[A12n-forum] Nomad translation software & Africa

["Don Osborn" <dzo@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

This item (seen in the latest SANTEC newsletter) concerning an open-source
software that facilitates simultaneous translation of multiple languages may
be of interest on a couple of levels.  First the designers are from Africa -
Tunisia.  And second, this software would seem to open up interesting
possibilities for multilingual conferencing in Africa.  For years there have
been questions about how to permit African language use in the OAU (an issue
that presumably continues with the African Union) - could this technology
offer a solution?

Although this is not machine translation (MT), a couple of links for more
info are available on the "MT for Africa" page at the Bisharat site
http://www.bisharat.net/Trans - look under "Other links."

Don Osborn
Bisharat.net

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13 Languages Speak With One Voice
By Swaroopa Iyengar

MUMBAI, India -- The World Social Forum is speaking in 13 languages this
year. And amazingly, most of the time, everyone understands what the others
are saying.

Moving the WSF to India meant that more Asian groups would participate in
the forum, giving it a different flavor from previous years. But India is
also a land of 14 official languages, which meant WSF organizers had to
spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on expensive translation equipment so
the participants, Indian and otherwise, could follow each other.

In previous years, translations were offered to delegates in three
languages: English, French and Spanish. This year, in addition to these
languages, translations are being provided in Korean, Japanese, Hindi,
Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Malayalam, Bahasa Indonesian and Thai. And
yet, the service costs are minimal.

The translations are being done by an international network of volunteer
interpreters called Babels, using a newly created open- source Linux
software. The software can be run on a midrange computer, therefore cutting
out the high costs of translation associated with special high-speed
computers, consoles and mixing equipment.

The translator uses an interface on the computer screen to select the
language being spoken. The speaker's voice is digitized and sent to the
translator, who then sends the translated text out through the interface to
audiences, who listen on headsets.

"This is the first time we have used such an innovative free-share on such a
large scale," said Sophie Gosselin, a member of Nomad, the organization that
created the translation software. "And because all the speeches and their
translations are going through our computers, we are going to be able to
archive all of them. This means we will be able to put it up on the WSF's
site to be shared with everyone who was not able to attend now, taking the
forum to hundreds of thousands of people."

The WSF is also using an FM radio frequency to provide translations in
various Indian languages to help cut the cost of attaching headsets to every
seat. FM radios are being sold at the venue for 100 rupees ($2).

"Our main aim is to keep the costs as low as possible and yet not impose
English upon everyone," said Gosselin. "We want everyone to feel like they
have ownership of this event. For example, when we contacted the Koreans to
ask them if they wanted translations, they were really surprised, as they
were so used to being marginalized. But the Korean delegation turnout here
is now higher because they feel included."

But it hasn't all been smooth sailing. The interpreters have been beset by
technical difficulties and infrastructure problems at the forum, causing
many delegates to attend only panels spoken in their language.

"It's great when it works," said Andre Grosso, an interpreter from France.
"The technology is democratic, it's independent of the politics of different
agendas, it's open-source -- keeping in line with the philosophy of the
forum -- and it's highly economical."

source:
http://wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,61966,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_4
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