The Difference Between I18n and L10n, Which is Better?

Have you considered global expansion for your software business? Whether it's websites, video games, video subtitles, web novels, or any other realm, understanding the nuances between I18n and L10n is paramount. These two terms are often encountered by product and development teams when creating software products for a global user base and are often used interchangeably. However, I18n and L10n actually refer to two distinct processes.

So, in the software development and manufacturing industry, what are I18n and L10n? In this post, we will delve deeper into the differences between the meanings of these two concepts, why both are crucial for creating truly global products and how they complement each other.

What is I18n or Internationalization?

First and foremost, internationalization is quite the mouthful of a word. For that very reason, folks tend to opt for shorthand, simply jotting down the initial (i) and the final letter (n). They then tally up the remaining letters (nternationalizatio, a hefty 18 letters), slotting that numerical figure between the "i" and "n" to yield i18n. The same principle applies to localization, abbreviated as l10n.

The process of internationalization involves the design and development of your software or mobile application. This way, your software development team and engineers can later find it easier to adapt and localize the software product to different cultures, regions, and languages.

Key elements of i18n include:

• Designing software structure to accommodate diverse languages and cultural practices.
• Transferring text and content to external resource files to facilitate translation and adjustment.
• Formatting dates, times, numbers, and currencies according to user preferences
• Adapting user interface layouts to accommodate languages written from right-to-left (RTL) or for various character sets.

Example of I18n (Internationalization)

For example, suppose you're internationalizing a mobile game dashboard and you need to prepare keys for welcome messages. The plan is to sell the mobile game in Japanese and Thai languages.

If the key is "title," the Japanese version would be "ようこそ!" (youkoso!) and the Thai version would be "ยินดีต้อนรับ!” (yin dee dtôn ráp!). Therefore, when coding the dashboard language, internationalization would resemble this:

confirm(t(title)); instead of confirm(“ようこそ!”); or confirm(“ยินดีต้อนรับ!”);.

The same process can also be applied to time formats, date formats, currencies, and other specific local components. Rather than coding the software separately for each language, internationalization substitutes the code with keys. This not only simplifies localization efforts but also decouples the code and adapts it to various languages you might introduce in the future.

What is L10n or Localization?

Localization, also known as L10n in the industry, involves customizing a product or service to suit the distinct preferences of a particular location. While internationalization facilitates a product's adaptability to new regions, localization ensures it aligns perfectly with a specific region and its native language. A successfully localized product should resonate authentically with the targeted culture as if it were tailor-made for them. Localization aids brands in refining their products to suit the preferences of their target audience.

Imagine you want to expand the reach of your skincare video advertisement to the South Korean market. Naturally, you'll need to translate the subtitles and dub the video into Korean. However, localization goes beyond mere language translation; it requires adjusting the content to flow smoothly and be easily comprehensible to Korean viewers. This includes:

• Providing payment options that are popular locally
• Featuring product recommendations that cater to specific interests within the local community
• Adapting slang, idioms, and humor to resonate with the local audience
• Crafting subtitles or dubbing for video content
• Adjusting character encoding to ensure compatibility (Unicode vs ASCII)
• Tweaking elements like time and date formats, currency symbols, and even hand gestures to align with the cultural nuances of the target audience.

Example of L10n (Localization)

Let's consider the scenario of adapting a product for the Arab market as an example. Arabic, being a right-to-left (RTL) language, necessitates not only content translation but also interface redesign. During the localization process for Arabic, you might encounter a situation where your internationalization team overlooked implementing the necessary code to accommodate both left-to-right (LTR) and RTL designs. Consequently, the proper display of RTL text becomes unattainable, requiring developers to invest extra resources and time to rectify the issue, ultimately leading to delays in product release.

By ensuring that the engineering team is aware of the nuances such as changes in word order, reverse page direction, and unique character handling in various languages from the outset, the internationalization of the code can be done correctly, facilitating a smoother localization process.

So, What is the Difference Between I18n and L10n?

Internationalization involves crafting software or applications so that they can be modified and utilized across various languages, cultures, and geographic areas. Conversely, localization tailors these programs to conform to the specific linguistic, cultural, and additional requirements of a particular target market or locale. While internationalization establishes a framework that accommodates multiple regions and languages, localization specifically adjusts the software or applications to fit the needs of designated markets or areas.

Tools for I18n and L10n

It's beneficial to be aware that various localization and internationalization tools exist, but it's also useful to familiarize yourself with specific tools available for use:

1. Digital Trans-Asia

Digital-Trans aims to provide high-quality and authentic local translations for Southeast Asian countries. It uses a platform-based management model and advanced processes to oversee the entire translation process, resulting in a 60% reduction in time and costs for overseas companies, while improving their quality.

2. GNU Gettext

GNU Gettext is a popular localization library that allows developers to extract, translate, and reinsert strings into their code. It is compatible with multiple programming languages and is particularly effective in web development contexts.

3. React-Intl and Angular i18n

Libraries like React-Intl and Angular i18n are designed for JavaScript frameworks such as React and Angular, offering extensive internationalization capabilities. Their features include text formatting, pluralization, and translation functionalities.

4. POEdit

The POEditor localization management platform assists individuals and teams in translating websites, games, and software, offering both automated machine translation and human translation options through partnerships with various translation providers. For those interested in leveraging collective knowledge, POEditor features a translation crowdsourcing tool. Additionally, the platform integrates with GitHub, GitLab, and other repositories to simplify the translation process for files stored in these systems.

5. Transifex

Transifex offers a comprehensive localization solution for companies looking to adapt content ranging from basic websites to complex apps and video subtitles. On the Transifex platform, after you upload your content, you can choose to translate it via machine translation, crowdsourcing, or professional human translators. Additionally, you have the option to develop a style guide to ensure your translations maintain brand consistency. When your translations meet your standards, you can deploy them using either an API or a command-line interface (CLI).

6. Crowdin

Crowdin focuses on the agile localization of websites, iOS and Android applications, games, and support documentation. The platform accommodates more than 40 file types, such as JSON and CSV.

Conclusion

In short, I18n (internationalization) involves crafting and evolving software to be adaptable across diverse languages and regions. Conversely, L10n (localization) entails tailoring applications for specific locales through content translation and adaptation to suit the intended audience. Internationalization lays the groundwork for localization, simplifying and streamlining the process of accommodating various languages and regions within an application.