Feature №19
The model provides for the same information to be given in different languages.
As a European project, the ability for information to be presented multilingually is essential to InLOC.
InLOC needs to note good practice, where existing bodies of LOC content are already multilingual, or where other stakeholders regularly deal with multilingual LOC information.
Multilinguality can exist in several forms, so it is important to note what kind.
- There may be explicit provision for variant translations of documents as a whole – if this is done, identifiers should remain identical for all languages across translations. We need to clarify the mechanisms.
- Electronic documentation may have text strings for different languages. If so, how is this done?
Notes on translations
PLEASE NOTE that anything is in principle translatable. Just because something is translated it does NOT mean that there is provision for multilinguality in the model. Please respect that. The reason is that the ability to be translated does not need any provision in an information model or spec. However, it is worth noting instances of translation simply to say that nothing more is attempted.
It is very seldom that particular framework assumes translation upon creation. It is usually a natural need when it appears that framework becomes successful.
For example, IEEE LOM and IEEE-RCD uses Langstring feature to represent title and description in several languages.
InLOC examples
- The e-Competence Framework is translated to French, German, Italian and Russian language. The structure of the framework and the identifiers remain the same in each translations.