Mobile App Localization Best Practices - Presentation by Andovar's CEO Conor Bracken at Thailand Mobile Summit 2016, Bangkok, Thailand.

1. Mobile App Localization
Best Practices
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2. Founder and CEO of Andovar
• text translation
• audio / video recording and subtitling
• websites, apps, software, eLearning, and games
• linguistic and functional testing
Dedicated website: www.mobile-app-localization.com
Conor Bracken
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3. This presentation will focus on mobile app localization
best practices that apply to all platforms without
getting into the details of the technical differences.
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4. Pros:
• Know the product, terminology and company priorities best
• Cheapest / Free
Cons:
• Have other duties
• Not professional translators
• No experience with linguistic issues or language technology
Localization Resources: In-House
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5. Localization Resources: Freelance
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Pros:
• Affordable
• Professionals familiar with linguistic and technical issues
Cons:
• Hard to recruit and vet; Managing multiple people who work remotely is a
headache
• No engineering skills
• No long-term view of how to manage your assets

6. Localization Resources: Agency
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Pros:
• One point of contact
• Professionals familiar with linguistic and technical issues
• Can advise on technology and asset management
Cons:
• More expensive
• Not familiar with your company and content

7. Localization Resources: Turnkey Vendor
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Pros:
• One point of contact
• Professionals familiar with linguistic and technical issues
• Can advise on technology and asset management, provide additional services
Cons:
• More expensive
• Not familiar with your company and content

8. • Size of market and competition
• Do they need a local-language version?
• Is the app culturally suitable?
• Cost of localization
• Provide in-language support?
• Legal hurdles (China)
Choose Languages and Markets
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9. 9
• 4 tiers
• Based on app description
• 53 words at $0.15/language
• Under $300 to reach 700M
Sample Report

10. Internationalization = preparing an app to handle various languages and regions
without engineering changes
Localization = the process of translation and adaptation for a specific language and
locale
Internationalization
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11. Externalizing strings = keeping content intended for translation separate from code
• Specifics depend on programming language and platform
• Safely and easily manipulate assets without risk of altering software code
Internationalization – Externalizing Strings
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12. • Group strings into categories
• Add comments
• Avoid short cryptic strings
• Where in the layout will it be used?
Internationalization – Context
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13. • Termbase / glossary
• Style Guide
• Screenshots
• Videos showing functionality
Internationalization – Context
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14. Pseudolocalization = replacing all translatable strings with strings in another
language to test whether your app is ready for actual localization.
• machine-translated in target language & script
• dummy text / Greeking
Check for: Strings left out; String length; Script issues
Internationalization – Pseudolocalization
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15. • After translation text expands in length and sometimes in height
• Can you resize text fields, buttons and menus?
• Otherwise need strict length restrictions
• Or text will go out of bounds
• Arabic or Chinese might need complete rearrangement of layout
Internationalization – Layout
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16. Reduces word count a lot; causes
problems with genders, plurals,
and is hard to understand.
Internationalization – Concatenation
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No concatenation problems, but
word count increases.
{0} is in the {1}
The warrior is in the tent.
The queen is in the tent.
The warrior is in the castle.
The queen is in the castle.

17. Changing units of time, date, length, etc.
Real local feel requires an easy way to switch measuring units, currencies and even
calendars between Gregorian (Western) and Buddhist (in some Asian countries).
Internationalization – Units
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18. The two main types of testing are:
1. Functional testing
2. Linguistic testing
Testing
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19. Functional testing = whether functionality remains unaffected.
Check:
• on local devices (such as low-end Android phones only sold in market X)
• payment paths
• internet bandwidth
Functional Testing
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20. Linguistic testing = whether translation is correct in context.
Check:
• User Interface
• String reused on different screens
• Flow of narrative between screens
Linguistic Testing
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21. • Should ideally be done on more than one platform and device
• Various screen dimensions
• Device’s technical specs
• Small apps can be tested ad-hoc, larger ones need test plans
• Use tools such as TestFairy
Testing
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22. Examples
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Spaces between words
Punctuation on wrong side

23. Examples
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Strings going out of bounds
Wrong line-breaking

24. Examples
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Wrong line alignment
Inconsistent spelling of loanwords

25. 25

26. • Localization of the app strings is the main task.
• Also update meta information in app stores.
App Store Listing
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27. • If your app has been localized, show what users can expect
• Visitors will draw conclusions on the quality of app localization based on it
App Store Listing - Description
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28. • What’s New lets visitors know what the latest updates are
• Changes often, each time you need to provide the text in all languages
App Store Listing – What’s New
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29. • Keywords help find your app
• Not simply translated
• Requires research and knowledge of each target market
• In China, Russia and South Korea other marketplaces are popular
App Store Listing – Keywords
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30. • Images and videos show the app itself has been localized
• Often missed opportunity to market to different markets differently
App Store Listing – Images and Videos
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31. • Confirm languages and language flavors
• Scope – what tasks except translation?
• Create reference materials
• Analyze source files for code, repetitions, technical issues
Localization – Preparation
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32. • Pre-engineering
• Translation
• Editing
• QA
• Post-engineering
• On-device testing
Localization – Workflow
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33. • Computer-Aided Translation (CAT)
• Translation Management System (TMS)
• Translation Memory (TM)
• QA tools
Localization – Tools
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34. • What is translation memory?
• Why are matches cheaper?
• When does a flat rate make sense?
Translation Memory
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New words 100%
Repeated words 25%
95 - 99% Match 35%
85 - 94% Match 50%
75 - 84% Match 65%
50 - 74% Match 75%
New Content (not previously translated): The brown dog ran up the hill
Fuzzy Match (requires editing/QA): The brown dog raced up the hill
Repeat Content (requires QA): The brown dog ran up the hill

35. Translation Memory
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Time ConsistencyCost

36. Localization – Quality
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37. Localization – Quality
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38. Localization – Quality
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39. • Translation quality is a complex and subjective topic
• Given the same text, two translators will produce two different translations
Localization – Quality
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Which one is of higher quality?
Or can both be?

40. Questions?
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