Types of localization quality assurance

• Linguistic sampling
• Linguistic review
• Final linguistic review
• Final formatting review
• Process review and quality sign-off
• Various forms of internationalsoftware testing

International software testing

• Internationalization testing
• Localization user interface testing
• Functionality testing
• Compatibility testing

Internationalization Testing

• Often skipped, creating disastrous products
• Issues
• Character set and multibyte issues
• Calendars, date, time, currency, numbers, separators, paper size, separators, etc.
• Monocasing and sorting
• Display problems with fonts, character shape, direction, printing
• Non-internationalized library use
• Embedded and concatenated English strings
• Not enough space for string expansion
• Not differentiating translatable strings
• Tools
• OneRealm Tools (www.onerealm.com)

Localization User Interface Testing

• Most common testing, used on most projects
• Issues
• Truncated text requiring objects and controls to be resized
• Missing controls
• Accelerator key problems
• Input in text fields
• Character set and font display issues
• Input processing
• Tools
• Corel Catalyst (www.corel.ie)
• ToolProof from Translation Craft (www.tcraft.com)
• SimulTrans' proprietary tools

Functionality Testing

• Seldom done as part of localization process
• Cannot overcome lack of thorough internationalization testing
• Issues
• Full functionality of software
• Duplication of source-language test scripts and routines
• Special attention paid to locale-specific components and issues
• Need to create complete testing environments, often including client/server applications and hardware
• Tools
• Client proprietary tools
• Test scripts

Compatibility Testing

• Integrated with most localization testing
• Issues
• Verify proper operation of software with target-language operating systems
• Integrated support applications, including browsers and drivers
• Often messages from server or operating system are displayed
• Unique hardware in some locales
• Tools
• Localized operating systems from MSDN, Apple Developer Connection, Sun, and HP
• Localized browsers from Netscape and Microsoft
• Localized server applications from , Oracle Developer Catalogue, Microsoft, Informix, etc.

Component Testing

• Includes testing of Help and HTML-based components
• Issues
• Need to check all links and jumps
• Ensure no keywords, reserved words, variables, or other system text is corrupted
• Test search routines and indexes
• Tools
• HelpQA and HTML-QA from Translation Craft (www.tcraft.com)
• RoboHelp
• SimulTrans' proprietary tools

Keys to testing success at SimulTrans I

• Recognition of QA as separate and vital engineering endeavor
• Specialized testing labs
• Multiple platforms of testing
• hardware and software
• Segmented full testing networks

Keys to testing success at SimulTrans II

• Target-language operating systems and support applications
• Re-imaging machines before each testing cycle
• Formalized bug tracking system
• Version control system to track changes

Keys to testing succcess at  SimulTrans III

• Testers who speak target language working in unison with localization engineers
• Workstation configuration allowing testers to simultaneously view source- and target-language products

Keys to testing success at SimulTrans IV

• Full hardware connectivity to provide full functionality and compatibility testing of software and firmware

Questions we expect our clients to resolve