Here we go again. Fujitsu says it’s developed a parallel processor based Japanese-to-English translator which it will make available online. Fujitsu reckon the new ‘translingo’ service delivers high-quality Japanese-English and English-Japanese translations at very high speeds, able to process an A4 page of text ‘within a second, even under high-load, multi-user conditions.’
We’ll believe that when we see it, especially if they make the service available gratis. Everyone by now knows to treat software translation claims with a big pinch of salt, since they’re so frequently beset with problems in adequately conveying any of the sense of a foreign language. Removing the English/Japanese barrier has been the Holy Grail for a number of companies lately.
Sharp are known to be working on a neural network based translator, and rival NEC Corp.‘s new Internet translation service, unveiled last Wednesday, offers a package with multiple languages translated into and out of Japanese. It’s all about, guess what, globalisation - and Japan’s ability to compete in the global market.
But NEC has already acknowledged that its service, which lets Japanese Internet surfers view website content automatically translated from up to 10 foreign languages, is far from perfect. ‘Fujitsu’s translingo aims to help companies needing to communicate between multiple locations in Japanese and English,’ said a company representative.
Customers will be able to customise translingo by compiling dictionaries for special projects and corporate-specific terms, thereby allowing for more accurate and standardized translation results, Fujitsu claim.
