Case Study

Case 1: XML Publishing

Elemenk

Elemenk

-  Client: ElementK

-  Objective: To convert 30 Arabic XML documents to PDF files ready for print.

-  Problems: There is no XSL style sheet document for the XML.
There is no Style guide for the documents, only the English PDF files.
The common tool for converting XML files to PDF; FOP does not support Arabic.

Solutions:

  • Analyzed the English XML files structure versus the English PDF files format to conclude the Style Guide and developed an XSL (Style sheet) file that described the style guide.
  • Convert the XML&XSL using FOP to get XML formatted files.
  • Another tool XML-Mind used to convert the XML formatted files to RTF.
  • Finally we can typeset the RTF files and generated PDF.

Case 2: DTP

Volvo

Volvo

-Client: Volvo

-Objective: To facilitate the DTP task; instead of extracting translation from SGML tags, he will get semi-formatted RTF file.

-Problems: Volvo English manuals are done using Arbor Text (DTP application). This application supports neither Arabic nor Farsi languages

Solution:

  • Convert the translated SGML files to XML.
  • Analyzed the English SGML files structure versus the English PDF files format to conclude the Style Guide and developed an XSL (Style sheet) file that described the style guide.
  • Using XML-Spy, the converted XML files, and the developed XSL file we generated HTMLs, and then RTF files.

Case 3: file Conversion

Caterpillar

Caterpillar

-Client: Caterpillar

-Objective: converting Turkish, Hebrew, and other languages files from PC to MAC, to be used on deferent applications (MS Word, QuarkXPress, etc…)

-Problems: Turkish special characters like “g with Breve” and “s with Cedilla” appears as underscores on MS word on Mac. Also most Hebrew characters do not appear correctly. Most translators do not have MAC computers; also there are no CAT tools for MAC systems.

Solution: our solution involved a lot of interesting development areas:

  • Writing Visual Basic macros to map these special characters to their equivalent on MAC.
  • Designing fonts and mirrored fonts for MAC systems.

Case 4: Arabic Frame Maker Plug-in

toshiba

toshiba

-Client: Toshiba

-Objective: Ability to use Adobe Frame maker as publishing tool for Arabic.

-Problems: Frame maker is an excellent publishing tool because it co-operates well with Trados by keeping the document format after translation.

Since Frame maker does not support right-to-left languages, we have to make the document formatting and page layout from the beginning for more than 80% of our projects.

Solution: We developed the following

  • A Frame maker plug-in is using the SDK which handles all Frame maker problems with RTL languages (character shaping, text wrapping).
  • Mirrored Arabic fonts, now we can use Frame maker with Trados for DTP Arabic Language & save the client’s time & Money.