What does "Localization" mean?
The term Localization (L10N) originates from the software industry. It has nothing to do with "locating", but is to do with making something "local". This means to adjust something so accurately to the local conditions and customs that it looks as if it were produced locally.
This means that localization incorporates much more than just the translation. If, for example, a German car is to be sold in the USA, then it is not only the "glove box literature" and the user's manual that must be translated. By law, the car requires different headlights and other modifications. Furthermore, the fittings must be adapted to American taste. In this case, the aim is not to give the impression that this is an American car (this would not promote sales) but the car must still be localized because otherwise it could not be sold to the target market.
What is involved in localization?
User guides are translated in the "classic" fashion and this means that you must rigidly ensure that all of the interface elements (menus, dialog boxes, buttons and so on) are translated exactly as shown on screen. For this reason, user guides must always be translated at the end of the process, when all of the program translation is complete.
These days, printed documentation is being replaced more and more by online help. When translating help documents, you must ensure that all of the references and links to other help documentation are formulated in exactly the right way and that they work correctly. As a result, technical steps must be followed when localizing help documentation and these steps go further than simply translating the content.
The main differences from classic translation occur in program translation. This begins with Internationalization.
Once the issues surrounding localization have been solved, a special program is used to extract the text from the coding and to serve the text in "bite-sized pieces" to the translator. This means that the program that is to be translated is usually simulated so that the translator can check their translation in context.
For example, "Abbrechen" is clearly longer than "Cancel", but must fit into the same button and you can either consider this while programming or you can correct it during the translation. Unfortunately, this type of simulation is not possible for dynamically-created user interfaces that are found in database-driven applications.
Various other things also need to be adapted, for example, the shortcut keys. If you use ALT+F to call the menu "File" in the English version, this key combination does not make much sense in the German version - why would you use ALT+F to call a menu that is called "Datei", when it would make more sense to use "ALT+D"?
However, localization may also require functional changes. This is most obvious for accounting software, since legal requirements and accounting practices differ dramatically from country to country. Software that has simply been translated would be completely useless in this case.
Further Information
Translation
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