Results 1 to 3 of 3
  1. #1
    Imoir8008 is offline Novice
    Windows 8 Access 2010 32bit
    Join Date
    May 2016
    Posts
    1

    Urgent help needed for Translation Database

    Hi ladies and gents,



    I wonder if I might pick your collective brains?

    I have just been tasked with proposing a design for a Translation Database and to say I'm rusty with Access and SQL is an understatement, so was hoping you would be able to share your collective knowledge?

    The background and brief are as follows:

    Whilst we have translation files for German saved down from the last 3 years, once we have finished a publication launch, we never look back at these translations. Every time we start a new publication launch, we translate the whole data set as a new translation. As you can see from the data extract above, many elements of the data such as “100% Cotton” and “Shorts (3-16yrs)” are common phrases that may appear in publication after publication and currently we are retranslating each of these phrases for each new book launch (9x per year), at a cost to us as a business.
    One way around this, is for us to develop a translation Database that we can pass our data through before sending off to our translation agency, to cut out things that have previously been translated. We would then also need to add any new translations to the “memory” of the database to build up this collection.
    The Database must:

    • Translate full sentences/descriptions (not just single words). If it has not seen this full item description before, it is to not translate any of it.
    • Be easily usable by someone who does not have a database background.
    • Be able to be used for several languages.
    • Be able to add additional languages at any time with ease.


    Any thoughts/help would be greatly appreciated...thanks in advance.

  2. #2
    orange's Avatar
    orange is offline Moderator
    Windows 8 Access 2010 32bit
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; West Palm Beach FL
    Posts
    16,716
    Does google translate do an "acceptable job? Have you investigated?

  3. #3
    CJ_London is online now VIP
    Windows 10 Access 2010 32bit
    Join Date
    Mar 2015
    Posts
    11,397
    I'm assuming you don't want to use something like google translate, but only use translations that have been 'approved'

    I think you will need tables along the following lines

    tblLanguages
    LanguagePK autonumber primary key
    Language text

    tblPhrases
    LanguageFK long indexed, duplicates OK}multiple index with Phrasecode as primary key
    PhraseCode long indexed, duplicates OK}
    Phrase text or memo indexed, no duplicates

    The phrasecode would be the same for the same sentence in each language



    a query to find a translation for a specific sentence would be something like

    Code:
    SELECT T.phrase
    FROM tblPhrases as O INNER JOIN tblPhrases as T ON O.phrasecode=T.phrasecode
    WHERE O.LanguageFK=1 AND T.LanguageFK=2 AND O.Phrase='100% Cotton'
    this will cover your for as many languages as you wish and resolves 3 of your 4 requirements.

    with regards

    Be easily usable by someone who does not have a database background.
    this will be down to you as the developer to provide easy to understand and use forms and reports.

    Other thoughts:

    • not clear from your description, but is it possible that the context of a sentence and therefore its translation can vary depending on the paragraph in which it is located?
    • you will need to investigate issues with character sets for different languages
    • how to split the current text and translation into matching component sentences/phrases
    • how to present to your translators a partially translated document

Please reply to this thread with any new information or opinions.

Similar Threads

  1. Database Design - Help needed urgent -New member
    By tripoliguy in forum Database Design
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 05-09-2014, 01:12 PM
  2. Replies: 1
    Last Post: 08-26-2013, 10:11 AM
  3. Replies: 3
    Last Post: 06-20-2013, 01:15 AM
  4. Help needed urgent
    By diljot5394 in forum Access
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 04-23-2012, 02:44 AM
  5. Urgent help needed on forms
    By syedalisajjad in forum Forms
    Replies: 9
    Last Post: 11-04-2011, 10:37 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Other Forums: Microsoft Office Forums