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World Concepts,Inc. (WCI), a small company based in Clifton, Virginia, has a tool to keep you from embarrassing yourself, getting on the wrong train or otherwise suffering the indignities of a traveler caught in a country where she doesn't speak the language and lacks a dictionary or phrase book. Without adding any weight to your luggage, and for a very reasonable price, the WCI Translator software puts a quick, personal translator in your hands-or, more specifically, your smartphone or PDA. You don't even need to be in cell phone range or use a data plan because the software resides on your device. Written in C, originally for desktop and laptop computers, the product launched on the mobile platform about a year ago, says WCI vice president Aaron Laiti. You can purchase individual languages, for translations between English and either French, Spanish or German for $19.95 or you can buy the whole set, which lets you translate between any two of the four languages, for $39.95. The dictionaries for each language are intended to be adequate but concise, Laiti says, to conserve space. But the program is written to tackle full-sentence translation, not just literal word-for-word hack jobs. (And Laiti says the company is open to receiving feedback about the dictionaries.) When you purchase the software, you're given a link to download a CAB file to your computer. Be sure to use a browser that lets you specify that you want to SAVE the file and not OPEN it. If you open it at your desk, you won't be able to transfer it to your mobile. Once you have downloaded the CAB, you then connect your mobile device to your computer, let them sync, and then select the file explorer button from Active Sync. This opens your mobile device. Now, you copy the CAB file from your computer to your mobile. We had difficulty when we attempted to create a specific folder for the translation package. But copying it to the default location-My Documents-on the mobile worked okay. (But use copy/paste rather than drag-and-drop for best results.) Once the file is copied, you disconnect the mobile, click the CAB file on it and the translation software installs itself, including adding an icon to your Start menu. While the WCI site does have installation instructions, we had to make several efforts to successfully download (without opening!) the CAB file and get it migrated over to the handheld. We did get quick responses to messages sent to the customer support email, though. Once you have it, though, using the software is delightfully simple and intuitive. The split screen gives you a box into which you enter text, a pull down menu to state which language you've entered and what language you want it translated into and then a lower window in which the translation appears after you click "translate." 
We tested the four language powerhouse and found it simple to select the language and easy to toggle between languages. The simplicity of the design extends to its features.
The only menu, "Tools," has just one option, "About," which gives you the expected product information. What's missing, and what's frustrating, is that there is no way to paste text into the translation window. If you find something on the web, or in an email, that you want to translate, you have to type that text in letter by letter, which could be onerous.
Update: The inability to cut and paste text in this product proved to be oversight in our original review. Fortunately, depending on the keyboard/keypad of your device, you may be able to copy from an e-mail, web page, Word document or other source and paste the text into the translation window. Here's how to do it on a Verizon XV6800.On the other hand, for on-the-go translations, it has great potential. Confused by a menu item at a restaurant? Wondering if the arriving train is yours? Just type in your question. Remember to use the question mark, though, because the software arranges words in the appropriate grammatical order for each language and you won't get the right arrangement if you forget the question mark. Another feature that would increase utility would be the option of saving a sentence or phrase so that if you later needed that translation again you could get it quickly without having to re-type it. While we didn't have the linguistic skills to confidently evaluate each and every translation, we know enough of the other languages to know the translations weren't always perfect but would get the job done. The grossest error we noted was the inexpert distinction between the verbs "ser" and "estar" in Spanish (both mean "to be" but are used in different contexts). If the software doesn't have a word in its dictionary, it keeps the original word in the translation, offsetting it with two # symbols. In many cases context would probably suffice to finish off the translation (as in the "hail" example below). Here are some sample translations: The train station is far away. You should hail a cab.This package probably won't appeal to real students of the languages but it is perfect for a traveler with no knowledge of the host country's tongue. And while it beats looking up one word at a time in the dictionary, it's also handier than on-line translation options since you can use it even when you don't have cell or Wi-Fi access. You can keep the translator running in the background. Depending on your device, you may be able to access it from a small globe icon on your Today screen or launcher bar. While the smartphone product is only available for Windows Mobile (either touch screen or not), Laiti says the company is looking into developing a BlackBerry version. |
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