Now the era of Web 3.0 is upon us – what does it hold?

“Web 3.0 is all about recommendations, free services, intelligent (semantic) searches, and information that’s no longer random data, but tailored, highly intuitive and delivered in real time, writes Dr. Gege Gatt, founder and director of ICON, on his company’s website. 

Gatt presents his list of the six trends that define the new generation of web services. It is worthy of interest partly because of its brevity – could you digest 100 Web 3.0 trends? For each tendency, he also links to a site that serves as an example of the technology in question.

Mobile applications, maps, personal organisers, collaboration, audio and social media intermediaries are the six trends he identifies. Of course, this type of application exists already, because the move towards Web 3.0 is well underway.

It is clear that with applications that seep into every aspect of our life, from what route to take to work to managing our already busy Web 2.0 presence, Web 3.0 is bringing about changes to all personal and professional Internet users

At Language Translation, Inc. we are keenly interested in languages, translation and new technology, and enjoy sharing information about them with you on this blog. Located in San Diego, California, we have been helping companies use languages to reach out to consumers worldwide for over 20 years.

Betty Carlson

In its study entitled "Translating Product Documentation,” Aberdeen Group learned that the process of opening up to new markets and regions inevitably leads to more need for accurate translation and localization of related product  documentation.

Some companies deal with this challenge better than others. In fact, the study points out that certain companies manage to cut down localization costs by 22%, allowing them to translate their product content into nearly 50% more languages than their competitors.

David Houlihan, Senior Research Associate with Aberdeen's Product Innovation and Engineering practice, explains in a press release, "’With translation costs typically tied to 'cost-per-word,' companies that successfully reuse content and control their processes effectively reduce translation costs even as they increase multi-language output. As a result, these companies position themselves to enter more markets with high quality localizations.’”

Houlihan also emphasizes the advantages of accurate translation and suitable localization for companies. “Prior Aberdeen research has shown that high quality documentation contributes as much as a 41% increase in customer satisfaction scores and a 41% reduction in inbound calls to customer support and service organizations.’” 

It’s essential to turn to a qualified language service provider such as Language Translation, Inc. in San Diego, California for your company’s translation needs. We specialize in translation, interpretation and localization and have over 20 years of experience as a language service provider.

Betty Carlson

2lingual takes a bilingual approach to Google searches. The site was created in “sunny Seattle, Washington,” so I can credit it with having a sense of humor. But how does it test out?

First, 2lingual has a nifty two-column presentation. Under each column, you can choose the language you want to search in: 52 search languages for a total of 2,704 bilingual combinations. However, the site works on an “automatic translation” principle: as you type in a word on one side, it is machine translated on the other side.

Just this morning, I was doing some research into the “Creuse” geographical area of France. It would have been interesting to get the top search results in English and French at the same time. But as I typed “Creuse” into the French column on 2lingual, the translation – inexplicably – came up as “basement.”

Fortunately, in this case, the automatic translation function can be avoided by simply typing the word “Creuse” in both language columns. This way I found something like the results I wanted – except, somehow, a French article did slip into the top English search results.

In general, 2lingual appears to be a promising search tool for those who master two languages – but as always, beware of automatic translation!

For your language translation and localization needs, turn to Language Translation, Inc. Located in San Diego, California, we have been helping companies reach out to consumers worldwide for 20 years.

Betty Carlson