Language Editor User Manual

Transcription

1 Language Editor User Manual June 2010

2 Contents Introduction... 3 Install the Language Editor... 4 Start using the Language Editor... 6 Editor screen... 8 Section 1: Translating Text... 9 Load Translations... 9 Show Only Missing Descriptions Adding Missing Descriptions Edit Existing Translations Save Translations Show Descriptions that Need Reviewing Show All Descriptions Update Matching Rows Accessing specification details Changing view Entering a new language Introduction Load Grammar Language Load Reference Grammar Language Editing Descriptions Language rules grid Explanations of the columns Completing the Language Rules grid Suppressing Item Text Saving Grammar Concatenation codes Edit grammar Sample description functionality

3 Introduction The Language Editor enables you to update language translations and grammar online in the JATO master language database. This database represents the core language text for all JATO products. The Language Editor empowers you to edit translations instantly by connecting over the Internet. That means that web customers will be able to see your changes almost straight away. The grammar editor allows you to see the descriptions being generated and allows you to create complex phrases quickly and easily. The Language Editor includes the following translation functionality: Highlight only new/missing translations Highlight text that need reviewing e.g. name changes Update all existing translations Enter translations for a new language Access detailed specification definitions to provide context Edit multiple occurrences of the same expression together Choose one or more existing languages to act as reference The following grammar editing functionality is available: Generate samples for one or all items Create descriptions for real vehicles Select prepositions and punctuation between words Override complete text descriptions and append additional text Change and reverse word order Choose whether to separate words by spaces or a dash, or join words together Choose sample for generating descriptions You can download the latest Language Editor from the following URL: Editor.exe 3

4 Install the Language Editor In order to install the Language Editor, run Language Editor.exe. You can click Change to install to different folder: Click the Install button to begin installation: 4

5 The editor will now install: Once the installation is complete you will get the following confirmation: 5

6 Start using the Language Editor You need to be connected to JATO by VPN before using the Language Editor. Let s now open Language Editor by selecting the Start button located at the bottom left hand side of your keyboard, then selecting Programs then Language Editor. Depending on your security settings and version of Excel you may get a dialogue box asking whether you want to Enable Macros. or Click on or to bring up the login box: 6

7 In the latest Language Editor you don t need to enter your user name the editor should automatically pick this up from your PC. If you do not see a username, or have any other problems logging in, then please contact Aamir Merchant on or Carspecs support on Click to start editing your language: All JATO users should be able to run the language editor but you will only be able to update the data for your market language(s). If you need to edit additional languages please contact Aamir Merchant to organise additional editor privileges. 7

8 Editor screen From the Editor screen you will have all the usual Excel menu bars as well as an additional JATO menu choice. Language Editor functions are available from the JATO menu, as follows: The translation functions available are: Load translations Save translations Filter translations Update matching translations The grammar functions available are: Load translations Save translations Filter translations Update matching translations 8

9 Section 1: Translating Text Load Translations To start editing your chosen language you first need to load it into your spreadsheet. The source language database is on the master database server at JATO Harrow, so for this task you need to be connected to the Internet. However, the necessary connection is seamless and completely invisible to users. You will not be asked to enter a username or password. Once you have loaded the data you can then edit offline and re connect again to save your changes. To edit a language you first need to select your primary language. You can only edit a single language at a time so if you need to edit more than one language you will need to re load the data and select the next language as the primary/edit language. You can then select up to five reference languages. A reference language is typically to help translators entering new language data or editing existing translations. Typically translators will select one reference language, but for particular markets e.g. Switzerland it may be helpful to choose two or even three reference languages. You can select the order that you wish to display your chosen reference languages. The master JATO language is British English, which will always have the complete set of correct translations. So you are advised to select British English as one of your reference languages. In order to load the language spreadsheet, select Load translations from the JATO menu: You need to be connected to the Internet to be able to load data from the master language database. 9

10 A new dialog box will appear, prompting you to choose the primary language to edit from a dropdown list as well as one or more reference languages: Once you have selected the primary edit language you can then select one or more reference languages to display alongside your main language. 10

11 This is done by selecting a language from the list of available languages and clicking the button: If you have select multiple reference languages you can choose the order in which to display them by using the and buttons. 11

12 After you have selected all your reference languages click as follows: and your chosen list will open 12

13 Show Only Missing Descriptions The option you may find most useful is Show only missing descriptions. This will allow you to easily select only items where translations are missing. These will typically be the highest priority translation items in the usual language editing cycle. However, the special importance of this function is when schema changes occur you will be able to highlight just the new items. e.g. Missing descriptions are highlighted in throughout the editor. 13

14 Adding Missing Descriptions Once you have loaded the missing descriptions for your primary language you are ready to add the missing text. To do this you can just start typing the descriptions into the spreadsheet. So, if you are editing Français belge, to add the translation for wireless connection you simply type the new translation into the relevant box. All the items you have added or changed display in red until you save them: You can continue to complete all missing translations in the same way. Once you have completed your editing select Save Changes. Text highlighted in green means that the affected text needs reviewing 14

15 Edit Existing Translations To display all existing descriptions select Show all descriptions from the Filter translations menu. Once your primary and reference language(s) are loaded you can change your view and edit text by overtyping existing descriptions. 15

16 Save Translations Once you have added missing translations or made corrections you can save these changes back to the master language database by selecting Save translations from the JATO menu: A dialog box will appear asking you to confirm that you want to update the master language database: You will then get a confirmation dialogue box confirming that the data changes have been successfully saved to the master language database. You need to be connected to the Internet to be able to save data back to the master language database. When you save your changes these will immediately be written to the master language database 16

17 Using the regular Microsoft Excel File Save will only save the spreadsheet. To actually save your changes back to the master database you MUST use JATO Save translations 17

18 Show Descriptions that Need Reviewing The Show only descriptions that need reviewing function highlights only the text that has been marked as needing review by translators. Typically this will be where there has been a name change e.g. Non coded items renamed to Additional equipment. In this situation the original text has been left in the database so that downstream systems are unaffected, but updated translations are required. Apart from missing translations this is usually the next highest priority translation task. Select Show only descriptions that need reviewing from the drop down filter: This will open the review screen: You can now edit the text and save changes as usual. Text that needs reviewing is highlighted in green throughout the language editor. Where text is marked as missing as well as needing review it will be highlighted in green. 18

19 Show All Descriptions If you want to review all the existing translations for your language select Show all descriptions from the Filter translations menu: This will bring up the full set of full and abbreviated text descriptions for your primary and reference languages. 19

20 You can then review and make any changes that you want. Where you make changes the existing text will be available for your information as a comment. e.g. If you wish to revert to previous text you can either just not save the change or copy the comment text back into the cell using Edit Comment and then Copy and Paste as usual: When you paste the original text back into the cell the text will revert to black indicating that the text is the original text. There is currently no Undo facility in the Language Editor 20

21 Update Matching Rows This function allows you to edit multiple instances of the same word or expression at the same time. This obviously saves time but also ensures language consistency i.e. you are using the same expression for not available everywhere. To use this text aggregation and edit select one instance of the text you want to edit and click the cell. Then select Update matching rows from the JATO menu: This brings up the Update matching descriptions box: 21

22 The aggregation functionality matches all instances of full text descriptions in the first reference language. You can then choose to update some or all of the corresponding descriptions in the primary language that you are editing. The aggregation window confirms the abbreviated and full text descriptions that you are proposing to update and confirms that the aggregation functionality works by matching reference language full text. You are also presented with a series of check boxes alongside the primary and reference language text. In order to update some or all of these instances of the selected abbreviated and full text descriptions you need to review the specific expressions in context and decide whether or not you wish to include each expression in this multiple text update. In the above example if you decided to update all the items with the specified text apart from one, you would check all the rows and leave the row where you want to enter a different description unchecked. You can use the and buttons to choose to update all displayed rows or alternatively reset your selections. Once you are happy with your aggregate text items select then be saved to the master database. to confirm. The new text will 22

23 You need to be connected to the Internet to be able to update aggregate data into the master language database. 23

24 Accessing specification details As an additional aid to entering the best translations for JATO automotive terms you can also access the online specification definitions from the JATO website. The definitions will give you a thorough description of the vehicle data you are translating. These context sensitive descriptions are available by clicking on the icon in the Link column next to the item or attribute you are editing. e.g. To open up the Definition of Specifications website you will be prompted for your username and password. These will normally be your regular Lotus Notes username and password. However, if you do not already have a login for Definition of Specifications on the web then you will need to contact JATO support. 24

25 Once you have entered these correctly you will be taken to your correct page: In the current release you will be taken to the front page of the Definition of Specifications rather than the specific page you have accessed. There are no definitions for Schema items currently available. 25

26 Changing view In order to limit the level of detail displayed in the editor you can use the Excel grouping levels: The levels show the following groups of data: Level 1: Subjects only Level 2: Subjects, items & miscellaneous texts Level 3: Subjects, items & miscellaneous texts, and attributes 26

27 Level 4: Subjects, items & miscellaneous texts, attributes, and allowed values 27

28 Entering a new language The process of creating translations for a brand new language is the same as that of editing an existing language; select the new language and suitable reference languages, and then enter the new translations. e.g. Because new languages start off with no translations at all, the fields will initially appear in yellow, indicating missing text. You will now need to enter all the text based upon your chosen reference languages and the Definition of Specifications website. Also, you will definitely need to use the aggregation tool Update matching rows to enter text that occurs in multiple locations e.g. allowed values. This is obviously a non trivial task so you should ensure that you save your work to the master language database at regular intervals. You need to advise Carspecs support when you want to introduce a new language so that they can initialise the new language for you. 28

29 Section 2: Editing Grammar Introduction The purpose of the grammar editor is to present vehicle data in fairly natural human languages phrases. For instance, if the database records that a particular vehicle s transmission has 4 speeds and is automatic, then the desired phrase, in English, is 4 speed automatic transmission. Constructing a phrase like this is simple for a human, but remarkably difficult for a computer, even with human assistance! Load Grammar Language To start editing grammar in your chosen language you first need to load it into your spreadsheet. The source grammar database is on the master database server at JATO Harrow, so for this task you need to be connected to the Internet. However, the necessary connection is seamless and completely invisible to users. You will not be asked to enter a username or password. Once you have loaded the grammar data you can then edit offline and re connect again to save your changes. In order to load the grammar spreadsheet, select Load grammar from the JATO menu and select the language you wish to edit: You need to be connected to the Internet to be able to load grammar data from the master language database. After you have selected your grammar language your spreadsheet will appear as follows: 29

30 30

31 Load Reference Grammar Language As with the translation functionality you can load reference grammar languages to provide an additional level of background. To load an additional grammar language simply repeat the process used to load an initial language. This will open a worksheet tab with the reference language. In the Load Grammar menu option all selected grammar languages will appear ticked: 31

32 Editing Descriptions JATO specifications databases are collections of items of information about motor vehicles. Items are things like engines, seats, wheels, etc. An item usually has attributes, like engine capacity, seat covering, wheel diameter etc. Every attribute has a value, which could be a number, or a date, or a yes/no choice, or one of a list of allowed values (like seat cover materials). In a specifications database, every item, attribute and allowed value has accompanying descriptive text, in each of the thirty something languages that the database recognises. As an illustration, here are two items from the database, with their attributes and English text: In this example, the items and have the English names responsive suspension and transmission. Responsive suspension has two attributes driver selectable (yes or no) and adjustable anti roll bar (yes or no). Transmission has a number of attributes (in fact even more than those shown) with a combination of yes/no and allowed values. The database text is intended to be used in creating tables to display the data it is not sufficient for constructing natural phrases. To achieve this, quite a lot of additional information is required. As a start to understanding the description building process, here is an example of a description for the transmission data item above: 4 speed automatic transmission with mode select, lockup and electronic control This is only one example, because different vehicles may have different combinations of attributes, and therefore different descriptions. 32

33 To build a phrase requires answers to these questions: Does the database text for the item describe it adequately, or does it need additional or replacement text? (in the transmission example, the database text will do) Which attributes should appear before the item description, and which ones after it, and in what order? How should each attribute value be made into a readable sub phrase? (in the example, the number of speeds value requires the text speed appended, separated by a hyphen; the manual value can be used as it is) This sort of information needs to be recorded for every item, attribute and value in the database, and for each language there is a description table like the example below, to hold the information. 33

34 Language rules grid Here is a section of the Language Rules grid showing the entries needed to produce the transmission description above: 34

35 Explanations of the columns Item ID The ID of the item. The text in this field represents stored database text and cannot be edited. Attribute ID The attribute ID. The text in this field represents stored database text and cannot be edited. Allowed Values There is one line for each listed value. Word If a W is entered in this line, numeric values will be described using words Sample Values entered here will be used to generate sample descriptions. Only values entered in an item s first row s sample column will be used. For items that have a list of allowed values, the value entered in the sample column must match one of the allowed value codes. If no sample value is entered the first allowed value or the attribute id in curly brackets is used. Attribute position The position of the attribute in the description, relative to the parent item. Allowed values are A and B to indicate location after or before the item, R to indicate replacement of the item text by the attribute text, and X to indicate suppression of the item or attribute text in the description. This column is also used to specify hyphenated or compound words, using a hyphen or equal sign, respectively (e.g. A, B= ) Preposition For after attributes only, the attribute sub string may optionally be preceded by a preposition, e.g. with Gender M, F or N or blank not applicable to all languages Concatenation A coded value which controls the way in which a series of attributes are combined into a list (see Concatenation codes below) Extra text position Same values as position (column 4), describing the placement of the extra text relative to the database text for the item or attribute. (Note that the X value has no obvious meaning in this field, but is allowed, with the same interpretation as the attribute position column. This column is also used to specify hyphenated or compound words, using a hyphen or equal sign, respectively (e.g. A, B= ) Extra text attribute Additional text to be added to or to replace the database text for the item or Description parameters for attributes with listed values may appear on the attribute ID line, in which case they apply to all values, or separately on individual value lines, affecting those values only. One aspect of the description not covered by the column data is the order of attributes in the description. This is controlled by adjusting the order of the attributes in the table, and special mechanisms for doing this are provided in the table editing software, described below. 35

36 Completing the Language Rules grid Filling in the columns of the table correctly requires first a mental picture of the style of description needed, and then a step by step process of thinking of the mechanics of producing the description. In the transmission example, having decided on the description shown above, the steps are: Step 1: think about the wording of the main item description. In this case the word is "transmission" which is already in the database, so nothing needs to be added to the table. (If a different word or phrase were required, it could be added in the "extra text" column, with an "R" in the "extra text position" column, to indicate that the new text should Replace the database text.) e.g. Step 2: for each of the attributes, think about whether the attribute appears before or after the main item name in the description. In the example, "transmission type", "number of speeds", and "sports or close ratio" appear before, and "mode select" and "lockup" after. Put a "B" or "A" in the "attribute position" column of each attribute. (Notice that attributes and have lists of "allowed values" after their first entries in the table. Ignore these lines for now.) Step 3: think about how to describe each attribute this is the most complicated part of the process. Taking the transmission attributes in turn: 20602: this is easy the words "manual" and "automatic" are all that are needed, so no more action is required. Notice that when an attribute has a list of values, it is the value text that appears in the description, eg "manual", rather than the attribute text, "transmission type" : this is more difficult the description requires the word "speed" after the value, separated by a hyphen. So in the "transmission type" line, put "speed" in the "extra text" column, and "A " in the previous column. (this data goes in the attribute's top line, because it applies to every value. When values need to be treated differently, the different parameters are placed in the individual value lines.) 20605: another "yes or no" attribute, but in this case the database text is unsuitable only the phrase "mode select" is needed. So put "mode select" in the "extra text" column, and an "R" in the previous column. Also, this phrase is preceded by the preposition "with", so put "with" in the "preposition" column. (The reason for having a separate column for the preposition, rather than including it in the "extra text", is to do with listing several attributes with the same preposition see the next item.) 20606: this is treated almost identically to the previous attribute. Notice however that the required preposition is actually "with" the description software will combine the two "withs" and supply the "and". The general rule is to treat each attribute as if it were the only one, and leave the software to 36

37 combine the descriptions where necessary. (This is why prepositions are put in their own column). It is also possible to modify the way in which attributes are combined see Concatenation codes below : this is treated identically to the previous attribute. That completes the example. There is one class of attribute not covered ones with a general numeric value rather than a list of values, like "maximum speed". There is nothing in the description table to distinguish these from "yes/no" attributes, but the difference should be obvious. The important thing to note for these attributes is that the database text, like "maximum speed", never appears in the description, so extra text must always be added. Notice also that this example is slightly simplified, because in the full table the transmission section has to allow for many more attributes, and for variations in the possible descriptions (e.g. for manual vs automatic transmissions). However the principles are the same. 37

38 Suppressing Item Text As discussed above, item or attribute text in a description may be suppressed by coding an X in either the Attribute Position or Extra Text Position columns. However, as a general rule this is not encouraged for simply excluding an item or attribute as the grammar editor should be a neutral phrase generator; individual items and attributes can be stopped from appearing in downstream systems by other methods e.g. using the project database in carspecs based systems. There are two valid reasons for allowing suppression of text for an item (as opposed to an attribute). The first is linguistic: there could be many reasons why it would be necessary or convenient to suppress the item text. As a "necessary" example, think of an English dialect which uses the expressions "manual gearbox" and "automatic transmission". As a "convenient" example, think of a language that uses compound words, where the item text is duplicated in the attribute text. In such a case, ignoring the item text produces the right result very easily, while the alternative, using extra text, is fiddly. The second reason is simply that sometimes it is required to suppress the description completely (JATOCode etc). When you suppress an item the resultant description is an empty string. So if the item is a standalone then you will get a blank description. 38

39 Saving Grammar To save your grammar changes you need to select Save grammar from the JATO menu: A dialog box will appear asking you to confirm that you want to update the master language database: You will then get a confirmation dialogue box confirming that the data changes have been successfully saved to the master language database. You need to be connected to the Internet to be able to save data back to the master grammar database. Once your changes have been saved correctly you will receive a confirmation message: When you save your changes these will immediately be written to the master grammar database 39

40 Using the regular Microsoft Excel File Save will only save the spreadsheet. To actually save your changes back to the master grammar database you MUST use JATO Save grammar 40

41 Concatenation codes In most languages, the standard rules which the software uses to combine attributes are: For attributes Before the item name, the attribute descriptions are simply placed one after the other without any punctuation, e.g. manual 4 speed For attributes After the item name, the rules are more complicated. If successive attributes have different prepositions, they are just placed one after the other, as above, e.g. on passenger side with pre tensioner. However, successive attributes with the same preposition are combined using commas and and, e.g. with mode select, lockup and electronic control. 41

42 Concatenation codes allow this procedure to be changed. The most likely change is to remove the commas and and from after attributes. The codes to achieve this are: NC no comma, i.e. repeat the preposition (if there is one) NA no and, i.e. use a comma instead NCA no comma or and, i.e. just place the attributes one after the other, including repeated prepositions, if any. e.g. 42

43 It is also possible to include commas and ands for before attributes. The codes for this are: C include commas A include and CA include commas and and These codes should generally be applied to all the item attributes with the same preposition (or no preposition). There is no theoretical reason why the codes should not be used more selectively, e.g. to produce with A and B with C and D but this can easily produce confusing results. Note that there are a few languages (e.g. Japanese) for which the standard rules differ. However the codes operate in exactly the same way. 43

44 Edit grammar The Cut Item and Insert Cut Item JATO menu items are provided for altering the order of attributes in the worksheet. An attribute is moved in two stages: Select the required item Transfer it to the new position To select the attribute, simply select any cell within the attribute data, and click JATO Cut Item. This highlights the whole of the attribute data. e.g. To place the attribute in its new position, select any cell in the attribute after the desired new position, and click JATO Insert Cut Item. To position the attribute as the last in the parent item s list, select a cell in the blank row at the end of the list. It is obviously meaningless to move an attribute beyond the end of its parent item s list, and trying to do so will fail. 44

45 e.g. This procedure is quite simple to operate. It may be helpful to gain some initial practice by loading a table, moving some attributes, then closing down Excel without saving the table. 45

46 Sample description functionality The Language Editor also comprises functionality that shows the user the affects of their changes to the language grammar rules. This functionality consists of five functions which can be invoked by clicking the following menu items. Single Item Sampler To invoke the single item sampler, simply place the cursor anywhere within an item and click JATO Grammar samples Single Item Sampler: Clicking on this menu item displays a window which floats on top of the worksheet: This window displays a sample description of the item currently selected with the Excel cursor. Changes to the language rules are reflected automatically in the sample description and, within the window, the user can select which attributes are included in the description. All Items Samples Use the all items sampler by selecting JATO Grammar samples All Items Samples: 46

47 Selecting this menu item creates a new workbook which contains sample descriptions of all the items listed in the current language rules worksheet. The attributes values for these descriptions are taken from the rules worksheet s Sample column. Key Attribute Samples Start the key attribute sampler by selecting JATO Grammar samples Key Attribute Samples: This menu item also creates a new workbook. The Language Editor interrogates the language database to determine the items that have key attributes. The new workbook comprises descriptions of these items generated using attribute values from the rules worksheet s Sample column. Each description in fact describes two instances of an item, identical except for the values of their key attributes. For example the Key Attribute Sample for item 1701 ( Underbody protection ) might be underbody protection for fuel tank and for transfer case. Here, the key attribute is 1702 ( location ) and the Key Attribute Sample describes two instances of the item: one where the location is fuel tank and another where the location is transfer case. 47

48 Describe One Vehicle To create a description for a single vehicle from your chosen specifications database, select JATO Grammar samples Describe One Vehicle: Clicking this menu item will open up a dialog box to allow you to select the vehicle that you wish to describe: Use the drop down box to select your specifications database. 48

49 Then select the make/model/version combination from your chosen single country database to describe, before clicking. This will create a workbook which lists descriptions of all the items for your chosen vehicle. The attributes values for these descriptions are taken from the single country database. You need to be connected to the Internet to be able to describe vehicles. 49