About the Authorized Translation Process at W3C

Dear Translators,

After many requests for a more official translation option for W3C  documents,
we are pleased to announce that W3C has developed a policy for "Authorized W3C
Translations"[1]. The goal of this policy is to enable production of
translations of W3C documents that can be used for official purposes, such as
referencing in local and regional standards, or as part of organizational
policies or regulatory processes.

The policy describes a process which ensures transparency and community
accountability in the development of authorized translations under the oversight
of W3C. Note the role of the "Lead Translating Organization" for a given
translation, and the cycles of  community review. We invite you to read through
the policy and let us know if you have any questions.

We want to emphasize that this new policy does *not* make the current
translation process, or translations that have been produced through that
process, either invalid or obsolete. We expect that, because of the significant
additional work involved in producing an authorized translation, this will be
used only where there is a clear need for a translation that is authorized by W3C.

Existing and new translations developed through our existing translation
process will not automatically become authorized translations; however, they may
be submitted into the process for developing Authorized W3C Translations if a
translator or his/her organization is willing to take on the responsibilities
defined in the policy. Translations developed through the existing process will
be known as "unofficial translations." There are over 700 of those in 44
languages, and these translations have become an invaluable resource in helping
to bring W3C technologies to communities around the World. We are grateful for
people's contributions of translations in the past, and in the future we will
welcome translations submitted under the existing unofficial process, as well as
the new Authorized W3C translation process.

If you are interested in undertaking the development of an authorized W3C
translation, please feel free to contact us if you have questions about any part
of the process.

Sincerely,

Ivan Herman (coordinator of W3C Translators) and
Ian Jacobs (head of communications at W3C)


[1] http://www.w3.org/2005/02/TranslationPolicy.html

--

Ivan Herman
W3C Communications Team, Head of Offices
C/o W3C Benelux Office at CWI, Kruislaan 413
1098SJ Amsterdam, The Netherlands
tel: +31-20-5924163; mobile: +31-641044153;
URL: http://www.w3.org/People/Ivan/