The Way Of Google Translate

The Way Of Google Translate, shows you where the characters and words in a foreign language you’re trying to understand are using technology Google has developed to translate words on the fly in real time. It can also bring up all the transliterations available in a given language at the moment you’re typing. At a glance, you can see the English translations and, when you see a word you don’t recognize, you can choose from the app’s alphabetized list of transliterated characters.

It’s got a cool interface and that’s about it. Even though the app has been downloaded more than 1 million times, it’s probably not the best use of your precious time. But it’s certainly great for making a number of seemingly ridiculous language comparisons: Should we say “My mind is exploded,” or is it “My mind is flat?” The app has 100 languages and it’s currently available in 59 of them. But to make it usable and even helpful, the company has simplified the language menu to just one page. Most of the languages are now also playable for two-way conversation, complete with a translation option on the opposite side. If you select a speech-to-text option, you can tap the “Speak to Google Translate” button and type your phrase. After it transcribes it, it appears in a small box below your text, which you can scroll through by tapping the word or phrase. “Our goal is to make Google Translate into the most helpful tool for translation around the world,” says Will Hawkins, product manager at Google Translate.

But its ease of use will not win it many new users. It can only solve the majority of people’s language translation needs and will be of little use to all those who need it most–the citizens of countries with less developed Internet infrastructure or voice translation, like Brazil.

“His dream was to become a young Kim Jong-il of North Korea,” we hear the voice say. “He was only 23 years old and everybody admired him.”

The ad is promoting Google Translate. If you’ve spent time in English-speaking countries, Google Translate is one of the most useful apps for mobile devices. Simply select a language and send your message in that language to a friend, and they’ll see it in their native tongue. Now you can get free translation through a mobile device.

“You can read and send messages to anyone,” said Google translation website. “Take the raw text and translate it into a range of languages, right from the web browser.”

Another practical application of the program, which launches in its beta form at some point in the spring, is to have translations integrated into the YouTube mobile app.

“YouTube would read the content out loud and translate it into a variety of languages.”

Android apps are the first to include the translation software.

The company is already working on a French-language application. In an interview with Vice magazine, CEO Larry Page was asked about the phrase, “Fuck Google,” which is popular among people in France who dislike the company.

“I think what you’re trying to do is a good thing,” said Page, referring to the group that has been protesting the company, which he doesn’t believe has really made a profit. “It would be a worse thing if you just told people to go fuck themselves.”

Eventually, Google Translate will take the kind of educated guess it takes to communicate in another language, but for now, it’s the kind of app you can’t really imagine using for anything other than learning a new language or getting a chance to read that email you sent to your mom when you were 13.