Planet K
Live Localization
Talk With the World on Your Website

Kamusi is the Swahili word for “dictionary”. Our mission:
1. Collect every word in every language
2. Share every word
Planet K

Localization: Translating websites into local languages
In Switzerland, for example, many
companies pay to translate their web
content into French, German, and Italian

Localization: Translating websites into local languages
In Switzerland, for example, many
companies pay to translate their web
content into French, German, and Italian
But what if a Swiss company wants to reach customers from
Denmark or Japan or South Africa or …?

Localization: Translating websites into local languages
If a Swiss company wants to reach
customers from Denmark or Japan or
South Africa or …
How do they choose which languages to translate into?
How do they find translators for those languages?
How do they keep up with those languages if they change the
content on their site?

Planet K
Live Localization

Planet K
Live Localization
• Hundreds of languages
• Set up your page only one time in your own language
• Standard content appears instantaneously in the visitor’s language
• Custom content translated to any language by knowledgeable humans

Planet K
Live Localization
How is this different from today’s approach to localization?

Planet K
Live Localization
How is this different from today’s approach to localization?

Planet K
Live Localization
How is this different from today’s approach to localization?
How is this better than today’s approach to localization?

Planet K
Live Localization
How is this different from today’s approach to localization?
How is this better than today’s approach to localization?

Planet K
Live Localization
How is this different from today’s approach to localization?
How is this better than today’s approach to localization?
How is this a tremendous leap beyond today’s approach to localization?

How Localization works today:
• Company marks each entity that needs translation (e.g., “Home” or “Services”) using “gettext” system
• Company sets up “.po” files for each page for each desired language
• Translators type in the equivalents for each entity in their language using the .po file
• Saved .pofiles are uploaded to the local website or db and the language added to the site options
• If a web page is changed, everything goes back to the translators
• When a new page is added, previously-translated entities must be re-visited
• A new language requires finding new translators and managing new .pofiles for each page
Original text marked up → tech support makes files → translations to selected languages → language files uploaded → customer reached

Planet K
How Live Localization works:
1. Company marks each entity that needs translation with its kamusi ID
2. Kamusi links to all the translations for that specific idea, potentially in 100’s of languages
3. The web page displays all available entities on-the-fly in the visitor’s preferred language
• If an entity is not already in our database, it goes into our translation pipeline
• If a page is added or changed, the company sends updates to Planet K and gets on with its
real business of providing information, goods, or services
While Planet K works with people to translate to hundreds of languages, the client company
never needs to look for a translator, and wins with each entity a person translates to their language
Original text marked up Customers reached

In short, today’s Localization:
A lot of work for a few languages

Planet K
Live Localization
A lot less work for a lot more languages

Talk With the World on Your Website

Planet K
Live Localization
Talk With the World on Your Website
Bonus Slides: Here are three examples of the type of site that could
reach the world with Live Localization for
• Local visitors who do not speak local languages
• Visitors from other places who are interested in local goods and services

Bookings
(Hotels, Flights,
Shows...)
Every word of the Swiss Rail
information system consists of entities
that are standard across the
SBB/CFF/FFS network, e.g.:
• Ticket Shop
• From
• Disabled passengers
• Family coach with play area
• Last connection
• Fare/Buy
All of these terms can be queried in
the Kamusi database for Live
Localization to any language
Have you ever helped a tourist buy a
train ticket at a kiosk in the station?
Swiss trains carry passengers from all
over the world, but the website, app,
and ticket machines are only available
in German, French, Italian, and English

Information
This entire weather page is generated
dynamically from a list of fixed terms that is
populated with variable data
Other than the names of the webcams,
every term on this page could be included
in the Kamusi database and overlaid on
search.ch results in any language
Right now, search.ch is localized into English,
French, German, and Italian
Live Localization can make this site
available to travelers from places like Spain
or Korea, or to immigrants from Syria or
Albania

E-Commerce
Every word on this page (other than
product names and model numbers) can be
translated to any language in the Kamusi
database and provided to toppreise.ch for
on-the-fly Live Localization
Every word
Current options are German, French, and
English
One of the items on this page costs over
€1000 - that’s a lot of money to leave behind
from customers who prefer to shop for
products in Russian or Chinese or [any other
language]