Novell's Breakthrough Language Identifier Helps Lower Costs for Multilingual
Businesses
Novell Collexion Language Identifer Automatically Identifies 15 Languages, Lowers
Costs of
Management
PROVO, Utah -- June 16, 1997 -- Companies that do business in more than
one
language can now automatically identify foreign-language documents to help lower the costs of
their
management. The Novell Collexion Language Identifer is the first commercial product that can
identify the
language of E-mail, word processing documents, Internet Web sites, and more. This product
makes it easier
for companies to quickly and efficiently connect people via their networks to the information they
need do
their jobs.
Language Identifier is the fastest and most accurate engine of its kind, correctly identifying 15
different
languages on the basis of as few as three words. It speeds the process of filtering information to
appropriate
people and enhances the productivity of users who compose text in multiple languages. Software
developers can license Language Identifier to incorporate into products such as Web browsers,
e-mail
applications, word processors, and others. A demonstration is available on the World Wide Web
at http://www.novell.com/atd/.
"In the age of the Internet, businesses are rapidly increasing their international communication,"
said Rudy
Montigny, vice president of linguistic development for Novell. "Employees frequently spend
valuable time
determining the language origin of a message and routing it to someone who can read it. If they
write in
multiple languages, they frequently need to change the settings in their desktop applications. With
Language Identifier embedded into applications, companies will save both time and money by
automatically and efficiently labeling and sorting text messages for users."
Language Identifier employs a patent-pending language recognition technology that processes and
identifies
input seven times faster than the fastest competitors while using a seven-times-smaller data set. It
requires
no dictionaries or other large data files. The product has a language recall of virtually 100% for
input of 20
words or more and is also extremely precise.
Language Identifier has many uses. In a word processing application, it can automatically select
the
linguistic tools (spell checking, grammar checking, thesaurus, etc.) for the user, saving time and
effort. It
can also streamline document management systems by labeling documents with the source
language for
easy classification and retrieval, as well as determining whether translation is necessary before
showing
documents to the user. In Internet and E-mail applications, Language Identifier can rank
messages, query
hits and attached documents according to the user's language preferences. This offers a valuable
filter for
any Internet/intranet application, especially Internet search engines and information retrieval
systems.
"People often encounter useful documents on the Internet or receive electronic correspondence in
languages
they don't recognize," commented Dr. Giovanni Tata, president of Provo, Utah-based Transoft
International, a developer of language translation software. "Language Identifier dissolves
linguistic barriers
to make communicating nearly transparent -- users can route documents for translation or action
without
delays and confusion. With Language Identifier, our customers can easily and automatically
determine
which of our language translation modules to use for a specific document, regardless of its
source."
Language Identifier currently recognizes 15 different languages: Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish,
French,
German, Greek, Indonesian, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish and
Turkish.
Novell Collexion will add additional languages to accommodate customer requests. Language
Identifier is
available in Java for complete cross-platform functionality as well as C++ for Microsoft Windows
95,
Microsoft Windows NT, Apple Macintosh and NetWare Loadable Module (NLM). It supports
Ami Pro
files, HTML files, plain text files (ANSI, ASCII and OEM #437), Quattro Pro files, RTF files,
Microsoft
Word files and WordPerfect files. File types that contain no text, such as GIF or fully-graphical
Web
pages, are easily recognized and dismissed. Pricing information is available through Novell's OEM
sales
program.
Novell Collexion encompasses a suite of information retrieval tools, publishing tools, writing tools
and
linguistic components developed by Novell's Advanced Technology Division (ATD), the
worldwide leader
in linguistic technology and information retrieval development. ATD linguists and software
engineers
develop language-enabled technologies to make computing attractive and easy to use for the
average user.
ATD's solutions are not only an integral part of most of Novell's products, but are now available
to third-
party developers for integration into their applications.
Founded in 1983, Novell (NASDAQ: NOVL) is the world's leading provider of network
software. The
company offers a wide range of network solutions for distributed network, Internet, intranet and
small-
business markets. Novell education and technical support programs are the most comprehensive
in the
network computing industry. Information about Novell's complete range of products and services
can be
accessed on the World Wide Web at http://www.novell.com.
Novell is a registered trademark; and Collexion is a trademark of Novell, Inc.
Media Contact:
Austin Edgington
Novell, Inc.
Phone: (408) 577-6213
Internet: aedgington@novell.com
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