bilingual bonus?

[Hlynkacg]

While working on the textures for my Base Improvement Project it occured to me that we have a rather diverse international community on this forum and that It'd be fun to "throw a bone" as it were to non-english speakers.

With this in mind If anyone reading this has some ideas for orbiter specific phrases or pictograms that might appear in thier native language I'd like to include them.

Examples:

"Stand Clear: Hover thrusters in use"

or...

"Airlock!"

I want to avoid Google Translate as it is infamously bad at proper-phrasing.

 

[Urwumpe]

No problem, as long as you don't want to translate the phrases also into Quenya.

"Stand clear: Hover thrusters in use" is for example not that easily translated into proper German, because a direct translation ("Abstand halten! Schwebetriebwerke in Betrieb!") would be less accurate as a standard German warning ("Achtung! Abgasstrahl!"), which warns about the real threat of exhaust and not just the abstract use of hover thrusters. If you want to incite a standard safety behavior, you would also rather use "Achtung! Flugbetrieb!" ("Attention! Flight operations!"), so the people know to only enter am area after explicit clearance from ground control.

It is not so much about Google not getting the phrases right... it just doesn't know about context and culture for such phrases. German language has many options about how to tell somebody something important, more than the English language, but luckily less than the Japanese.

 

[bande]

good idea, but I think that most of the spcific orbiter's words and phrases aren't usually translated from English into other languages... for example, I find it better to say "airlock" instead of "camera stagna"! and I wouldn't even know how to translate the word "hover"! :shrug:
maybe an exception could be Russian, as the country has a space-exploration culture... and it sounds very cool!!
anyway, it's interesting... if you need some translation, just ask :hello:

 

[Urwumpe]

Airlock is simple in German - air = "Luft" and lock = "Schleuse" makes "Luftschleuse". :lol:

 

[bande]

literally, it would be simple in Italian also... but "chiudiaria" doesn't mean nothing! :lol: we say "closed chamber" instead!

anyway, I agree,translating "Stand clear! hover thrusters in use!" isn't actually easy neither in my language.
"Indietro! motori in azione!" could be a good version, but I've the feeling it doesn't sound "professional" enough

 

[SiberianTiger]

Just list here what signs do you have around your bases, and the contributors will translate them. I'm volunteering for Russian translation.

 

[Hlynkacg]

..."Stand clear: Hover thrusters in use" is for example not that easily translated into proper German, because a direct translation ("Abstand halten! Schwebetriebwerke in Betrieb!") would be less accurate as a standard German warning ("Achtung! Abgasstrahl!"), which warns about the real threat of exhaust and not just the abstract use of hover thrusters.

It is not so much about Google not getting the phrases right... it just doesn't know about context and culture for such phrases.

...and aside from English (and to a lesser degree Spanish) niether do I. :facepalm:

"Achtung! Abgasstrahl!" and "Luftschleuse" will certainly find it's way in somewhere. I just have this image (reminicant of the 0-Gee toilet in 2001) of everything in an international spaceport being labled in a ridiculous number of languages.

Bande, what kind of signs would you see around a Italian launch-complex?

 

[bande]

the same signs in any other launch complex worldwide, I think... I'm not experienced in aerospace (I'm 19 only), think it's better if someone posts a list :thumbup:

 

[Urwumpe]

If you want to depict a proper German spaceport, remember to have separate waste bins (for paper, plastic, glass, etc.). The last time I was abroad, it was the first thing I noticed, that such details suddenly got rare.

Also, German signs tend to be full of detail informations below - like having on top just a generic warning sign depicting the kind of danger and expected behavior and have a list of general exceptions or detailed instructions below (For example, have a generic warning sign for air traffic and write below it on a smaller extra sign, that you have to expect exhaust blast by hovering spacecraft).

If you unload a lot of cargo on a spaceport, you could also expect direction signs, which already lead the transports to the right landing pads or cargo terminals. maybe even have traffic lights where spacecraft and cargo trucks cross.

 

[Hlynkacg]

Some basics:

"Airlock!" Likely accompanied by an arrow => (Important to know where to go if your suit springs a leak)

The already discussed "Stand Clear: Thrusters in Use" "Flight Operations" or some variation there-of. Maybe just "Beware of Rockets!"

"Radiation Hazard"

"Fire Hazzard" (On fuel tanks)

Generic Directions like "Hab Dome 1" or "Loading Dock" (this way =>)

"Beware of Martians!" (A joke)

"HAIL PROBE!"

 

[Ghostrider]

literally, it would be simple in Italian also... but "chiudiaria" doesn't mean nothing! :lol: we say "closed chamber" instead!

anyway, I agree,translating "Stand clear! hover thrusters in use!" isn't actually easy neither in my language.
"Indietro! motori in azione!" could be a good version, but I've the feeling it doesn't sound "professional" enough

I could suggest: "PERICOLO DI MORTE: PROPULSORI A RAZZO IN FUNZIONE". With a nice skull, crossbones and rocket engines.

Airlock should be "camera di equilibrio" (in some movies they mistranslate it as "serbatoio dell'aria" and in Nathan Never comics they call it "camera di depressione"(!)).

 

[bande]

Some basics:

"Airlock!" Likely accompanied by an arrow => (Important to know where to go if your suit springs a leak)

The already discussed "Stand Clear: Thrusters in Use" "Flight Operations" or some variation there-of. Maybe just "Beware of Rockets!"

"Radiation Hazard"

"Fire Hazzard" (On fuel tanks)

Generic Directions like "Hab Dome 1" or "Loading Dock" (this way =>)

"Beware of Martians!" (A joke)

"HAIL PROBE!"

ok, here we go

"Airlock" --> "Camera stagna"
"Stand clear: thrusters in use" --> "Stare indietro: mezzi in manovra" (literally: manoeuvering ships)
"Radiation hazzard" --> "Zona radioattiva"
"Fire hazzard" --> "Infiammabile"
"Loading dock" --> "Piattaforma di carico"
"Beware of Martians!" --> "Occhio ai Marziani!"
"HAIL ROBE!" --> "AVE SONDA!"

 

[Urwumpe]

"HAIL PROBE!"

Instead of a hail probe, why not make a generic direction sign "Spaceport chaplain" with the symbols of the big religions plus the Probe. :lol:

If you want to have a more local German touch, we have special signs here, that direct you to the next church including the times of service.

They are municipal, so there can be small variations, but the color schemes are for example standard in Germany.

 

[SiberianTiger]

I'd make warning signs in caps:

"Airlock!" Likely accompanied by an arrow => (Important to know where to go if your suit springs a leak)

ВОЗДУШНЫЙ ШЛЮЗ =>

The already discussed "Stand Clear: Thrusters in Use" "Flight Operations" or some variation there-of. Maybe just "Beware of Rockets!"

ОПАСНАЯ ЗОНА! БЕРЕГИСЬ РАКЕТНОГО ВЫХЛОПА!

"Radiation Hazard"

ОПАСНАЯ ЗОНА! РАДИАЦИЯ!

"Fire Hazzard" (On fuel tanks)

ОГНЕОПАСНО!

Generic Directions like "Hab Dome 1" or "Loading Dock" (this way =>)

ЖИЛОЙ КУПОЛ 1=> ГРУЗОВОЙ АНГАР =>

"Beware of Martians!" (A joke)

ОПАСАЙСЯ НЁХ! (reference)

or like at this image http://lurkmore.ru/images/1/12/NEH-2.jpg :rofl:

Okay, enough with it... If you want to be children friendly, just mark:

ОСТОРОЖНО, МАРСИАНЕ!

"HAIL PROBE!"

СЛАВА ПРОБКЕ!

:lol:

 

[Wishbone]

International use will most likely benefit from simple pictograms. If any of the translations into multiple languages are mangled, weird and dangerous situations may arise.

 

[bande]

International use will most likely benefit from simple pictograms. If any of the translations into multiple languages are mangled, weird and dangerous situations may arise.

in real life, maybe... but this is not our case! unless you want to be hyper-realistic at all costs, but then there would be greater troubles

 

[Hlynkacg]

International use will most likely benefit from simple pictograms. If any of the translations into multiple languages are mangled, weird and dangerous situations may arise.

I understand that, but this is more for my own (and hopefully others) amusement rather than serious space flight. :tiphat:

That said, If you have any Ideas for Useful/Amusing Pictograms please share them.

 

[Wishbone]

Anything with flying saucers will be errhm appropriate, don't know about amusing.

 

[N_Molson]

"Airlock!" : "Sas =>"

"Stand Clear: Thrusters in Use" : "Attention, réacteurs actifs"
"Flight Operations" : "Opérations de vol"
"Beware of Rockets!" : "Attention, fusées !"

"Radiation Hazard" : "Radioactif"

"Fire Hazzard" (On fuel tanks) "Inflammable"

"Hab Dome 1" : "Dome d'habitation n°1 =>"
"Loading Dock" : "Quai de chargement" =>"

"Beware of Martians!" (A joke) : "Attention aux martiens !"

"HAIL PROBE!" : No real translation, maybe : "Priez la Sonde !"

 

[Urwumpe]

Maybe we should also have a few of those warning signs with "Bug crossing" / "Skinny crossing".