The World Wide Web, despite its potential to bridge cultural gaps, is still predominately a medium for the English language. Currently, it is estimated that some 87 percent of documents on the Internet are written in English. According to Global Reach, a marketing communications consultancy that develops international access for websites, English speakers make up slightly more than 51.3% of the world’s online population though they only represent 32% of the world’s total economy. Additionally, some 32 million Americans speak a non-English primary language. Babel Fish http://babel.altavista.com Everymail http://www.everymail.com FreeTranslation http://www.freetranslation.com T-Mail http://www.t-mail.com On an international level, websites and web pages hosted in other countries rely on English to provide visibility for their efforts to the largest audience possible, something not easily or cheaply done with print publications. This is especially true in areas where many languages coexist. Multilingual access is to the web, however, is limited to users who are often using slower modem connections to read more text that relies on special fonts, making the downloading of pages in other languages slower. Additionally, many keyboards utilize non-Western alphabet character sets, making it difficult to type text for e-mail and the web. Most nonprofit website content is in English. This would not be so bad, except that organizations that work with constituencies who do not speak English as a first or second language are potentially narrowing the range of useful information available to a wide audience. Search engines currently provided extremely limited indexing capacity for multilingual content, and even then, technology does not currenbtly provide for translations of search engine results. Additionally, users who wish to view English content in non-English languages face significant barriers in terms of cost or availability of translation software in their language. To that end, there are a growing number of free translation services on the Web, allowing existing websites an opportunity to begin making their content available to a wider audience: Babel Fish: This is a service hosted by the Alta Vista protal allowing users to translate text or a specific Web URL between 13 language pairs. Free Translation: This service can provide on the fly translations of up to 4-5 pages of text from English to French, German, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese, and to English from French, German and Spanish. T-mail: An e-mail hosting service that provides mechanical translations of words and phrases in e-mail messages to recipients. Users can elect to subscribe to a T-Mail account with a preferred language filter, and any mail sent to the address is automatically converted into that language, or can simply use a specific T-mail translation address in the "Cc" field of an outgoing message from their existing e-mail account translate mail to a recipient. The translation comes in the form of an HTML attachment. There are also services like Everymail, which are helping people to receive e-mail content in their native languages. Everymail is a free Web-based e-mail service that lets users send messages via a virtual keyboard and special fonts in one of 34 languages, including Hebrew and Urdu that must be read from right to left. Mail sent via the service can also be viewed using traditional e-mail clients as well. Everymail is not a translation service, so any messages received are done so in the language in which they were sent. Later in 2000 the service plans to support AOL users, an additional 11 languages, and translation services.. So do any of these services work? Well, we decided, out of curiosity, to run a comparison of three popular online translation services. We first took a sample block of text in English and translated it into a number of languages. The results are listed below. We also wanted to see how well each translation service held up when it came to translating each of its translations into English. Our results are below. English Agenda for Access is a two-year project launched by OMB Watch to: identify obstacles to and opportunities for strengthening public access to government information; strengthen constituent interest and involvement in public access issues; and advocate for changes to improve public access to government information. French (BabelFish) L'ordre du jour pour l'accès est un projet de deux ans lancé par la montre d'cOmb à: identifiez les obstacles à et les occasions pour renforcer l'accès public à l'information de gouvernement; renforcez l'intérêt et la participation constitutifs dans les issues publiques d'accès; et avocat pour que les changements améliorent l'accès public àl'information de gouvernement. (FreeTranslation) L'ordre du jour pour l'Accès est un projet de deux-année lancé par la Montre de OMB à: identifier des obstacles à et les occasions pour fortifier l'accès public à l'information de gouvernement; fortifier l'intérêt de constituant et l'engagement dans les questions d'accès publiques; et le défenseur pour les changements à améliore l'accès public à l'information de gouvernement. (T-Mail) L'ordre du jour pour Accès est un deux - projet de l'année lancé par OMB Watch à: identifiez des obstacles à et occasions pour accès du public fortifiant aux renseignements du gouvernement; fortifiez intérêt constituant et participation dans les questions de l'accès du public; et préconise pour les changements pour améliorer l'accès public aux renseignements du gouvernement. German (BabelFish) Tagesordnung für Zugriff ist ein zweijähriges Projekt, das durch OMBBEWACHUNG zu ausgestoßen wird: kennzeichnen Sie Hindernisse zu und Gelegenheiten für das Verstärken des allgemeinen Zugriffs zu den Regierung Informationen; verstärken Sie konstituierendes Interesse und Miteinbeziehung in den allgemeinen Zugriff Ausgaben; und Fürsprecher, damit Änderungen allgemeinen Zugriff zu den Regierung Informationen verbessern. (FreeTranslation) Tagesordnung für Zugriff ist ein zwei-Jahr Projekt, das von OMB Uhr abgeschossen wird, zu: identifizieren Sie Hindernisse zu und Gelegenheiten für Stärken Öffentlichkeit Zugriff auf Regierung Informationen; wesentliches Interesse und Beteiligung in Öffentlichkeit Zugriffsausgaben stärkt; und Fürsprecher für Änderungen verbessert zu Öffentlichkeit Zugriff auf Regierung Informationen. (T-Mail) Tagesordnung für Zugang ist eine zwei-Jahr-Projekt, das von OMB Watch zu abgeschossen wird,: identifizieren Sie Hindernisse zu und Gelegenheiten für das Stärken von öffentlichem Zugang zu staatlichen Informationen; stärken Sie Bestandteil-Interesse und Verwicklung in öffentlichen Zugang-Fragen; und befürwortet für Änderungen, um öffentlichen Zugang zu staatlichen Informationen zu verbessern. Italian (BabelFish) L' ordine del giorno per accesso è un progetto biennale lanciato tramite la vigilanza del OMB a: identificare gli ostacoli a e le occasioni per il rinforzo dell' accesso pubblico alle informazioni di governo; rinforzare l' interesse e la partecipazione costituenti alle edizioni pubbliche di accesso; e fautore affinchè cambiamenti migliorino accesso pubblico alle informazioni di governo. (FreeTranslation) L'agenda per l'Accesso è un progetto di due-anno lanciato dall'Orologio di OMB a: identifica gli ostacoli a e le opportunità per rafforzare l'accesso pubblico alle informazioni di governo; rafforza l'interesse di costituente e l'implicazione nelle questioni di accesso pubbliche; ed il difensore per i cambiamenti a migliora l'accesso pubblico alle informazioni di governo. (T-Mail) Agenda per Accesso è una due - progetto di anno lanciato da OMB Watch a: identifichi ostacoli ad e le opportunità per accesso pubblico e fortificante ad informazioni statali; fortifichi interesse costituente e coinvolgimento in problemi di accesso pubblici; e difende per cambi per migliorare accesso pubblico ad informazioni statali. Portuguese (BabelFish) A agenda para o acesso é um projeto two-year lançado pelo relógio de OMB a: identifique obstáculos a e oportunidades para strengthening o acesso público à informação do governo; strengthen o interesse e a participação constituent em edições públicas do acesso; e advogado para que as mudanças melhorem o acesso público à informação do governo. (FreeTranslation) A agenda para Acesso é um projeto de dois-ano arremessado por Relógio de OMB a: identifica obstáculos a e oportunidades para fortalecer acesso público a informação de governo; fortalece-se interesse constituinte e envolvimento em edições públicas de acesso; e advogado para mudanças a melhorar acesso público a informação de governo. (T-mail) Programa de trabalho para Acesso é uns dois - projeto de ano lançado por OMB Watch para: identifique obstáculos para e oportunidades por fortalecer acesso p&u Spanish (BabelFish) La agenda para el acceso es un proyecto de dos años lanzado por el reloj de OMB a: identifique los obstáculos a y las oportunidades para consolidar el acceso público a la información del gobierno; consolide el interés y la implicación constitutivos en ediciones públicas del acceso; y abogado para que cambios mejoren el acceso público a la información del gobierno. (FreeTranslation) El orden del día para el Acceso es un proyecto de dos años lanzado por el Reloj de OMB a: identifica obstáculos a y a las oportunidades para reforzar el acceso público a la información del gobierno; refuerce el interés de componente y envolvimiento en asuntos públicos de acceso; y el abogado para cambios a mejora el acceso público a la información del gobierno. (T-Mail) La agenda para el Acceso es un dos - proyecto del año lanzado por OMB Watch a: identifique los obstáculos a y oportunidades por fortalecer el acceso público a la información gubernamental; fortalezca interés constitutivo y envolvimiento en los problemas de acceso públicos; y defiende para los cambios para mejorar el acceso público a la información gubernamental. Now, assuming you don't speak any of the above languages, the translations look pretty good, don't they? But what are they actually saying? Here are the reconstituted versions of our translations: French to English (BabelFish) The agenda for the access is a two years project launched by the watch of OMB with:identify the obstacles with and the occasions to reinforce the public access to the information of government; reinforce the interest and the participation constitutive in the public exits of access; and lawyer so that the changes improve the public access to information of government. (FreeTranslation) The order of the day for the access is a project of two deux-year launched by the OMB Watch to: to identify obstacles to and the occasions for fortifier the public access to the government information; fortifier the interest of constituent one and the engagement in the questions public accesses; and the defender for the changes to improve the public access to the information government. (T-Mail) The agenda for Access is a two - project of the year launched by OMB Watch to: identify obstacles to and opportunities for access of the public tonic to the government's information; fortify constituent interest and involvement in questions of the access of the public; and recommend for changes to improve the public access to the government's information. German to English (BabelFish) Agenda for access is a two-year project, which is too discharged through OMBBEWACHUNG: indicate obstacles too and opportunities for strengthening the general access to the government information; strengthen constituent interest and Miteinbeziehung into the general access outputs; and advocates, so that modifications improve general access to the government information. (FreeTranslation) Order of the day for access is a two-year project that is shot down by OMB clock to: you identify strengthens improves hindrances to and opportunities for strengths public access on government information; essential interest and participation in public access editions; and champion for changes to public access on government information. (T-Mail) Agenda for access is two one - year - project, that from OMB Watch too is shot down,: identifies you obstacles to and opportunities for the starch of public access to state information; strengthens you component - interest and entanglement in public access - questions; and approves for alterations in order to improve public access to state information. Italian to English (BabelFish) The agenda for the Access is a plan of two-year launch from the Clock of OMB to: it identifies the obstacles to and the opportunities in order to strengthen the public access to the government information; it strengthens the constituent interest and the implication in the public issues of access; and the defender for the changes to improves the public access to the government information. (T-Mail) Agenda for Access is one two - plan of year launch from OMB Watch to: it identifies obstacles to and the opportunities for public access and fortifying to state information; it fortifies constituent interest and involvement in access problems publics; and it defends for changes in order to improve approached public to state information. Portuguese to English (BabelFish) The agenda for Access is a design of two-year hurled for Clock of OMB: it identifies to obstacles and the chances to fortify public access the government information; one fortifies constituent interest and envolvement in public editions of access; e lawyer changes to improve public access the government information. (T-Mail) Program of work for Access is ones two - design of year launchn for OMB Watch stops: it identifies obstacles for and chances for fortifying access p& Spanish to English (BabelFish) The agenda for the access is a project of two years sent by the clock of OMB a: identify the obstacles to and the opportunities to consolidate the public access to the information of the government; consolidate the constituent interest and public editing the implication of the access; and lawyer so that changes improve the public access to the information of the government. (FreeTranslation) The order of the day for the Access is a project of two years thrown by the Clock of OMB to: identifies obstacles to and to the opportunities to reinforce the public access to the information of the government; reinforce the interest of component and envolvimiento in public matters of access; and the lawyer for changes to improvement the public access to the information of the government. . (T-Mail) The calendar for the Access is a two - I project of the year rushed by OMB Watch to: it identifies the obstacles to and opportunities to strengthen the public access to the government information; it strengthens constituent interest and involvement in the public access problems; and it defends for the changes to improve the public access to the government information. Keep in mind that online translation tools, more than human translators, are not error-proof. At best, they provide a way to capturee the essence of English text for a number of languages. This is usually due to the intensinve amount of research and work of linguists in providing permutations of English phrases, words, and language rules as well as those of other languages. Slang, colloquialisms, bad grammar, and buzzwords, however, tend to confound even the best services, so you cannot expect a perfect translation. As a way to capture the general context of text, however, they might provide a useful way to make general and frequently requested information accessible to users.