What is Documentation Localization?

LEOSAM takes original Desk Top Publishing (DTP) masters (known as source assets) and localizes these assets into the target languages requested by our clients.

It is important to understand that localizing involves more than just translating a document. It means that during the translation and DTP process, our teams of translators observe local linguistic styles, formatting styles and conventions.

LEOSAM's DTP staff ensure the final product looks and reads to the required standard for the client's target audience.

Why LEOSAM for Documentation Localization?

At LEOSAM we have the technical expertise and flexibility to find solutions for our clients, combined with a focus on providing a high quality service.

All DTP staff are rigorously tested during the recruitment process for technical skills with particular emphasis being placed on quality and accuracy. All staff are trained under a continual development system. Managers monitor staff performance through colleague and project related feedback and through utilization/productivity reports generated by LEOSAM's operational and project management system. These findings are used to set objectives and identify training that ensures staff are able to fulfill their targets and maintain the high expectations of the company.

The quality of our staff, combined with our project processes and procedures ensure that we deliver a quality product. During the production cycle both generic and client specific checks are carried out and recorded by the Translation and DTP departments as part of LEOSAM's quality system. All checks must be signed off by project managers, project leads and departmental managers before deliveries can be made to clients. The diagram below shows the typical DTP project cycle.

Global resources

LEOSAM has DTP production facilities with full time DTP production staff based in North America.

LEOSAM can provide:

Native staff dealing with their own language DTP requirements and customs as well as keeping up to date with trends and technologies in their own countries
A large pool of knowledge that is accessed for shared information via a dedicated intranet and communication channels to ensure effective and efficient problem solving and service.
Consistent quality system
Greater degree of control over turnaround
Better communications links.

Technical expertise

LEOSAM support traditional print-based Desktop Publishing and graphics applications (Macintosh and PC) as well as emerging technologies associated with single-source, multi-channel publishing.

The latest versions of FrameMaker, PageMaker, QuarkXpress, InDesign, Interleaf, Microsoft Word, Photoshop, Illustrator and Freehand are among the applications we use on a regular basis.

With the emergence of single-source documentation projects and multi-channel publishing we have developed our experience in the use of WebWorks Publisher (in conjunction with FrameMaker), structured versions of applications (e.g. FrameMaker+SGML) and XML editors such as Epic.

LEOSAM has also developed a number of tools that overcome the limitations of some of the DTP applications commonly used in publishing that inhibit localization.

These include:

Utilities for extracting text from layered graphic files into translation tables
A utility for splitting FrameMaker index markers

All of our tools are developed with the following aims:

To streamline and improve the efficiency of the production process to the mutual benefit of LEOSAM and its clients
To remove the areas where quality can be compromised through manual processes.
Types of service

LEOSAM's Desk Top Publishing group has the resources and knowledge to handle all publishing needs.

LEOSAM's Desk Top Publishing group also work with LEOSAM's Consultancy Group to provide solutions and production methodologies for unusual or emerging publishing technologies.

Project types include:

Print/Online:
- Technical documentation
- Training materials
- Marketing literature
- Packaging and collaterals

Multimedia/Web publishing

Single source multichannel publishing:
- SGML
- HTML
- XML
Solutions:
- Conversion methodologies
- Template creation, including OCR scanning.

LEOSAM has the experience, scale and flexibility to meet all of today's DTP or Electronic Publishing requirements and challenges.