Idiom Announces Major New Release Of Its Globalization Software Platform
WorldServer 8 Provides Global Enterprises and Language Service Providers With Enhanced Translation Technologies and Significant New Collaboration, Ease-of-Adoption and Project Management Features
- May 18, 2006 - Idiom
® Technologies, Inc. (Idiom), a leading independent provider of scalable software solutions for accelerating and optimizing globalization initiatives, today unveiled version 8 of the company's award-winning WorldServer™ globalization platform. With this major new release, global organizations of all sizes will benefit from the industry's most advanced translation technology while taking advantage of enhanced collaboration tools and other features that ease adoption, support expanded compatibility with other software and translation investments and drive measurable return-on-investment and productivity associated with complex translation and localization processes.
WorldServer 8 symbolizes the company's continued commitment to delivering a single, comprehensive software platform designed from the ground up as a modular, highly- configurable and easily customized product that can support the entire globalization lifecycle. WorldServer is differentiated by its ability to provide partners and customers with the freedom to choose the service providers, desktop computer aided translation (CAT) tools or content management solution of their choice while supporting a broad range of commonly-used industry standards.
"More scalable translation reuse and enhanced collaboration across the entire globalization supply chain are valuable new WorldServer 8 features that support PTC's Product Development System vision," said PG Bartlett, vice president, product management,
PTC. "With the integration between the WorldServer platform and our Arbortext and Windchill solutions, authoring teams are able to take advantage of powerful globalization management capabilities to further streamline global publication processes and improve productivity, consistency and time to market."
Major New WorldServer 8 Features and FunctionalityIdiom understands that each target market has unique globalization goals. The flexibility and robust features of WorldServer 8 address business needs for large global enterprises that include scalability, optimized workflow and measurable business metrics. For smaller global organizations, including departments within large international enterprises, WorldServer 8 supports the need for easy, rapid technology adoption and closely monitored return-on-investment. Additionally, LSPs require tools to help them improve collaboration, closely monitor margins and embrace industry standards.
"It is the single platform approach, support for industry standards and the non-proprietary nature of WorldServer that has made it a very appealing choice for large global enterprises for years," said Mike Iacobucci, president and CEO, Idiom Technologies. "Now, with enhanced features to ease adoption and promote collaboration while driving return-on-investment, midsize enterprises and Language Service Providers (LSPs) quickly benefit from the industry's most powerful globalization software platform, with a pricing, packaging and license structure that suits their business needs.
WorldServer offers customers and partners significant enhancements across four primary categories:
Advanced Translation Technologies
- Terminology Database (TD) Management: Benefits include significant import/export flexibility and search and term validation.
- New Standards Support: Support of TermBase eXchange (TBX), an open XML-based standard format for terminological data, enables new functionality that improves terminology import processes.
- Translation Memory (TM) Management: Re-architected to improve scalability, promote better performance and support easier import and export of large TM databases.
Enhanced Collaboration
- Workflow Monitoring: Enhancements help prioritize, scope and monitor all aspects of the items in a workflow queue, helping make workflow processes dynamic and adaptable, versus a series of static events.
- Editor Integration: Improves overall usability for authors with on-the-fly checkout, editing and offline ad hoc support - particularly important for midsize enterprises.
- Attributes Support: New tools allow users to customize projects and assets with reference materials, provide translator aids and support new attributes flags while aiding more dynamic and productive author/translator relationships.
- Improved Integration Between CAT Desktop Tools and Server Products: Provides users with a comprehensive view of the globalization process.
Ease-of-Adoption
- New and Enhanced Filters: Users gain more support for more content types with filters for XML, FrameMaker, Office 2003, InDesign, etc.
- Menu Restructuring and New User Interface (UI) Design: Users benefit from more intuitive, 'Windows-like' UI.
- Background Jobs (Processing): Performs multiple tasks including TM imports, Translation Kit imports and publishing output generation while allowing WorldServer users to continue their work.
- Improved Ease-of-Use and Compatibility: Complete UI redesign based on intensive customer and LSP use analysis.
Measurable Business Metrics and Performance
- Cost Modeling Improvements: Enhancements to the scoping and cost model functionality provide more flexibility, including support for additional currencies.
- Focus on ROI / Productivity: Redesigned reporting engine integration allows more out-of-the-box reports that help calculate important business metrics such as TM cost savings by project, locale or vendor, or project status metrics.
These new features are underscored by the company's support of leading industry standards including specified standards such as J2EE/Java, Web Services, XML, DITA, TMX/TBX and XLIFF; and de facto standards like Windows, Unix, Linux, EMC Documentum, Interwoven, and TRADOS.
"After the beneficial the hands-on training with version 8 at the Idiom WorldSummit, we are looking forward to the new features, which will improve scalability, performance, and usability," said Minette Norman, senior software systems manager, worldwide localization, Autodesk. "Also, we were happy to see that a number of the new features were a direct result of our enhancement requests to the current software!"
Pricing and Availability
WorldServer 8 is currently in beta, with general availability scheduled for June 2006. WorldServer is available in a number of pricing, packaging and licensing options. To speak with a sales representative about the option that would best suit your organization's needs, please contact Idiom_Sales@idiominc.com or call +1 781-464-6000.
WorldServer Wins Praise From Industry Partners
Blast Radius
"The advancement of the WorldServer platform, particularly its expanded capabilities for promoting collaboration and adoption, make it easier for global organizations of all sizes to appeal to customers and partners in new domestic and international markets. With its highly compatible platform, WorldServer 8 supports our mission to promote customer experience innovation." - David Saxon, director of global and strategic alliances
Captura Group
"Rapidly expanding business opportunities within the online Hispanic market are driving the need for new and innovative solutions that support our clients' goals to build and maintain an effective online presence. We believe the new ease-of-use and productivity features of WorldServer 8, combined with Captura Group services, will enable our customers to rapidly build and recognize return on investment for strategic online programs targeting U.S. Hispanic audiences." - Lee Vann, founder
Interwoven
"With the momentum established around Interwoven's recently announced Customer Experience Solution, we are proud to have partners like Idiom that understand the critical importance of helping companies preserve their brand and maintain customer loyalty by providing proven, flexible technology solutions like WorldServer that enable consistent, meaningful communications in any language or format." - Kevin Hayden, vice president global marketing
Localize Technologies
"Idiom has been a strong partner for Localize. We consider WorldServer 8 a significant release, with enhancements like menu restructuring and new user interface design based heavily on customer and LSP feedback. Other features focused on scalability and collaboration will positively impact productivity and the value we provide our global customers." - Gary Prioste, CEO
LUZ, Inc.
"Working with Idiom enables us to continuously exceed client expectations by delivering high quality, timely, and cost-effective translation and localization solutions. We look forward to taking full advantage of WorldServer 8 to build more tightly integrated and technologically efficient relationships with our clients." - Shane Clarke, director of production
XMetaL (Justsystems)
"WorldServer support for content globalization is an important and valuable part of the content lifecycle management process. The seamless integration between WorldServer and our XMetaL solution for content creation and collaboration, combined with both companies' strong support for industry standards like DITA will help our customers save money while responding quickly to the needs of serving a global market." - Robert Miller, vice president of marketing
About WorldServer
The WorldServer globalization platform allows customers and partners to cost-effectively deliver websites, products and marketing materials in multiple languages by maximizing existing investments in enterprise content management (ECM), database technologies and software configuration management (SCM) solutions. WorldServer features a highly scalable, centralized translation memory and terminology database that delivers optimal content quality and consistency by promoting effective content reuse. Proven business process automation capabilities include easy-to-use workflow and business rules environments, vendor management, and scoping and reporting features.
Available in four user and server-specific versions, WorldServer is a J2EE application that runs on IBM WebSphere, BEA WebLogic, and Apache Tomcat on Microsoft Windows, Linux and Solaris. WorldServer uses browser-based user interfaces for administration, workflow configuration and self-service portal access by managers, vendors and ServiceDesk users. It also supports Microsoft Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari browsers.
About Idiom Technologies, Inc.
Idiom® Technologies optimizes the globalization supply chain by aligning global enterprises, language service providers and translators. Award-winning WorldServer software solutions expand market reach and accelerate multilingual communication with a proven platform for automating translation and localization processes.
Idiom works with global organizations including Adobe, Autodesk, Continental Airlines, eBay and Travelocity to cost-effectively translate global websites and applications, streamline software localization and delivery, and speed time-to-market for international product documentation. Idiom also partners with consulting firms, systems integrators and technology vendors to help customers achieve high-quality results and maximize existing enterprise infrastructure.
Idiom is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, with offices throughout North America and in Europe. To learn more please visit http://www.idiominc.com or call +1 781-464-6000.
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